Stainless Steel Conical Fermenter - 7.9 Gallon (30 L) | Gen 2

I was overall quite impressed with the Mammoth conical. It has comfortable handles, a sturdy, stable construction, was easy to clean, has some sensible design choices that I appreciated, a built in thermometer that actually works pretty well, and did a fine job on my first time using it. There are a few things I think could be improved, and if it doesn’t come with a dip tube-type thing, I would see a market for this as an accessory. If you are buying it to replace a true conical with proper fittings and a big dump valve, that’s not the unit this is competing with, and while you’d be disappointed, it’s not a fair comparison. Contrasting it with the SS Brewtech Brew Bucket seems unfair initially, as the Brew Buckets retail for more than twice as much, but I think it handled well. Would I pick it over a Brew Bucket? Umm, maybe? It’s not perfect, but it did the job well, and there are certainly things it does better. If you gave me the choice between a Brew Bucket, or this guy and the difference in cash back, I would pick the Mammoth every time. For the price it’s a heck of a unit, and outperformed my expectations (which didn’t include yeast harvesting - that would have been a nice bonus, but I didn’t think it would be likely). I don’t struggle with space really (especially fermenting only a couple of batches at a time), and my fermentation chamber is big enough to hold the Mammoth conical, so the larger size is a feature for me, not a bug. I’m happy I got a chance to review this unit, and if I need another fermenter for this niche I would happily buy and use the Mammoth conical.

The inside of the kettle is not welded to the 90 degree elbow on the bottom, this is now an area that will harbour bacteria. Also, mine has weld defects, pitting and little holes on the inside where the side was welded to the cone, again, bacteria can get in those pits and be an issue. Last, the hole that is punched through for the thermometer has a sharp burr on the inside that wears outs the silicone ring seal, can be ground off easy enough but still a defect in my opinion.

*note- after purchasing this at $120CAD in Dec 2023, a week later they changed the price to $180, which reflects on my prior 5-star review based on value for money.* I only received this yesterday but did a thorough inspection and some testing and wanted to both review the product itself and to speak on the other 2 reviews made for this product. I was shopping for a more affordable conical and the most affordable one was the Mammoth V2 at $199 (now changed to $220 on many sites thanks to greed I suppose). I stumbled upon this conical entirely by accident, and Richard's review was surprising, given the fact there's no indication that this conical was made by Mammoth (their entire review speaks as though this product is Mammoth's). I agree - though this isn't the fanciest or highest quality conical it certainly seems to be a good deal for what you're paying for, versus nearly any competition. Then read through Erik's review and with the new price point I'd say it's a fair take at $180 vs $120 (which I felt was overly critical), given the things he pointed to as negatives are fairly minor and some even easily fixable. Some of his points are valid - such as the inner section of the bottom 90 degree elbow not being welded (it's only welded on the outside) so potentially being a bit tougher to clean. As far as other weld defects I do not detect anything else unusual nor any burrs on the thermometer hole, though giving the conical such a low review given those few minor points is a bit unfair, but at $180 now seem more justified to be critical. I did several tests with a water-full fermenter (lifting with the handles - despite being warned not to in the product description, leak tests, valve tests, thermometer accuracy test) and everything seemed to be working as intended with no indication of weakness on the handles when lifted full nor any leaks etc. Just a note: the airlock hole in centered so if you plan to stack this then I'd suggest using a blow off tube (or drilling your own offset hole I guess if you're feeling ambitious). Aside from the obvious lack of branding, this fermenter appears to be made in the exact same factory/assembly line as the Mammoth conical (and likely some others such as Northern Brewer), as every other detail appears to be exactly the same on both. It's a reasonably decent quality stainless steel conical fermenter for a very good price. Happy brewing!