Stainless steel FV

[paintingken]

I have been fermenting in a plastic Coopers FV but will be upgrading for my next brew. Are the cheaper Stainless steel FV's like the grandfather and Mangrove Jacks worth it or will i be chopping that in within a year and spending even more?
I generally do a beer every 2 or 3 months and can't see me doing more than the 20L batches. I know £130 is still a pain in the wallet but there are obviously a fair few £600+ bits of kit out there and I'm interested in anyones opinion on it. Thanks.

 

[AdeDunn]

Ok, well most replies to your question are going to be subjective, my own included. Now that's out of the way.... lol

They're mostly just buckets, made of steel, especially the "cheaper" ones. When I looked into investing in a better FV, the main pro just seemed to be longevity vs buckets made of plastic. Other than that, it's just shiny factor, shiny is nice.

At the higher, more expensive, end you get conicals etc, but yeah as you noticed that end is pricey....

So, ask yourself, is it enough that it'll be shiny and last longer? If yes, then there's your answer.
If no, you actually want more features, well, maybe look into PET pressure fermenters etc? Or the models sold by the likes of Speidel? I use a gen 1 Fermentasaurus (they're up to gen 3 now...), and a 30 litre Speidel FV, and they are both really really good FVs, at very different price brackets, and have very different features.

 

[paintingken]

Ok, well most replies to your question are going to be subjective, my own included. Now that's out of the way.... lol

They're mostly just buckets, made of steel, especially the "cheaper" ones. When I looked into investing in a better FV, the main pro just seemed to be longevity vs buckets made of plastic. Other than that, it's just shiny factor, shiny is nice.

At the higher, more expensive, end you get conicals etc, but yeah as you noticed that end is pricey....

So, ask yourself, is it enough that it'll be shiny and last longer? If yes, then there's your answer.
If no, you actually want more features, well, maybe look into PET pressure fermenters etc? Or the models sold by the likes of Speidel? I use a gen 1 Fermentasaurus (they're up to gen 3 now...), and a 30 litre Speidel FV, and they are both really really good FVs, at very different price brackets, and have very different features.

Thanks, yes I was thinking that it's probably easier to keep clean as I learned that scratches in plastic can cause problems.
Your recommendations look good but I had not even thought about fermenting under pressure. This hobby loves my wallet luckily the beer is tasting good.

 

[Horners]

I bought a klarstein 30l for around £90-100 and whilst it was a shiny upgrade the only added functionality was a tap at the bottom to rack from. Also it didn't fit in my fridge...wouldn't bother again.

I then bought a SS brewbucket master edition for about 200 - I love this - has a thermowell and a rotating racking arm both of which are great enhancements.

 

[dad_of_jon]

Thanks, yes I was thinking that it's probably easier to keep clean as I learned that scratches in plastic can cause problems.
Your recommendations look good but I had not even thought about fermenting under pressure. This hobby loves my wallet luckily the beer is tasting good.

I did the math plastic vs SS - I replace my plastic buckets every 2-3 years and the payback time was about 25 years for me, so I stayed with plastic. plus I make a sour as the last beer in a FV then throw all the old plastic stuff out to stop the risk of infection. I suppose I could keep the old plastic and use for sours but I have no space and 48 bottles of sour last a few years anyway. There can be different cleaning regimes when using plastic vs stainless steel as bleach can attack it whereas plastic is ok with bleach.

 

[AdeDunn]

Or pretend you're in the US, and get a glass carboy (ahhh, so many stories on US sites of people dropping them.... lol) as heh, they're bleach proof... lol

I kind of went the compromise route, as hated buckets. Tried a Speidel plastic FV first (they also make more expensive FVs, including steel ones), super easy to clean as stuff just doesn't stick to the special plastic, they have a nice wide neck, and the airlocks they make are HUGE! Big orange monsters! Still using it, just bought a new lid and tap (taps and airlocks don't usually come with by the way, but aren't expensive) as the o ring on my lid got old and saggy. They usually sell the o rings without a lid, but everywhere was out of stock, and was only a couple of pounds more for the entire lid... Down side is the flat bottom.

Then I bought my gen 1 Fermentasuarus in a sale (literally only just started using it....). Not nearly as easy to clean as the neck is tiny, but it's a conical, bought an insulating jacket for it that also keeps out the light. There's also the collection bottle at the bottom, but on the gen 1 some yeast sticks around the neck, but not enough to cause problems when bottling I found. Fermenting my second beer in it at the moment. I clean it with one of those bottle cleaner things that you attach to a drill (this one is designed for carboys), and PBW.

From what I've read though, no, steel isn't easier to clean. Steel still scratches, and as d o j mentions, you have to be careful with chlorine bleach as it can cause pitting in steel. Then there's the "oops, I cleaned off the volume marks inside my stainless FV" moments that could happen...

Oh, don't forget the other option, fermenting in a corny keg, as part of a corny keg setup that is.

 

[Braufather]

I’ve got a couple of spiedal 30 litres ones and they are great but definitely prefer my ss brewtech bucket. Not sating its any better, it’s most likely phycological! Was debating about getting a second but am tempted with a fermzilla too for pressure transfers.

 

[Loonytoone]

I agree with DoJ and treat fermenting buckets as consumables.
£10 or thereabouts from Wlikos, they start as malt storage bins, progress to FVs and end up used for bird seed or as general waste buckets.

 

[Kveik Freak]

How about the big 10-20L+ tubs that catering quantities of some foods come in? Food grade and possibly free if you ask around.

 

[Richard_H]

My plastic Brewferm fermenting bucket and bottling bucket have served me well over the last 3 years with quite a few brews. None of the taps leak, the lids still have a very tight seal and i get the overall impression that i will get atleast a few more years out of them.

The advantage of stainless steel for me would be zero chance of light pollution affecting the beer, being able to pitch the wort straight in when doing a no chill and the better build quality compared to plastic.

The biggest draw for me though would be a conical that allows me to dump the yeast/trub out of the bottom, no need for a secondary when bulk aging big beers and no disruption to the beer is extremely appealing

 

[Kveik Freak]

Maybe this is a mad idea for you maybe not, but quite a few of the stainless steel accouterments sold for dairying could be used as FVs or for other brewing purposes. Might be worth seeing what's available second hand, especially if you live in or near a farming community.