Adding a tap to a FV

[Berk]

I was considering adding a tap to one (or both) of my fermenting buckets. I've got two five gallon fermenting buckets, and while syphoning off my stout last week I figured how much easier it would be to just be able to turn a tap and pour it out.

I'm thinking that it would be better to have a tap on the secondary vessel as there would be less chance to rack off the trub from primary fermentation. So the process would be, syphon the brew from the primary fermentation bucket in to the secondary vessel with the tap, to leave the trub behind and for easy priming, then use the tap to fill up bottles and barrels. Does this sound like the sensible way to go about things?

If so, do people have any recommendations for a tap that I could use that would fit a syphon tube and bottling wand? I've been looking at the Brewferm Red Tap, that seems custom made for the job.

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[bobsbeer]

I personally don't like taps in my primary FV as they are a pain to keep clean and sanitise. The Little Bottler comes with a tap so check that out if you haven't got one.

 

[Berk]

That's a fair point. I found similar problems with my pressure barrels, I ended up removing the tap, sterilising it separately, then putting it back on the barrel when I sterilised the whole thing in an effort to make sure it was all as sterile as possible.

What do you think about my plan to add a tap to the secondary FV? Similar problems with sterilisation, but does the convenience when bottling outweigh that?

 

[bobsbeer]

I only have a tap on my bottling bucket. While a tap is a tempting feature the cons win out for me, so I would say don't bother unless you plan on bottling straight from the secondary. But I would have thought you would want to rack and add your priming sugar before bottling. Thereby leaving as much muck behind after it has cleared. You don't want to stir it all up when mixing the sugar.

 

[Berk]

It's pretty much what I was thinking of, using the second FV as a bottling bucket, somewhere to syphon the brew to to prime and leave most of the trub behind and then bottle from there.

 

[naturals]

I don't have a tap on my primary fermentation vessel either - it all gets syphoned off in one go which really isn't that much bother. Once in the bottling bucket I have a tap / little bottler for the tricky stuff.

What stopped me having one is the risk of leaks. I figure if the HLT or kettle leak the worst case is to chuck a towel on the floor and tighten everything up after brewing. If the tap on your FV leaks?! Sit and watch it leak for two weeks in primary? Transfer to a new FV and risk oxidation / contamination? For a single syphon operation saving that seems too risky for me.

The only thing I miss is the ease of taking samples for tasting / gravity checks. That must be a hell of a lot easier with a tap as you don't need to take the lid off.

 

[rpt]

I have two identical FVs with taps. One is for fermenting in and one for bottling. The tap in the fermenter makes it very easy to take hydrometer samples. Without it, I would really struggle to take a sample as there isn't much space in my fermenting fridge. Never had a problem with a leak or infection. I make sure it is well cleaned.

 

[jonnymorris]

...using the second FV as a bottling bucket, somewhere to syphon the brew to to prime and leave most of the trub behind and then bottle from there.

Exactly what I do. Little bottlers come with a tap.

 

[Berk]

Cheers everybody. I ordered a Little Bottler today while the wife wasn't looking. After the mess we made of the kitchen bottling my stout, I'm sure she won't object too much to the Little Bottler. I'll add it to one of my FV's for use as a priming/bottling bucket and keep the other FV as my primary fermenter.

It does mean only one brew on the go at a time, but I'd already decided on that as I wanted to keep a bucket free for priming anyway.

 

[bobsbeer]

I find it easier to put the Little Bottler wand on the end of a length of silicone hose. I then set all my bottles on the floor and move from bottle to bottle until they are all filled. Saves lifting each one and speeds up the operation. I just sit on a chair during the whole operation. At the end I then lift them up to the counter and cap.

 

[Titus A Duxass]

I find it easier to put the Little Bottler wand on the end of a length of silicone hose. I then set all my bottles on the floor and move from bottle to bottle until they are all filled. Saves lifting each one and speeds up the operation. I just sit on a chair during the whole operation. At the end I then lift them up to the counter and cap.

I do exactly the same thing.

 

[naturals]

I find it easier to put the Little Bottler wand on the end of a length of silicone hose. I then set all my bottles on the floor and move from bottle to bottle until they are all filled. Saves lifting each one and speeds up the operation. I just sit on a chair during the whole operation. At the end I then lift them up to the counter and cap.

Such a good idea - I don't know why this hadn't occurred to me before.

 

[Berk]

I find it easier to put the Little Bottler wand on the end of a length of silicone hose. I then set all my bottles on the floor and move from bottle to bottle until they are all filled. Saves lifting each one and speeds up the operation. I just sit on a chair during the whole operation. At the end I then lift them up to the counter and cap.

That sounds like a plan, Stan, er, Bob.

I've got two syphons, So I'll steal one the those tubes for this, it should also mean I can just take off the wand, and use the syphon to fill the barrel with minimal fuss.