glass carboys (sp)?

[tuckermtn]

Has anyone out there used the large (5-6 gallons) glass carboys from home brewing for syrup storage? If so, what did you do to seal off the tops? I have access to 4-5 of them and just curious if anyone has had success with them...

-tuckermtn

[Clan Delaney]

I've got 3 or 4 myself. Their being glass, I'd be worried about breakage. If I broke a carboy full of beer, I'd just make more beer. If I broke carboy full of syrup, I think I'd cry.

[Haynes Forest Products]

homebrew store has corks for them why not use the plastic ones I broke one full of pennys with the vacuum cleaner what a mess. As you know there heavey when full

[Maine4me]

Last year I used the 6 I have for home brew as sap buckets. WHAT A PAIN!! Due to the goose neck on them they are a pain in the butt to pour out and as you know, heavy with no good way to hold them. But i did get the plastic covers from a local supply store and loved them.

[SeanD]

Carboys are good to use because they are glass and they hold a lot of syrup. They work fine if you are careful about carrying them as mentioned. If you have access to a bunch of them, you don't have to fill them all the way.

Mine has a large handle that clamps onto the neck. I wouldn't attempt to carry mine w/o it. I wouldn't try to pour syrup out of it either - way too heavy. A racking cane and some tubing is all you need to draw off the syrup, though a poor siphon can really suck (or not as the case may be) and really slow things down. But I just plan ahead and have something else to do while I wait.

The rubber stoppers the home brew shops sell with them work fine for sealing the top. If the one you have already has the hole drilled in it for the airlock, you can put a big screw in it, which makes it easier to pull out if you have a strong vacuum, or even just use the air lock you have. If it is air tight and sanitary enough for beer, it's plenty good enough for syrup.

Sean

[tiggy-at-mac.com]

Yeah, they're no good for carrying, but don't overlook one unavoidable fact: they look super cool full of syrup. Stick one where the sun shines through, and you'll find fewer sights to inspire a sense of satisfaction from the previous season.

[jrthe3]

my dad used them for syrup years ago and he would fill them to about a 1/2 inch from the top then seal with hot wax seem to work good