Never using a carboy again

My guess would be the temperature change but you maybe had a small crack you never noticed that exacerbated the break. I switched to buckets and never looked back. Easier to lift, Cheap, don't break. May not work for everyone but certainly works for me. Only thing I miss is watching fermentation.

 

Glass, I assume? You can get a PET carboy (eg Better Bottle) if seeing the beer matters to you.

 

That is a big drop in temp, and it also went into a fridge? I vote temp shift.

Welcome to the other side.
It's safer over here.

 

I use Northern Brewer's Big Mouth Bubbler. Best of both worlds.

 

whats the deal with the lids on those? I've wanted to switch from buckets to these for a while for IPAs (try my hand at closed transfers) but hear bad reviews of lid seal online. is that concern unfounded?


Thanks

 

I'll only use carboys for secondary - and I only secondary when I'm bulk aging for some reason (sour, BBA, etc.) I keep my carboys in milk crates, and I only transfer into them when in the crates - also makes it easier to move around.
But in your case, it's hard to say. probably a tiny chip or crack in the glass.with the temp change popped.

 

Used a little BMB for a while. You have to retighten the lid periodically. Doubt it matters for infection purposes but you wont see bubbling otherwise.

 

I've always used plastic Better Bottles. I know theres some sanitary concerns with small scratches, but I feel the pro's outweigh the cons.

 

Man that's scary. I wanted to use glass but it's too heavy.The Speidel fermenter works great. Just ordered my second.

 

I like how impervious glass is but those big glass carboys scare me. I won't use them. I have seen too many pics on the internet of horrific gashes from them breaking. I have 2 PET carboys that I use from time to time if I want to be a nosy brewer but buckets work great and they're very affordable. I do have one glass 5L demijohn that I will bulk age long term in but that is my only glass.

 

I really want to get a SS Brewtech 7 gallon stainless bucket. With proper care it'd certainly last a lifetime, but I'll always have a hard time justifying the price.

 

Amoritized over 100 batches, that's only ~ $2/batch

 

That really sucks, but it could have been a lot worse! You lucked out. Breaking carboys are serious business. Once saw a guy who's carboy broke on him while he was hugging it, swirling sani in it. Cracked down the middle. 100+ stictches and a couple of severed tendons. It looked like a shark bit him!
FWIW, used corny kegs are only a couple bucks more than a carboy and make for great fermenters!

 

it will take 2 for a 5 gal batch unfortunately

 

@Santosizer, I am sorry to hear about your lost beer but I am very glad to hear that you did not get hurt.

Switching over to plastic is the best thing for you both from a safety perspective (you won't ever need 100+ stitches) and from losing beer.

Cheers!

 

Glad it only ended in losing some beer. I had a near miss with a carboy when I first started brewing and have been using buckets for the last 13 years.

 

I've used glass carboys for 45 years without ever breaking one. I have no issues with glass carboys at all and far prefer them to plastic substitutes. I currently have about 10 glass carboys of different sizes.

 

You realize you've just ensured the fulfilment of Murphy's Law and Krusty's corollary , right?

 

I only have 2 glass carboys. They hold my Lambic inspired beers and don't move for years on end. They are in milk crates so I have handles for them. Better Bottles, large HDPE barrels, and 1/2 barrel keg converted to a "conical". My fleet of sours is like 10 BB deep, and 2 oak barrrels.