Seemed like a good idea at the time...

[psymonkey]

So I just listed some brewing goods on Craigslist, and as I do habitually, searched for homebrew. And well, I found a real strange one today. I suppose there are ways in which this might be helpful, but I couldn't help but LOL.

Let's take a glass carboy at 10 lbs, fill it with 6 gallons of beer and then add a handful of 2x4s to make it "easier" to transport. Now I'm a pretty slight guy by admission, but does anyone think another 20 lbs of wood is helpful in the situation? I suppose you could strap it to a dolly..still, seemed like a good idea at the time, no doubt. In practice, perhaps not so much. Again, I can think of numerous potential uses, but still found it amusing at face value :fro:

http://norfolk.craigslist.org/hsh/3934204667.html

 

[Hammy71]

Yeah, I can see where they could be useful. But, I'm not so sure I'd trust a couple of drywall screws to hold the thing together (when it's full), and you try to pick it up.

 

[psymonkey]

Agreed. Hell I recently switched to better bottles after a near-drop on a full carboy...my legs flashed before my eyes. Can't imagine making it MORE dangerous.

 

[Trail]

I'd be less worried about the drywall screws than I would be the awful 1x1 boards they use at the corners. In my experience those things are almost pathologically prone to splitting, which would really, really suck.

These would be useful if you needed to haul a bunch of carboys around in a truck... which doesn't sound like it would ever happen unless Revvy moved house.

 

[ChuckO]

I have some old glass 5 gal. water bottles that were molded with the water co.'s name in them. They came in wood crates similar to that back in the 1950's or 1960's. The crates are nailed together and just don't look substantial enough to move when full. I haven't used them in years, except for pumping wort in and out without moving them. They are all stored in the garage for now until I can find someone who wants them.

 

[Demus]

Maybe someone can post their wrought iron version. That would certainly make it "easier"!!!

 

[jpalarchio]

I think the guy is a member here, I remembered seeing that pic in a link in the carboy dropping thread.

More crate goodness: http://loudmouthbrewer.wordpress.com/2013/07/15/diy-wood-carboy-crate/

One thing that stands out to me is to lower the carboy in the crate, you'd essentially have to hold it by the neck which is probably asking for even more trouble.

To each their own but I switched to Better Bottles a long while back and haven't regretted it at all.

 

[USAFSooner]

Just put the carboy in a wide pot and lift. Forget the handles on the carboy, forget the brew haulers.

 

[Trail]

Just put the carboy in a wide pot and lift. Forget the handles on the carboy, forget the brew haulers.

This is a bad idea if it's one of those graniteware (ceramic-clad steel) pots... it can crack the ceramic.

 

[USAFSooner]

Run of the mill Aluminum pot. Only move the carboy to lift it to a higher point to siphon.

 

[tnlandsailor]

It won't fit into my fermentation chiller. What if you need to remove the carboy when it's full?

 

[loudmouthbrewer]

Afternoon folks- indeed this is my "recreation" as wood carboy crates have been around since the 50's as ChuckO mentioned. And yes- the 1x1's are temperamental to say the least.. I spent some time combing through the wood stacks at my local hardware store to find pieces that weren't already cracked, warped, and-or full of knots..

It's definitely not a cure-all solution but the crate does help protect the carboy from bumps/dings in transport and storage. It also, in my opinion, is safer than grabbing a hold of a wet carboy after cleaning. But my favorite part is I don't have to bend as far over to get a secure grasp on the carboy when it is time to move the damn thing... which I found (at least for me) even with the additional weight of the wood makes it easier to move.

Obviously there is no foolproof method for moving a full glass carboy (Murphy and his stupid law:smack. I just wanted to explore other options to the common commercially available haulers and decided to give the crate a try. So far it has worked great for me.

But.... If you want something truly amusing- check out these wooden crates for up to $94.95... http://www.carboycaddy.com/products.php

psymonkey- I see you're in Hampton. I have a small group of brewers who do quarterly tasting/competitions/and of course cookouts- message me if you'd be interested.

cheers,

Loudmouth Brewer