Is a Fast Ferment any good?

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jceg316

jceg316

Landlord.
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One of my 20 litre glass carboys got a huge crack in it so I'm in the market for a new fermentation vessel. I was thinking this could be an opportunity to get something fancy like a fast ferment. I have some reservations and it would be great if someone who has used one for a while could answer.

1. It's made of plastic, I moved away from plastic buckets because they are permeable to air, scratch easily and I've had brews go off before because of this. Is the FF any different or do I need to be careful of scratches andthe time the beer is in the FF for?

2. It comes with a lot of stuff, but does it come with a bottling attachment of some kind? Could I attach a bottling wand?

3. Is it easy to bottle with a FF (if a bottling wand is out the question).

4. It has a thermowell, can I add my own temp gauge or do I need to use their own which probably costs a lot and has weird dimensions?

Thanks in advance!
 
I've been looking at those as well. But what's stopping me is my current setup is working well.
 
jceg316 said:
One of my 20 litre glass carboys got a huge crack in it so I'm in the market for a new fermentation vessel. I was thinking this could be an opportunity to get something fancy like a fast ferment. I have some reservations and it would be great if someone who has used one for a while could answer.

1. It's made of plastic, I moved away from plastic buckets because they are permeable to air, scratch easily and I've had brews go off before because of this. Is the FF any different or do I need to be careful of scratches andthe time the beer is in the FF for?

2. It comes with a lot of stuff, but does it come with a bottling attachment of some kind? Could I attach a bottling wand?

3. Is it easy to bottle with a FF (if a bottling wand is out the question).

4. It has a thermowell, can I add my own temp gauge or do I need to use their own which probably costs a lot and has weird dimensions?

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Had the plastic one since Xmas and they are OK but not any quicker to ferment out IMO,also its more labour intensive than a bucket.I did a review of them on here a while back,the link needs attatching

http://goo.gl/AeCr0V

Here you go
 
Other than harvesting yeast imho a conical vessel at our level of production will not reduce losses significantly. but if its something you want go for it, personally i would look at thermopots or stock pots for larger volume SS fermentors, and a thru the lid mod for a cooling coil is not a huge challenge, i use a 80l one for bigger brews, leaving the inner skin intact and siphoning out rather than draining leaves no nook for a nasty and a scrub with a stainless steel pan scrubby shifts any deposits in seconds making a thorough clean a quick job..
 
Fil said:
Other than harvesting yeast imho a conical vessel at our level of production will not reduce losses significantly. but if its something you want go for it, personally i would look at thermopots or stock pots for larger volume SS fermentors, and a thru the lid mod for a cooling coil is not a huge challenge, i use a 80l one for bigger brews, leaving the inner skin intact and siphoning out rather than draining leaves no nook for a nasty and a scrub with a stainless steel pan scrubby shifts any deposits in seconds making a thorough clean a quick job..
Click to expand...

Makes sense, less surface exposed, thus less cleaning required.
 
Last edited:
Just looked at the links and started looking around the wilko site... you can get 50 caps for a pound????? lucky chaps!! I pay probably 3 times that!
The only thing I can think that I like about the FF is harvesting the yeast cake. Before those FF's were made, the stainless steel ones are PRICEY! So this puts another level in brewing in reach. But, plastic!? scratches!? Maybe if they were half the price, it would be worth buying them because you know, like buckets, you have to chuck them after some time due to infections. That's why glass is the best way to go as of now.
 
Godsdog said:
Had the plastic one since Xmas and they are OK but not any quicker to ferment out IMO,also its more labour intensive than a bucket.I did a review of them on here a while back,the link needs attatching

http://goo.gl/AeCr0V

Here you go
Click to expand...

Thanks for the post. Reading your review it does look a bit off putting that even with the stand more work and expense has to be done. Whilst I wouldn't expect it actually ferment faster, does it make more consistent beer and easier harvest? Also I do like that you can take off the yeast and trub and then the beer is in secondary. Saves on transferring.

I won't get plastic buckets because the amount they need replacing means in the long run they become more expensive than glass. Plus there's the environmental cost of having to throw out a plastic bucket every few months which remains on landfill for a long long period of time.

