# Extra Carboys



## smurfe (Jun 21, 2005)

Do I need an extra carboy? I noticedmany "deluxe" kits have two carboys.The deluxekit I ordered from this site appears to have one. I notice that most recommend racking from carboy to carboy so it appears I need another? 


After my first kit gets going, I want to start another as the wife prefers whites and I prefer reds plus I really want to try an Island Mist kit. Guess I am going to need a bunch of carboys huh? But I really need to know if I need an extra one for my first kit I hope to have started in a few days







Smurfe


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## geocorn (Jun 21, 2005)

An acceptable alternative is to rack you carboy into the sanitized bucket. Clean and sanitize the carboy, then rack back into the carboy. The exposure to oxygen is minimal, but if you are going to bulk age after this racking, add 1/4 tsp. of sulfite when you rack back into the carboy.


You will find that you never seem to have enough carboys. Once you have several, you can plan your rackings so that you always have an available carboy.


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## MedPretzel (Jul 1, 2005)

George is no doubt correct in saying that you can use a sanitized primary for a quick fix. 





I usually go by this rule of thumb



, however:


Wines in Carboys + 1 = If I have 2 5 gallon batches, I need to have 3 5 gallon carboys. If I have 3 5 gallon batches, I need to have 4 carboys. It makes racking so much quicker and easier, in my opinion.


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## Bert (Jul 1, 2005)

I agree with MedPretzel, that extra carboy save a lot of time and makes things easier. I try to have one extra for each of the size carboys I have working....









wine making more than just a hobby.


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## smurfe (Jul 1, 2005)

Yeah, from what I have read here, looks like I am gonna need a few more. 


Smurfe


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## Maui Joe (Jul 4, 2005)

It really never ends...the extra carboys as standbys only later become used up and then the need exceeds the space. Only too soon the space gets expanded and the the inventory requires more needs....ain't this "hobby great?"


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## PolishWineP (Jul 4, 2005)

Bert said:


> I agree with MedPretzel, that extra carboy save a lot of time and makes things easier. I try to have one extra for each of the size carboys I have working....
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Yeah, that's why I've had to make an emergency stop to pick up another carboy...


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## geocorn (Jul 4, 2005)

Carboys are like rabbits, they just seem to multiply. It is great to have an extra carboy, but they do seem to get full and they you need another. When I got started, I created a spreadsheet to keep track of my wines. That way, I could plan on when buckets and carboys would be available for rackings. I lost this spreadsheet when my computer died last year, but if people want me to re-create it, let me know. It was written in Excel.


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## MedPretzel (Jul 4, 2005)

It's funny you say that, George, because I was thinking about using my pocket PC (handheld) to track my wines. Excel seems to be the best solution to the problem. 





If someone else would like it too (don't go through the trouble just for me - I could do one too and we could compare), I'd be interested.









Have a happy "We beat the British" day!


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## smurfe (Jul 5, 2005)

MedPretzel said:


> It's funny you say that, George, because I was thinking about using my pocket PC (handheld) to track my wines. Excel seems to be the best solution to the problem.
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## AAASTINKIE (Jul 6, 2005)

Drove 100 miles today to buy 2 23ltr carboys, would have bought another 15ltr beer kit (pilsner, anyone know what they taste like?) but they were out of empty beer bottles, I wanted to get a few cases of 1/2 bottles but they didn't have any of those either.


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## geocorn (Jul 6, 2005)

I have all of those items "In Stock". Too bad you are not closer, although at 30-40 cents per mile, my shipping costs might not be too high after all.


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## AAASTINKIE (Jul 6, 2005)

There's something about being in the store looking at all the TOYS, kinda like a kid in a candy store...lol


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## geocorn (Jul 6, 2005)

Why do you think I am changing my name to "The Wine Maker's *TOY *Store"?


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