I've read that the chemical makeup of the better bottle is slightly different then that of a standard culligan style bottle. The better bottle has a surface that is easier to clean and is less permeable then the culligan bottle.
But honestly, that's just one guys flawed memory of something he read awhile ago. Maybe somebody can validate/repudiate what I've said...
If it only holds EXACTLY 5 gal, then I'd be hesitant. I am pretty stubborn though and I'd probably try. I would definitely use a blow off tube instead of a traditional airlock.
You could put 5 gallons in it but use a blow off tube, otherwise your going to cleaning airlocks a lot or have an airlock blow out. The bottles I have have a very wide mouth so not sure how to handle that, would be a large bung or large tube. I have 8 of those things in my basement, in perfect conditions so if this works for you let me know...
Well my last attempt at answering a question was wrong...(I learned something new from this thread!)
But this attempt I feel more comfortable with:
If you're wondering about purchasing a new bottle for primary fermentation, get a 6 gallon. If you already have the 5 and must make it work...use a blowoff tube, but you very well may lose some beer. Here's a pic of a 5 gallon batch in a 6 gallon fermentor after 12 hours of fermentation:
kyabhvk5tgl.jpg
You can see that the Krausen has risen to near the top of the bottle and if it were a 5 gallon bottle all that foam (and some beer) will end up in your blowoff bucket.
It can be done though...and if your batch is on the short side (this one was about 5.25 gallons) it's more manageable. GL!
Interesting concept. I have been using bottled water to brew with, and just found 4 gallon RO water for a home water dispenser for $5.00. It comes in a handy container shaped just like a small Culligan bottle. I am experimenting with recipies for 2.5 gallons, and was looking for a small Better Bottle to ferment in. Hmmmmm, bought the water, and it came with its own fermenter! Brewing next week, so we will see how it goes.....
Well I think I will quit trying to do it cheap, now that I think about it a 6.5 glass carboy will be the best route and better in the long run.
If I spend a little more money now, it will save me more in the long run thanks for the advice.
It's fine to use. If you do 5 gal in it I would suggest using a 1" blowoff tube and putting the tube completely over the neck of the bottle with no stopper to keep it from clogging until the krausen falls. You are going to get quite a bit of krausen coming out.
I've read this a bunch. I'm not sure how you fit a 1" tube over the whole carboy bottle neck though. Is it because I'm only familiar w/ the plastic carboys/bb rather then the glass? I'm not in a place to measure right now, but if I had to guess the OD of my carboy opening is at least 1.5"....
My understanding is that most water cooler water bottles are not PET and are therefore extremely permeable to oxygen, leading to oxidized beer. I can't find a lot of evidence one way or the other, but you want to check for recycle code 1 on your bottles. Other plastics may contain BPA, be hard and brittle, or allow oxygen through the plastic.
You may have to shove it in the neck of the bottle. I don't recall how big the neck is on the water bottles. Point being is that you want to give the krausen as much room to escape as you can. Putting 5 gal into a 5 gal bottle gives you very little head space, so you have a good chance of creating a lot of krausen that needs someplace to go.
No I definitely hear ya on the need for a fatty blowoff tube...I was mostly just trying to learn to do it myself without using a carboy hood or a drilled stopper. Thanks for the reply.
Actually the water bottles are PET and have the same plastic ratings and recycle codes on the bottom as the True Brew buckets (I have both). Never fermented in the water bottle but I am considering doing so since I have so many of them. The opening is the issue, not sure but I think they are in fact an inch and a half.
It's the same thing with Ale Pails. There's nothing special about the plastic in them. They are made out of the same plastic using the same process as the buckets you get from Home Depot or Lowe's. The only difference is you can't get an HD bucket in a 6.5 gal size.
Anyone ever use a 1 gallon carlo rossi wine jug as a glass carboy? Do you think this is a good idea? I want to get another 1 gallon carboy (not ready to jump to 5 gallons at this time, as I simply don't have the room). What do you think?
I don't see why not. You'll need the right stopper with a hole drilled (or drill it yourself) for the airlock. This thread https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/rubber-stopper-sizes-107677/ has stopper sizes.
My local shop has extra large universal stoppers that fit nicely in culligahan bottles.
I dont recommend using your cullighan bottles for primary fermentation for wine because your stirring it and it's fizzing and growing and will likely overflow but after you rack it I would not hesitate to use it as a secondary!
I have a water bottle with the handle molded in the side. I did one batch in it. It was such a pain to clean I never used it again. I just couldn't trust it was completely clean.
Post time 2012-1-10 16:41:59
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