Fermenters whats the best and why

[Frisp]

Peeps.
I woke up this morning with a question on my mind.

Whats a great fermenter setup.

So todays mission should you wish to accept is to define which , in your opinion, is the dogs danglies in the fermenter line. Conversely whats the worst most mingingest fermenter you have ever come across. Im not after the shiniest the cheapest or the biggest... just what works for you and why.

Im using Wilkinsons fermenters with an airlock.. On the plus side they are cost effective at under 11 quid. On the downside Im not sure they will take a tap so I stick with syphoning and they can be a bugger to make airtight. They max out at 30L and 25L is about it when it comes to allowing some headspace for a frothy ferment.

I do fancy kitting up with 50 or 60L fermenter but then there is the question of handling all that weight

 

[prolix]

a temperature controlled stainless steel conical fermenter if you have the money to splash around.

Earl Pink will make one to your specs so no off the shelf rubbish there, though he is in Kiwi land so transport costs would make it even more costly. I believe Martin has one :thumb:

I have the second one here is 60L and I love it, have a 30L one that is similar rarely used (except for 23L brew lengths) which is very good.

a cheap fermenting bin does the job if you stick a tap on it, I am a tap man.

Glass carboys just scare me (I have two!) :shock:

Demijohn for my TC :party:

 

[Wez]

30L plastic buckets with drum taps fitted for me - as the drum taps come apart you can give them a proper clean, the buckets are cheap enough to replace if they get scratched.

 

[Frisp]

This is going to sound a bit daft. has anyone used those 60 blue cliptop bins as fermenters. I know that they get used for food products so Im assuming that they impart no taste into said foodstuffs?

 

[Phil]

I use a conical fermenter that I've adapted to heat and cool. It's controlled by an ATC800.

I also use two stainless sankey style kegs with the tops cut out and a ball valve fitted to the bottom. So far I've only rigged them up to heat as my garage is so cold I don't have to worry about cooling at this time of year. When I get around to it I shall fit a cooling coil to them too.

The beauty of stainless is that it's so easy to clean and it lasts for ever. Having the heating and cooling controlled makes life really easy. My beers came on in leaps and bounds once I started controlling the fermentation temperature of the beer itself.

Next time I'm brewing I'll take some pictures.

/Phil.

 

[Aleman]

Conical Fermenters for me . . . either plastic or Stainless. I've got a couple of 100L stainless pots that I use as fermenters. Those Heavy duty HDPE fermenters are pretty good as well . . . and I have 2 of those . . . . I'm with Phil though, Stainless is pretty difficult to beat for longevity purposes, and a doddle to keep clean.

 

[Vossy1]

I use the 60ltr one as prolix uses.
If I had the space I'd love a ss conical :mrgreen:

 

[Aleman]

I've got a possible contact that I'm pursuing for a 1BBL stainless conical (Working Volume mind!!) for a little over 750 quid

 

[BrewStew]

Aleman, if he can do a 200L conical for that much, how much are we talking for 100L?

 

[Aleman]

The fermenters are 100% stainless steel, finished to as high a standard as any on the market and are pressure rated up to 20PSI. They have a rotating racking arm (for easy sediment-free siphoning) and 3-piece ball valves.

20L approx £300 + UK postage
50L approx £400 + UK postage
100L approx £520 + UK postage
200L approx £780 + UK postage

Collect from North London if you don't fancy the postage

It's a group buy that someone is organising . . . Its gone a bit quiet at the moment as the guy has been on Holiday . . . I'm going to drop a line to see if its been forgotten, the more we get the more the 'discount' we can negotiate for

 

[Vossy1]

Keep me informed Aleman :thumb:

 

[BrewStew]

me too! :thumb:

 

[MEB]

Plastic buckets and the like for me.

SS conical is on my list from Earl but i'm too busy to worry about buying more brewery stuff at the mo. And a bit poor due to a large landscaping project i'm doing.

 

[prolix]

The fermenters are 100% stainless steel, finished to as high a standard as any on the market and are pressure rated up to 20PSI. They have a rotating racking arm (for easy sediment-free siphoning) and 3-piece ball valves.

20L approx £300 + UK postage
50L approx £400 + UK postage
100L approx £520 + UK postage
200L approx £780 + UK postage

Collect from North London if you don't fancy the postage

It's a group buy that someone is organising . . . Its gone a bit quiet at the moment as the guy has been on Holiday . . . I'm going to drop a line to see if its been forgotten, the more we get the more the 'discount' we can negotiate for

Right thats it the family are on emergency rations and who needs gas and electricity if it isn't a brew day anyway!
:twisted: