Carboy as primary fermenter?

[RedneckRich]

Can I use a glass 3 gallon carboy as a primary fermenter for 2 gallons of wine? Seems to me this would provide adequate space for an active fermentation. I do not have a 3 or 3.5 gallon bucket.
Thanks!

 

[winemaker81]

Probably, depending on how vigorous the fermentation is.

Depending on what you're making, getting the materials in and our of the carboy can be a PITA.

 

[FlamingoEmporium]

I’m sure it can be done,but as was pointed out, hard to stir during fermentation, hard to take sample for testing etc. start looking for a nice clean pail. If you know any winemakers who buy juice in pails maybe they can help.

 

[BarrelMonkey]

I'm doing this right now, I would say that for white wine it may be preferable to a bucket. I have a ~3+ gallon batch fermenting in a 5 gallon carboy. Once it's done I'm going to rack into a 3 gallon carboy for aging, with any left over wine in a small vessel for topping.

 

[Tripled92]

Can I use a glass 3 gallon carboy as a primary fermenter for 2 gallons of wine? Seems to me this would provide adequate space for an active fermentation. I do not have a 3 or 3.5 gallon bucket.
Thanks!

Don’t quote me on this but I think it may…… be okay. I’m not that versed in how much space is needed for co2 from fermentation but my guess is that there is a reason why fermentation is done in a bucket and not a carboy. My guess is that the pressure could be too muchot enough space it constantly pushes the airlock/bung out.

One thing to note though is that you should just buy a 6 or 7 gallon fermenter bucket, they are around $15-$20 dollars i believe. Headspace isn’t an issue in fermentation because the co2 is protecting it.

 

[Jim Welch]

If there's no grapes or fruit solids yes you can with little or no problems. You might have to have a blow off tube for the first day or two but if you keep the temps from getting too high probably not. If you're using fruit it becomes much more problematic but not impossible.
I've done beer in carboys when I first got into brewing in the early 80s, 50% headspace should be plenty. Cleaning it will be a PITA afterwards though, I'd have some PBW to make this much easier

 

[Rocky]

Can I use a glass 3 gallon carboy as a primary fermenter for 2 gallons of wine? Seems to me this would provide adequate space for an active fermentation. I do not have a 3 or 3.5 gallon bucket.
Thanks!

As all have said, you could do it if you are very careful and take other precautions. I would say, why chance it. Go to Home Depot and get one of these:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Leaktite-5-gal-70mil-Food-Safe-Bucket-White-005GFSWH020/300197644

If you are just using it for a primary, you don't need a lid. Just cover the bucket with a cloth held in place by a piece of plywood. The lid is available also in packs of 3:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Leaktit...Lid-for-5-Gal-Pail-Pack-of-3-209325/203925466

 

[Rice_Guy]

I have done the primary in a carboy. Yes cleaning can be a PITA.
Grape berries or peach pulp don’t really work. Most yeast are “clean fermenting” but some yeast as Maurivin B foamed about as much as liquid volume. Some pulp is worse as choke cherry foamed a lot.

* a low temperature fermentation as 10C / 50F is slower and foams less
* there is no reason you can’t do your primary in two containers. I normally am fairly close to batch volume but if it needs more volume I pull some out. ,,, You won’t know how it will work until you try that combination.
* Yeast cell growth (from 1.090 to 1.050) requires oxygen. This is natural with an open top. With closed containers as a mead recipe the direction is to stir to mix in some oxygen early in the process. ,,ie ,, Do not use an air lock till after the first third of sugar (cell growth) is over. After first third using the airlock is appropriate.
* there is a technique called step fermentation. I have fermented and added more juice at day two and three or when topping off after racking.

 

[Raptor99]

Most of these have already been mentioned, but here is my summary.
Reasons for doing primary fermentation in a bucket:
* Plenty of room for foam
* It is easier to stir
* In the early stages, yeast need oxygen. That works better in a bucket
* You can add and remove brew bags full of fruit--try that with a carboy!!
* Easier to take samples
* Easier to clean up after fermentation

 

[Raptor99]

For the sake of completeness, I wanted to add, the only good reason that I have heard to do primary fermentation in a carboy:
* With especially volatile flavors, a carboy might retain more of the aromas and flavors

I can't think of any other reason that I would want to do primary fermentation in a carboy.

 

[David Violante]

A winery near me was closing and among some of the equipment I was able to purchase were a few 2 gallon glass carboys. The owner gave them to me as he just wanted to get rid of them. I cleaned them up and they sat there for a little while until I made a few 1 gallon batches of trial wines, the latest being winter honeysuckle. Of course you want to make a little more than the final container (1-gallon) and in these trials there’s no chunky material in the must. Into the 2-gallon it all went. I sparged with oxygen to start, added all the ingredients, left the top open and let it go. Twice a day I swirled the must and it all mixed nicely without splashing. Once the SG dropped to 1.020 I added an airlock and continued swirling. By now the headspace has to be pretty much mostly CO2. When it clears I’ll rack it into a 1-gallon carboy off the gross lees. Cleaning is no problem as there are no chunks and I use a bottle washer attached to a faucet, and a home-made drill mounted carboy cleaner. Easy peasy for the above situation and parameters. Otherwise, open top bucket. If I’m going to do extended maceration, I’ll move it to a closed container once the SG drops, but that’s a wide mouth fermonster to be able to easily move must and skins in and out when done. The below is a picture of a Mountain Dew wine using a 2-gallon for primary. Yes… I had to try it… LOL