Plastic Fermenters Carboy Bucket

Plastic carboys manufacturers North Stills

When it comes to brewing, a plastic carboy is a vessel that is used in fermenting drinks such as beer, wine, perry, cider and mead. In most cases, it’s fitted with a fermentation lock and a rubber stopper to block the entry of oxygen and bacteria during the fermentation process.

For an homebrewer, a carboy is an important part of the fermentation process. Once the primary fermentation is fully completed, the brew is transferred either directly to bottles or to another carboy for further conditioning. This is known as racking.

Beer carboys are basically large vessels made of plastic or glass and have a narrow neck. Homebrewers normally use a plastic or glass carboy as a second fermenter. Nonetheless, they are still commonly used as primary fermenters, too. That’s where your beer will stay for the entire duration of the fermentation process.

Carboys and Fermentation Buckets

The main benefit of using a carboy over a fermentation bucket is that it is transparent. With a carboy, you can see clearly into the vessel, which allows you to monitor the fermentation process more easily.

Being able to monitor the fermentation process allows you to take the guesswork out of the process and also helps you to understand the exact stages that should be taking place at any time of the fermentation process.

With a fermentation bucket, you need to remove the lid. This not only increases the chances of contamination, but can also interfere with the krauesen or trub and reduce the clarity of your homebrewed beer.

Carboys are generally quite smaller than fermentation buckets and decrease the amount of undesired headspace that can increase the risk of oxidation of your homebrewed beer. Moreover, the tapered neck of your new plastic carboy minimizes the amount of empty space inside and provides a passage for oxygen to flow out through a blow off tube or airlock.

On the other hand, fermenting buckets are easier to handle and carry than carboys since they usually have a fitted handle. Then again, you can easily carry your plastic carboy around if it has a carboy handle. This feature is safely attached to the neck of the device, allowing you to safely lift and carry it around.

These strong, durable carboys are not made of your ordinary plastic material, but rather a PET (polyethylene terephthalate copolymer) plastic that doesn’t break easily, even if you accidentally drop it. Plastic carboys are very light in weight, very easy to clean and do not add any unpleasant odor or taste to your beer. These vessels are also free of plasticizers, DEHP and BPA, so you can use them with confidence knowing that they are safe and functional.

Another benefit of buying a PET carboy for your home brewing needs is that you can readily install a spigot or purchase one with a spigot already installed. However, it is important to point out here that installing a spigot in your PET carboy is not absolutely necessary. Moreover, it will be more difficult to clean. It is certainly a nice addition to have, but it’s important to consider the pros and cons before adding one yourself.

Their overall ease of cleaning and their light weight nature is what makes PET carboys unique. There are many other features and options available out there that would be much more difficult to reproduce with a glass carboy. Some of those features may not be absolutely necessary, but they definitely are good to have with you.

When all’s said and done, you want to brew a great product regardless of whether you’re using a PET carboy, a glass carboy or a fermentation bucket. You might actually prefer glass to plastic carboys, but you still cannot ignore some of the main advantages that plastic carboys have over glass.

We offer a wide range of plastic beer carboys and fermenting buckets in different sizes and styles. Whether you want a smaller plastic carboy or a large fermenting buckets, you’ll find a wide array of plastic storage vessels and accessories to suit your exact homebrewing needs.

Regardless of which kind you decide to buy, plastic carboys offer some great advantages over glass carboys when it comes to secondary fermentation, beer clarification and conditioning.