This large carboy was the cause of my bad back. I moved it out of my fermentation fridge the weekend before Christmas and it put my back out. The fermentation fridge contains a heat pad and set up with an Inkbird temperature controller to keep the contents at a constant temperature. This is useful for controlling fermentation but particularly useful for lagers that ferment at 12 degrees. With ales, you can get away with room temperature for most months.

I brewed a lager last Spring and I think it went wrong. The yeast didn't kick in quickly enough. The lager would not clear at 3 degrees. The decision was made to dump it. The carboy contained 23 litres of infected lager and the glass had stuck to the heat pad in the fridge. Moving it was tricky and in the course of doing so, I felt my back go. What didn't help was that I had spent the two preceding days sitting at a desk and not really moving around much. I spent Christmas with a stiff back until New Year's Eve when I obtained some pills to help.

I'm pleased to report that I was able to get rid of the lager and get the carboy cleaned this weekend. It has taken me almost a month to get back to where I was. And I need to try lager again this year and get it right.