Carboy Transport

[Ward Chillington]

How do you do it?

So in prepping to bottle tomorrow night, I moved my glass Big Bubbler up from the basement without using the strap harness doing my level best not to slosh it around too much only to slosh it around too much or so I think. So silly as the question is, how do you move your brew? What's your method of carrying your carboy?

I think I had less sloshing the last times since I started doing 5 gallon batches because I used the strap but it was a little rougher on the lower back.

 

[BOB357]

Is there any reason why you need to move it upstairs to bottle? My preference would be to bottle where it is, moving as little as possible.
I'd be nervous moving a glass fermenter at all, let alone up a flight of stairs.

 

[Ward Chillington]

I'd be nervous moving a glass fermenter at all, let alone up a flight of stairs.

Oh yeah...naaa, I have no option as I don't have any set up in the basement to do the bottling work....at least right now.
The long term plan includes putting a sink and such down there but I hardly have enough room for the beer.
Maybe I'll just syphon the green beer into the bottling bucket and carry that up the steps next time?
Amazing what a little sleep can do for your thinking!

 

[Mase]

Oh yeah...naaa, I have no option as I don't have any set up in the basement to do the bottling work....at least right now.
The long term plan includes putting a sink and such down there but I hardly have enough room for the beer.
Maybe I'll just syphon the green beer into the bottling bucket and carry that up the steps next time?
Amazing what a little sleep can do for your thinking!

Glad to hear you’ve changed your mind about transporting the glass carboy. I know I’ve personally had a carboy shatter and I think it’s a question of when this will happen rather than if something will happen. I would either go plastic or Stainless and be done with glass. Personally, I would go with Stainless as it should be a one and done purchase, but plastic or stainless.... no glass dangers

 

[BOB357]

Oh yeah...naaa, I have no option as I don't have any set up in the basement to do the bottling work....at least right now.
The long term plan includes putting a sink and such down there but I hardly have enough room for the beer.
Maybe I'll just syphon the green beer into the bottling bucket and carry that up the steps next time?
Amazing what a little sleep can do for your thinking!

Good idea. As an extra added bonus, the priming solution will get some extra agitation

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

the best time to move your carboy is 3 or 4 days before packaging, 2 things happen, you slosh the yeast a bit untrapping anything on the bottom and the higher temp will allow for better clean up also it will settle by the time you package

 

[J A]

I find that highly floculent yeasts will settle back quickly when they're disturbed, especially if they're cold. When I'm racking to a keg in the few instances that I still use a carboy. I'll set it up on a table or the chest freezer for about 20 minutes and proceed from there. When I use a carboy, I set it on a small moving dolly (Harbor Freight) for filling right out of the boil kettle and it lives there for the duration. I can roll it to wherever I need it and lift it once during the whole process.
You couldn't pay me to lug a full carboy up basement stairs. Google images for "glass carboy injuries...horrifying!

 

[philjohnwilliams]

I like to transport my carboys in plastic milk crates like this https://www.homedepot.com/p/GSC-Tec...orage-Tote-in-Graphite-STMC13131115/306330052 and like Ozarks Mountain Brew says it is best to move it a few days before racking to let everything settle

 

[thunderwagn]

I've done it. When I bottled it was one of the things I changed quickly. I started transferring to the bottling bucket in the basement. I also did the milk crate thing a time or two, but never cared for all the sloshing around and waiting an hour or two to let everything settle back down.

I don't use my glass carboys as much as I used to, but I will say, other than getting the beer out and the cleaning, they are or have been my favorite to ferment in.

 

[Craigerrr]

I use glass carboys, use these handles for carrying, and these caps for doing pressure transfers. I carry them downstairs to my fermenting fridge, these handles make them easy and safe to carry, and clean.

 

[Mase]

That’s the same device that broke my carboy. Once mine broke, I recall looking into (Google) and finding I wasn’t the only one. They’re made for handling empty carboys. It’d be safer with a milk crate.

 

[Hogarthe]

You can't lift the carboy by the handle alone. Most of the weight needs to be supported from the bottom. Which then you can just grab the neck anyway, so the handle isn't that great.

 

[Craigerrr]

Hmmmm, guess I need to be more careful. I have a nylon strap carrier too, but it is back breaking to carry. Plan is to make room in my garage for my ferm fridge and eliminate going up and down stairs, at least with fermenters. Guess I should get on that!

 

[Mase]

Good idea.

 

[Ward Chillington]

I'm letting things sit another day as the sloshing AND the warmer temps of the house are giving me a little diacetyl rest I hadn't planned on...the stuff was at 1.008 already!

 

[BOB357]

I find that highly floculent yeasts will settle back quickly when they're disturbed, especially if they're cold. When I'm racking to a keg in the few instances that I still use a carboy. I'll set it up on a table or the chest freezer for about 20 minutes and proceed from there. When I use a carboy, I set it on a small moving dolly (Harbor Freight) for filling right out of the boil kettle and it lives there for the duration. I can roll it to wherever I need it and lift it once during the whole process.
You couldn't pay me to lug a full carboy up basement stairs. Google images for "glass carboy injuries...horrifying!

Pretty much the same here. Out of the fermentation fridge and onto the top of the chest freezer.
After cold crashing about the only thing that is disturbed are yeast floats. They settle out in a matter of minutes.

 

[Hawkbox]

Stainless.... you know you want to. Go Brew buckets!