# How many use conicals?



## Ambassador (Jul 24, 2016)

Although I am still new to winemaking I am quickly developing disdain for siphons and repeated racking so I've been eyeballing conical fermenters (Fastferment, Brewtech.) I know these generally lend themselves more to beer than wine but I'm hoping to cross over to doing some beer soon. My search of the forums quickly turned up conflicting opinions (especially stuff on the earlier Fastferment model.) Is anybody on here using either of these and do you like them for making wine? Do you rack to carboy for final aging or leave it in the conical?


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## Boatboy24 (Jul 25, 2016)

IMHO, the money required to get conicals would be better spent simply purchasing a vacuum pump that will eliminate the need for siphons and help you with racking, degassing and bottling. YMMV, of course.


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## dcbrown73 (Jul 25, 2016)

Boatboy24 said:


> IMHO, the money required to get conicals would be better spent simply purchasing a vacuum pump that will eliminate the need for siphons and help you with racking, degassing and bottling. YMMV, of course.



This x100.


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## Ambassador (Jul 25, 2016)

I can see how the pump makes transfers much easier (and now I want one =) , but doesn't a conical have the ability to eliminate them completely? Not trying to split hairs or be argumentative, I just want make sure I'm understanding the pros and cons here aside from cost.


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## Brian55 (Jul 25, 2016)

I haven't tried any of the conical options, but now after several months of use I can confidently recommend the Speidel 30L plastic fermenter. It's well worth the price and makes bottling as easy as a vacuum pump set up, and almost as fast as a 1/2" auto-siphon. Definitely a nice alternative to plastic buckets.


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## dcbrown73 (Jul 26, 2016)

Ambassador said:


> I can see how the pump makes transfers much easier (and now I want one =) , but doesn't a conical have the ability to eliminate them completely? Not trying to split hairs or be argumentative, I just want make sure I'm understanding the pros and cons here aside from cost.



I would read the All In One Pump review thread.

The pump isn't just about racking wine. It's about racking, bottling, degassing, and even can be used for filtering if you so wish. It's the single best winemaking tool I've purchased by a long shot.


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## jburtner (Jul 26, 2016)

+1 on AIW for all those uses but I haven't actually bottled anything yet. I seem to be adding carboy's too as I make more batches - for mid term bulk ageing.... Harder to justify that expense for conicals - I'm up to five 5g carboys and two 6g's - four of them in service right now and tied up for the next months before I can liberate them and refill. Need more.

-jb


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## robk (Jan 3, 2017)

i have used the fastferment conical. it has been great and saved me a lot of time. i am expecting my second conical at my doorstep tonight. it makes great 5 gallon batches. the fun is back!


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## DoctorCAD (Jan 3, 2017)

Proud All in One owner and will be buying a FastFerment for my next batch. I simply have no room for wine making anymore and the FastFerment can get me through much of the process with very little floor space required. I will still vacuum transfer the finished wine to a carboy for sitting, but no other vessel will be required. I hope it works out.


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## GaDawg (Jan 4, 2017)

The All In One pump is without a doubt the best!


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## bkisel (Jan 4, 2017)

robk said:


> i have used the fastferment conical. it has been great and saved me a lot of time. i am expecting my second conical at my doorstep tonight. it makes great 5 gallon batches. the fun is back!



Have you used the fastferment with grape skin packs or fruit in nylon bags? Looks like it would be tough to do without a bigger opening. Other then that it looks like a nice concept.

Oh, what about having used it with a brew belt?


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## Mismost (Jan 4, 2017)

I use buckets with spigots...too cheap, too easy. First racking is a short hose into a carboy, hose to spigot, hose in carboy, and turn it on. Very easy to clean AND that is very important.

Hate to sound like a broken record, but use buckets, take the saved money and buy the All In One Pump. You can thank us later.


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## AkTom (Jan 4, 2017)

I'll pile on... All in One Wine Pump!!! With beer you have a short fermentation time. ~2 weeks. Rack into bottling bucket with priming sugar, bottle. 
My limited experience with wine is way more time in primary. Racking at least twice. Don't forget degassing. The pump does a great job degassing. You'll need to degass at least twice. Bonus, transfer and degass in one step. 
It could be I'm a simple noob (and I am) but I havent seen an advantage to using a conical for wine.
Did I say,? I love my all in one. 
Tom


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## barryjo (Jan 16, 2017)

jburtner said:


> +1 on AIW for all those uses but I haven't actually bottled anything yet. I seem to be adding carboy's too as I make more batches - for mid term bulk ageing.... Harder to justify that expense for conicals - I'm up to five 5g carboys and two 6g's - four of them in service right now and tied up for the next months before I can liberate them and refill. Need more.
> 
> -jb


You might want to check with a local bottled water seller locally. I managed to score 12 Culligan-type 5 gallon bottles. It didn't hurt that the owner liked wine!!!!!!!! A trade was consummated. Also, you can purchase 5-gallon bottled water for about $13. You get good water and a reusable carboy. I do not recommend bottles with lots of ridges. They hold sediment and are hard to clean. Also the plastic is thinner.


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## Mortalpawn (Jan 25, 2017)

I have a 14 gal SS Brewtech (stainless) Brewmaster conical with temperature control I've used for many styles of beer. I've not used it for wine, but I'm pretty certain it would be perfect for primary and secondary fermentations in one vessel. I don't 'secondary' my beers anymore - I ferment primary and secondary in the conical (often a month or more), including finings if needed. When I'm done I can pressure transfer it directly into the kegs.

Mine has the 1.5" triclamp butterfly valves which basically give you a 1.5" dump valve, which will move a lot of sludge/trub/lees out quickly since its sitting under 10-12 gallons of beer/wine. I dump it every few days while things are active and then a bit less as it settles.

For wine, the process would be the same. I would need to put any grape skins in a muslin bag, but that's about it. The entire top is removable if I need to pull the bag out, and it a sealed stainless pressure vessel once you close it up so there is no risk of oxygen getting in. I could easily degas from the 3" top, or remove the whole cover if needed. I can control fermentation temps within about 1 degree F. Obviously you can dump the lees at any time, and it also has a separate racking arm to avoid pulling any sediment when racking.

I probably would not bulk age in it only because I would not want to tie it up that long - but you can gravity or pressure transfer (with nitrogen) into carboys or kegs. I prefer bulk aging in kegs anyways as I can purge the oxygen headspace out with nitrogen. You can also serve and sample directly from a keg.

A very large number of pro wine makers ferment in stainless conicals because they are easy to clean, monitor, dump the lees and also avoid unnecessary transfers.


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