[ETX-Dan]

Hey there!  New to Mead making and will be starting a 3 gallon batch of Holiday metheglin for Christmas gifts here in about a week.  I’ve got several 5 gallon buckets (and a plastic carboy) that I’ve used for beer but wondered about headspace in making Mead.  I also have several 1 gal glass jugs.  Would I be better separating into 3, 1 gal batches to avoid excessive headspace or does it matter much?  Does primary vs Secondary matter with regards to headspace and oxygen tolerance?

Thanks!

[pete b]

You actually want plenty of head space when fermenting mead in the primary because you will be adding nutrients and degassing, which causes a volcano of sorts. Then in secondary you do not want head space. Rack into the gallon jars and make sure that the mead is all the way up into the neck. I would make 3 1/2 gallons to account for the trub you will want to leave behind.
So primary and secondary does matter with regards to head sppace and oxygen tolerance. Primary=oxygen good, lots of headspace; secondary (essentially bulk ageing)=oxygen bad, very little headspace.

[joe_meadmaker]

+1 to pete b's comment.  I'd plan for about 3.5 gallons in the primary fermenter, then move to the 1 gallon jugs once fermentation is done.