# How many carboys do you have?



## skiboarder72 (Mar 4, 2010)

Just taking a poll, how many 5 or 6 gallon carboys do you have for winemaking?


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## Racer (Mar 4, 2010)

I'm probably still a light weight when it comes to carboys. But I have 2, 5 gallon and 5, 6 gallon carboys and 1, 6.5 gallon. Depending on the time of year that is either too many or too few carboys.

Oh and even though you didn't ask for smaller sizes. 5, 3 gallon carboys too.


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## Runningwolf (Mar 4, 2010)

Honestly, I couldn't tell you without going into the basemet and counting. It has to be over 10 for 5 & 6 gallon carboys. I just picked up 2 - 1 gallon ones yesterday for the first time. Every couple of months I try to sneak another one or two in the house.

 OK I counted tonight... (1) seven gallon, (12) six gallon, (3) five gallon and (2) 1 gallon. I really need to focus on getting some 1/2 gallons and bungs for 750mm bottles.


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## grapeman (Mar 4, 2010)

You are kidding, right? You haven't even scratched the surface for numbers yet. Your categories should have been in multiples of 10 at least! LOL I can't say in public how many I have........................


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## Green Mountains (Mar 4, 2010)

currently 4 but that will be going up soon.


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## Tom (Mar 4, 2010)

Who made up this survey? 
I think there should be 10+, 15+, 25+, 30+ carboys.. I have More than the last # LOL !

Must be a newbee ...


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## mmadmikes1 (Mar 4, 2010)

22 6ers,16 5er'and hell ones count, 8 or 10 or so of those.


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## rodo (Mar 4, 2010)

2-5 gallon and 9-6 gallon but thinking about picking up 1 more of each when I go to the winery on Saturday. I'm just getting started.

Rod


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## Runningwolf (Mar 4, 2010)

Tom, I thought the same thing.


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## ffemt128 (Mar 4, 2010)

I'll play even though I just started the game in October 2009, I have 2-3, 2-5, 2-6 and about 4-1 gallon.


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## xanxer82 (Mar 4, 2010)

As of today I have 
2 6 gallon better bottles
2 italian 6 gallon
2 5 gallon mexican
1 glass 3 gallon
2 1 gallon jugs
Yeah I'm catchin the fever. I think I'm using the 2 5 gallons for beer only though.


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## jet (Mar 4, 2010)

*Nosey FNG question*

How do you guys use up all that wine?

I'm just now clarifying my first kit. I really enjoy doing it, but I'm concerned that I won't be able to drink it fast enough. I figure that it would take me 15 months to drink one kit, and that's assuming I drank nothing else (which isn't going to happen). Contrast that to the guy I read today who does 1-2 kits a month just break even. OMG, that's almost 60 bottles a month!


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## Tom (Mar 4, 2010)

LOL !!!
Gee I go thru close to 90 bottles a month (2-3 a day)... Now when I was a newbee. I did say something close to what you said. But, look what happens when the "hobby" takes over...


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## skiboarder72 (Mar 4, 2010)

Holy cow! Alright well I think I'll have to redo this poll at a later time, with more options... I really can't believe that people have this many carboys though! What the hell does everyone do with all of them? Are you selling the wine? Seriously 10+ carboys!!


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## mmadmikes1 (Mar 5, 2010)

1 is too many and 40 isn't enough, what do you do with all the wine, my son is coming over with backhoe this weekend to dig out new wine cellar. Seriously I give away a lot of wine. My goal is to convert the small town I live in to wine drinkers


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## Julie (Mar 5, 2010)

I have 2-6 gallon, 7-5 gallon, 3-3 gallon, 5-1 gallon, 3-3 liter.

All full except for 1-6 gallon, 1-5 gallon, 1-3 gallon & 1-1 gallon. These would be full as well but I need them for racking.


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## JohnT (Mar 5, 2010)

in 1990, I started with 5cb, 
by 1995, I had grown to 10 demijohns 
by 2000, I had grown to 4 500liter stainless steel tanks (holds 2 year worth)


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## IQwine (Mar 5, 2010)

I worry about people with less than 20 carboys


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## Leanne (Mar 5, 2010)

Tom said:


> Who made up this survey?
> I think there should be 10+, 15+, 25+, 30+ carboys.. I have More than the last # LOL !
> 
> Must be a newbee ...



I've lost count.


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## xanxer82 (Mar 5, 2010)

I learned to keep a couple empty for racking


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## mmadmikes1 (Mar 5, 2010)

Or go buy another when you need to rack something


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## Midwest Vintner (Mar 5, 2010)

i think we need a new poll. one showing 10+


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## WhineMaker (Mar 5, 2010)

3 - 6 gallon glass
1 - 6 gallon better bottle

I want to make an ice wine soon, so a 3 gallon glass carboy is on my wish list.


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## Wade E (Mar 5, 2010)

8-6's, 4-5's, 2-3's, 5-1's, 2-3 liters


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## Runningwolf (Mar 5, 2010)

Wade E said:


> 8-6's, 4-5's, 2-3's, 5-1's, 2-3 liters



is that 4-5's or a 45 cal


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## Wade E (Mar 5, 2010)

I dont have a .45 but will some day, right now I have the 9mm and .223 but would also love to get a .50.