A SS vessel is out my price range for now, especially considering the cost does not justify the benefits at this stage.
 
As regards the scratching issue its a far better grade plastic than a brewing bucket a little on the harder side also the first few brews did leave a plastic taste in the beer but that's all gone now.if you have a dedicated space by a water supply then its better mounted on the wall with the brackets supplied as you can set it at the height to suit.I didn't have that option and found the stand a little too low hampering the bottle removal,hence I built the cube
 
Keep us posted. Give us the real view when you get it. They do look great. I haven't tossed the thought away about getting one.
 
I've read your posts, this one and you've given feedback on previous posts. I've even thanked you for you input if I remember correctly.
Agenda, since equipment comes and goes as much as methods do, I haven't crossed this bit off yet. I really do like the thought of removing the yeast and trub since now all I do is harvest, grow and reuse my yeast. I'm sorry if I stepped on your fermenting turf. This dude got input from you and others. He (could be a she) pulled the trigger and got one. Now let's add him the group who has these items for others to get a view point on. No fowl. Certainly doesn't warrant a WTF.
 
JapanBrew said:
I've read your posts, this one and you've given feedback on previous posts. I've even thanked you for you input if I remember correctly.
Agenda, since equipment comes and goes as much as methods do, I haven't crossed this bit off yet. I really do like the thought of removing the yeast and trub since now all I do is harvest, grow and reuse my yeast. I'm sorry if I stepped on your fermenting turf. This dude got input from you and others. He (could be a she) pulled the trigger and got one. Now let's add him the group who has these items for others to get a view point on. No fowl. Certainly doesn't warrant a WTF.
Click to expand...
Maybe you should have said get another/alternative view or even a more comprehensive view and NOT the real view
 
Long time lerker here and i dont post much. I love making homebrew but don't enjoy the process just want the result :) i almost gave it up about six months ago then i bought a fast ferment. This thing has made me want to brew again. Since xmas i have done a tripel, a white wine, a dunkle, and a pear cider is currently in there. No off tastes ( i do use pbw right after its done). Its do much easier rather than having a secondary. Was kind of upset that the stupid stand was so expensive but my wife wouldnt let me attach it to the wall

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk
 
pennstategrad22 said:
Long time lerker here and i dont post much. I love making homebrew but dont enjoy the process just want the result :) i almost gave it up about six months ago then i bought a fast ferment. This thing has made me want to brew again. Since xmas i have done a tripel, a white wine, a dunkle, and a pear cider is currently in there. No off tastes ( i do use pbw right after its done). Its do much easier rather than having a secondary. Was kind of upset that the stupid stand was so expensive but my wife wouldnt let me attach it to the wall

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. Yeah one of the biggest selling points for me is the lack of moving the beer about as I can ferment, condition and bottle from one vessel. I bought the stand as well as there's no where I can attach it to right now.

I bought it today and I'll write a review on my blog, will post a link here. It will probably be in a month or so as I'll do the review once the beer is ready, and will wait for fermentation and bottle conditioning etc.
 
I wonder if someone in China has made a knockoff!? I contacted the company and asked if the would send one to Japan and the said no. On eBay, there are a few but the shipping is the same price as the unit.
The bottling thing sounds cool!!
 
JapanBrew said:
I wonder if someone in China has made a knockoff!? I contacted the company and asked if the would send one to Japan and the said no. On eBay, there are a few but the shipping is the same price as the unit.
The bottling thing sounds cool!!
Click to expand...

I'm surprised there isn't some sort of cool equivalent there. Is homebrewing big out in Japan? I know that craft beer has taken off well so I would assume that maybe homebrewing has as well?
 
jceg316 said:
I'm surprised there isn't some sort of cool equivalent there. Is homebrewing big out in Japan? I know that craft beer has taken off well so I would assume that maybe homebrewing has as well?
Click to expand...

It's exciting because it's just started. So it's like getting a chance to be one of the first to get craft beer going. My good friend open a brewery near my town at about 10 million dollars. Put everything in it. And he's still growing.
However, homebrewing is still illegal so you have to tread lightly.
 

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