Is There A Need For A Secondary Fermenter? After The Primary?

[Darren Andrews (Daza)]

Hey guys got this great book today, really good stuff and most of what we have talked about here only after the wort is ready to be put in a plastic fermenter that after a certain period it is then place into a Carboy (glass jar) for it's secondary fermentation....is this normal for a BIAB all grain or an Extract brew? just want to confirm this method is the way to do it. Thanks

[Nathan]

Nope I have never used a secondary, I'm very proud of how clean/clear my beers are I believe there is no need for it when you have good practices in place

[Dave]

Agree with Nathan, when I first started brewing I did secondary, but haven't for many, many brews now. Especially when starting out it's just a chance of a c*** up. As long as you're not leaving it for a month or more before bottling - don't bother.

[Darren Andrews (Daza)]

Thanks guys, and I was planning on just using a plastic fermenter not a carboy at all. less chance of breakages then....cheers. You guys don't have an old brew pot for sale do you by any chance? 

[Darren Andrews (Daza)]

The screw on plastic lid vs the clip on lid ? and copper wort chiller vs the copper wort chiller? All serious questions...seriously.

Daza.

[Dave]

I had both fermenters - found the clip on (bucket type) scratched around the rim (and picked up grime) after a while so I threw it out and now have 2 screw on.
And copper vs copper - copper wins every time!

[Darren Andrews (Daza)]

ok suprised me there, for some reason I thought stainless would win, ha. So there you go...is it something to do with the ability to cool quicker? I heard the stainless ones were easier to keep clean? or some other weird logic. And as most brew shops sell the 3/8" diameter tubing it would be fair enough to say that even though 1/2" may work more efficently more surface area however the 3/8" must work fine too?

[Dave]

Copper has much better thermal conductivity so is better for cooling. As for keeping clean - I just rinse in hot water and put it away.
I have a 15m x 3/8 and it works fine.

[Ryan Perkins]

I have also read somewhere that the presence of copper in your brew system is beneficial to yeast health during fermentation.

[Beau]

Be careful with copper actually. It can form oxides that may dissolve into solution of weak acids (like beer) and potentially lead to copper poisoning.

I've always heard it's good for mashing and boiling processes but less good (for the above reasons) in fermentation vessels.  A reasonable reference to metals in brewing below:

http://byo.com/issues/item/1144-metallurgy-for-homebrewers

[Ryan Perkins]

Yeah I meant as part of the brew process pre fermentation. Sorry didn't explain myself properly.

[Darren Andrews (Daza)]

So maybe it pays to do a secondary fermentation? is this solely to reduce the amount of sediment? and make a clearer brew? 

[Dave]

For a start, just primary to keep it simple as possible. Plenty of time once you've made a few good beers to think about using a secondary.