# Itialian Carboy Capacity



## Chopper (May 4, 2009)

It takes 3 gallons plus 2 cups of water tofill my 3-gallon Italian carboy up to the "one inch below bung" mark.


Can anybody confirm this for your 3-gallon Italian carboys?


The reason I'm wondering is because I heard that Italian carboys held more than the Mexican carboys. So I wanted to get an accurate measurement so I could adjust my recipes. And while trying to get an accurate measurement, I discovered that of the many measuring devices I have at home (gallon jugs, pitchers, measuring cups, etc), very few agreed. And some disagreed by amounts that would make a difference in the taste of wine (in my opinion).

I finallyfounda half-gallon pitcherthat pretty much agreed with a gallon pitcher.But both were made by Sterilite, so I kept trying until I found a quart measuring cup that pretty much agreed with the half gallon pitcher.


My 3-gallon Itialian carboy held 3 of the gallon pitchers, plus2 cups from the measuring cup. But I don't know if this is really accurate or not. Does anybody know for sure?

Thanks,


Chopper


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## vcasey (May 4, 2009)

I know the Italian carboys are larger then the Mexican carboys. I also have 1 6 gallon Mexican carboy that holds a lot more then the others. And none of them hold the exact same amount. I have just started making a bit extra and using wine bottles, 1/2 gallon jugs, or what ever will work to hold the extra. I use the extra to top off the carboy. 
VPC


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## grapeman (May 4, 2009)

If you want to know for sure where the 3 gallon mark is, use water. Water weighs 8.333 pounds per gallon. Weigh the carboy empty - say 15 pounds for the sake of argument. 3 gallons at 8.333 pounds is 25 pounds, so put water in until it totals 40 pounds. That will be the 3 gallon mark. Naturally if the carboy weighs different than 15 pounds, use that amount instead. You can do the same for 5 or 6 gallons.


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## Chopper (May 4, 2009)

appleman said:


> If you want to know for sure where the 3 gallon mark is, use water. Water weighs 8.333 pounds per gallon. Weigh the carboy empty - say 15 pounds for the sake of argument. 3 gallons at 8.333 pounds is 25 pounds, so put water in until it totals 40 pounds. That will be the 3 gallon mark. Naturally if the carboy weighs different than 15 pounds, use that amount instead. You can do the same for 5 or 6 gallons.




Thanks for the reply. However, I don't have any more confidence in my weight scale than I do in my volume measuring devices.


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## Tom (May 4, 2009)

Get an old gallon milk container and measure. It is not unusual for 3, 5, 6, 6 1/2 gallon carboys to have a little over than whats measured.


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## cpfan (May 5, 2009)

Yes, the Italian 6 US gallon carboys that are sold in Canada are larger than the Mexican 6 US gallon carboys.I have never heard thatabout the 3 US gallon carboys. I do know that one of them (I think the Mexican 3 USG carboy) is better with a #7 bung, and the other with a #6.5 bung.


Steve


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## victank1 (Jun 10, 2009)

Chopper, You have to remember that these JUGS come from a country which is on the metric scale and has probably changed liters to gallons. Also it is the same country which gave us Sophia Lorane, Bridget Bardoux and Gina Lolabrigetta. These JUGS also were of different sizes and hard to measure accurately..HA HA Brother in Law
Please excuse the spelling, I'm sure it is not accurate either.


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## cpfan (Jun 10, 2009)

victank1 said:


> Sophia Lorane, Bridget Bardoux and Gina Lolabrigetta. These JUGS also were of different sizes and hard to measure accurately..HA HA Brother in Law
> Please excuse the spelling, I'm sure it is not accurate either.



Well your spelling is way off, but only 2 of the 3 are Italian.


Steve


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## Mark (Jun 10, 2009)

Carboys are not supposed to be precision laboratory-grade vessels. 3 gallons is 48 cups, so if your carboy is 2 cups low then you're off by 4%. Most kits allow that they might be topped up with water post-fermentation, and if you're good at racking you can probably get by with only 1 bottle's worth (750mL in 23L) or about 3%. While I personally wouldn't add that much water, I don't think I would notice any significant change in taste until it got up around 10%. As an experiment, add 3% water to an 8oz glass of wine; that's 0.24 oz or about 1.5 teaspoons - if the taste difference is unacceptable then you should adjust your procedures to account for that 3% carboy error, or keep adding water until the difference becomes unacceptable so you'll know your personal limit. Otherwise just top 'er off (witha similar wine, not water!) and start that next kit!


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## PeterZ (Jun 11, 2009)

I find that plastic measuring cups are pretty accurate. You can pick them up at Walmart or other discount stores. I bought a bunch back when I had a darkroom and took them into the lab to check accuracy and they were quite accurate.


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## Dean (Jun 11, 2009)

it is even easier if you go metric. 1 litre of water is 1kg, so 23L (6 gallons) = 23kg
3 gallons (11.5L) = 11.5kg

want to find out how much your carboy will weigh when full of must? Take your SG, and multiply it by the weight. eg: 1.080*23=24.8kg + the weight of the carboy.

I love the metric system.


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## cpfan (Jun 11, 2009)

Whenver I read this kind of thread, I wonder where the manufacturer thinks the 'normal' fill line is. 1" below the bung (maybe 2" below the top) seems like it would be over full compared to what I see as standard fill lines in other liquid products. I would guess that 4-6" below the top would be the "normal" fill line. 
So yeah, Chopper's measurements are probably accurate.


Steve


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## IQwine (Jun 11, 2009)

Pictures please.
what would be "normal" ??


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## cpfan (Jun 11, 2009)

Normal for Chopper is apparently 1" below the bung. Normal for me is lower than that. Maybe 4" below the bung. Having said that the wine that I worked on yesterday is about 1" below the bung because that's how it worked out.


But that doesn't indicatewhat the manufacturer thinks is'normal'


Steve


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## Chopper (Jun 12, 2009)

OK, so what fill level do yall use in your carboys? I was under the impression that 1-2 inches below the bung was the much preferred target. Is that not correct?


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## cpfan (Jun 12, 2009)

Chopper said:


> OK, so what fill level do yall use in your carboys? I was under the impression that 1-2 inches below the bung was the much preferred target. Is that not correct?


 Yes a lot of people use that as their fill level. I don't usually fill the carboys that full (about 4" is the norm for me), but then I'm different.







Steve


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## Dean (Jun 12, 2009)

I'm about 4" too, and I typically bulk age for a year or more. Knock on wood, no oxidation yet in a lot of years of making wine.


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