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## grapeman (Mar 5, 2010)

My .50 cal is a PITA. It uses percussion caps and is constantly misfiring or having the caps fall off. The deer come to me when I have it with me because they know they are safe around me then.


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## TheTooth (Mar 5, 2010)

5-6gallon, 2-3gallon, 4-1gallon. And a couple dozen kegs.


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## Wade E (Mar 5, 2010)

6 kegs myself.


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## Tom (Mar 5, 2010)

Oh we doing (counting) kegs? I have 23 + & 3 - 2 1/2 gal cornies


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## Slyder73 (Mar 5, 2010)

How about some pictures of your folks operations? Do you with many carboys keep them all in action all the time? Who drinks it all? lol


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## Tom (Mar 5, 2010)

Gee... I have carboys all over my house. Click my "Fermenting" sig to see whats aging TODAY.
Oh I / WE drink 2-3 bottles a DAY !


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## Wade E (Mar 5, 2010)

I usually have all mine in some kind of progress, maybe 1 or 2 free so that i can rack a wine off some lees.


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## Runningwolf (Mar 5, 2010)

I am in the process of ordering some fresh juice for some empty carboys.


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## deboard (Mar 5, 2010)

I decided a while back that 3 gallon batches was what I wanted to focus on for a bit. So I currently have 6 3 gallons carboys and 4 1 gallon carboys.


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## Julie (Mar 6, 2010)

Dan

You have way too many empty carboys. :<


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## rodo (Mar 6, 2010)

Dan
What are the blue bungee straps on 2 of your carboys?

I like how you have your carboys tilted back I'm going to try that myself.

Rod


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## Tom (Mar 6, 2010)

rodo said:


> Dan
> What are the blue bungee straps on 2 of your carboys?
> 
> I like how you have your carboys tilted back I'm going to try that myself.
> ...


That is a Heat Belt.


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## Runningwolf (Mar 6, 2010)

rodo said:


> Dan
> What are the blue bungee straps on 2 of your carboys?
> 
> I like how you have your carboys tilted back I'm going to try that myself.
> ...



AS Tom said those are heat belts. The one on the left is WE symphony I just racked from the primary and the one on the right is WE Trio Blanco I am trying to get clearer before filtering. My basement is 66-68 degrees and that works for me for most things but once in awhile you need to give the old wine a belt , especially helps in the primary.


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## Runningwolf (Mar 6, 2010)

Julie said:


> Dan
> 
> You have way too many empty carboys. :<



Empty my ***. They all have 1-3" of k-meta in them


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## djrockinsteve (Mar 6, 2010)

Hi, my name is Steve and I am a "wine making-a-holic"!


I have 12 (5) gallon carboys
4 or 5 (3) gallon
15 (1) gallon and 2 (1/2) gallon carboys.
All glass. I do need to add some more 5 gallon.
Probably end up with 20 total by this fall. I have plans of blending many for the next large batch.


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## djrockinsteve (Mar 6, 2010)

mmadmikes1 said:


> Or go buy another when you need to rack something



That's me too!


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## mmadmikes1 (Mar 6, 2010)

djrockinsteve said:


> Hi, my name is Steve and I am a "wine making-a-holic"!
> 
> 
> I have 12 (5) gallon carboys
> ...


 Hi Steve, keep coming back


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## djrockinsteve (Mar 6, 2010)

mmadmikes1 said:


> Hi Steve, keep coming back



I love this sight and all the coments!
I just racked my blueberry (one 3 gallon, one half gal. Plus a bottle) to secondary. I'm not adding anything to expedite clearing. I'm doing it "Luc" style.

Thank you everyone for all your help!!!!


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## Slyder73 (Mar 6, 2010)

I'm feeling quite envious of you folks who have the space to have setups like in those pics! lol
I have to do it all in my 1 bedroom condo, so the wine operation is part of the dining room cabinet decoration scheme, only 2 carboys and a plastic fermenter that tucks in a closet. 
Fine for current needs but I'd run out of wine quickly if I decided to bulk age a while.


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## mmadmikes1 (Mar 6, 2010)

every room in my house has something for wine making


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## Julie (Mar 6, 2010)

Runningwolf said:


> Empty my ***. They all have 1-3" of k-meta in them



LOL that does not count!


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## wines just fine (Mar 7, 2010)

One too few!


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## grapeman (Mar 7, 2010)

Here are some carboys of all sizes and shapes to show you what's cooking. These are all from cold hardy wine grapes. The winery is ever evolving, so ignore the wires hanging out of the walls and such. They are capped off or reattached to their outlets or devices now. This is becoming the bottling room/lab.


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## Midwest Vintner (Mar 7, 2010)

grapeman, do you cover the windows?


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## grapeman (Mar 7, 2010)

No I don't cover the windows. The picture looks brighter than it usually is in that room. It is my personal feeling that keeping your wine in the dark is overdone. My wine isn't in the bright sunlight so I don't worry. Like everyone else when I began, I heard the deal of keeping it in the dark, so I have been running an experiment. I have a rose and a white wine sitting in a window for decoration and both of them are in clear glass. Any color change to them has been miniscule. I do throw a t-shirt over the carboys sitting right next to the windows, but that's it.


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## skiboarder72 (Mar 7, 2010)

I have to admit, the peer pressure made me buy another 6 gallon & 1 gallon carboy today...


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