blowing liquid out of the airlock

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paulg
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blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by paulg » Sat Nov 02, 2024 9:26 am

I use starsan in my airlock and find many times during the first days of fermentetion the starsan foams out of the airlock due to the amount of gases being passed.It eventually runs out of liquid in the airlock.I have even tried using a blow off tube and the starsan foamed its way out off the bottle the tubes were in.

what is the solution?
different sanitiser
bigger diameter blow off tube,I used normal beer line 5/16 id
put up with it and refill airlock when required

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vacant
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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by vacant » Sat Nov 02, 2024 9:48 am

I got an airlock when I started brewing but when the rate of bubbling went down I still took a gravity reading to check fermentation hadn't stalled so what's the point? Why not leave it a good number of days and then take a reading?

Well, the point is that a top hat airlock makes a very comforting sound.

I haven't used an airlock for years. The lid just rests gently on FV.

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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by guypettigrew » Sat Nov 02, 2024 11:19 am

The blow off tube from my fermenter goes into a bucket, not a bottle.
Works well, no overflowing.
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nallum
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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by nallum » Sat Nov 02, 2024 11:48 am

What vacant typed. Airlocks are not needed during fermentation. The solution is don’t use any solution. You can still use a blowoff tube. I do on some potentially messy fermentations. If you want to monitor fermentation occasionally, just put the end of the blowoff tube in a glass of water, starsan or whatever to assess bubble rate. I sometimes use a cup of tea, if I’ve got one with me. You can get a little tea latte thing going during peak fermentation.

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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by IPA » Sun Nov 03, 2024 7:53 am

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I have not used an air lock for at least ten years. I use these foam bungs in my fermenting vessels. With these you can tranfer wort without removing them. Traditional airlocks and blow off tubes create pressure in the vessels which in turn creates an increase in the size of thé yeast head.
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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by Cobnut » Sun Nov 03, 2024 9:47 am

I only use an air lock if I’m fermenting in a Demi-John or carboy. In the SS conical I do what others have said here and simply rest the lid without bothering to even close the trip-clamp “hole” in the too of the lid. I also don’t fear lifting the lid to see what’s going on (even though I usually use a Tilt hydrometer to keep an eye on fermenting progress _ not actual gravity!).

Don’t sweat it!
Last edited by Cobnut on Sun Nov 03, 2024 2:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Fermenting: lambic, American Blond
Conditioning: English IPA/Bretted English IPA
Drinking: Helles Bock, Orval clone, Impy stout, Conestoga, Old Hooky clone , Jester single hop pale ale, Simmonds Bitter, cascade wet hop pale
Planning: Kozel dark (ish),and more!

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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by guypettigrew » Sun Nov 03, 2024 10:43 am

It'd often be too messy to leave the lid of my SS Chronical. The yeast frequently flows down the blow off tube.
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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by Cobnut » Sun Nov 03, 2024 2:11 pm

Get a bigger fermenter 😉
Fermenting: lambic, American Blond
Conditioning: English IPA/Bretted English IPA
Drinking: Helles Bock, Orval clone, Impy stout, Conestoga, Old Hooky clone , Jester single hop pale ale, Simmonds Bitter, cascade wet hop pale
Planning: Kozel dark (ish),and more!

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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by bitter_dave » Sun Nov 03, 2024 6:37 pm

It seems like the issue is the starsan foaming. I use good old fashioned water in my airlock and never had a problem

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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by paulg » Wed Nov 06, 2024 9:25 pm

bitter_dave wrote:
Sun Nov 03, 2024 6:37 pm
It seems like the issue is the starsan foaming. I use good old fashioned water in my airlock and never had a problem
yes thats correct.I always worry about the airlock liquid being sucked in,but I guess that would only happen during a cold crash or during kegging
Last edited by paulg on Wed Nov 06, 2024 9:37 pm, edited 2 times in total.

paulg
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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by paulg » Wed Nov 06, 2024 9:26 pm

IPA wrote:
Sun Nov 03, 2024 7:53 am
IMG_20241103_074404_306.jpg

I have not used an air lock for at least ten years. I use these foam bungs in my fermenting vessels. With these you can tranfer wort without removing them. Traditional airlocks and blow off tubes create pressure in the vessels which in turn creates an increase in the size of thé yeast head.
thats interesting ,not seen those before.

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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by paulg » Wed Nov 06, 2024 9:34 pm

nallum wrote:
Sat Nov 02, 2024 11:48 am
What vacant typed. [b]Airlocks are not needed during fermentation



Yet if you look at some forums,they seem paranoid about oxygen exposure,even advocating transferring from boiler to a closed, purged fermenter bottom valve .
I visited many commercial breweries with open fermenters back in the day.Sadley most of them are no more

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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by IPA » Thu Nov 07, 2024 8:19 am

paulg wrote:
Wed Nov 06, 2024 9:26 pm
IPA wrote:
Sun Nov 03, 2024 7:53 am
IMG_20241103_074404_306.jpg

I have not used an air lock for at least ten years. I use these foam bungs in my fermenting vessels. With these you can tranfer wort without removing them. Traditional airlocks and blow off tubes create pressure in the vessels which in turn creates an increase in the size of thé yeast head.
thats interesting ,not seen those before.
Hi Paul. Here is a link to Amazon US.
https://www.amazon.com/Pieces-Stopper-P ... B091HTNF72
Somebody brought them back for me. I sterilise them in pressure cooker for five minutes
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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by Eric » Thu Nov 07, 2024 2:12 pm

paulg wrote:
Wed Nov 06, 2024 9:34 pm
nallum wrote:
Sat Nov 02, 2024 11:48 am
What vacant typed. [b]Airlocks are not needed during fermentation



Yet if you look at some forums,they seem paranoid about oxygen exposure,even advocating transferring from boiler to a closed, purged fermenter bottom valve .
I visited many commercial breweries with open fermenters back in the day.Sadley most of them are no more


It can be done easily by homebrewers with big enough fermentation vessels.

My last brew, J W Lees Best Mild by Ron Pattinson one day after pitching before first rousing.
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Three days later and chilling, after top crop yeast harvest the previous day to leave a thin covering for protection.
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Any oxygen dissolved into the wort is immediately absorbed by active yeast.

You need a traditional top fermenting yeast.
Without patience, life becomes difficult and the sooner it's finished, the better.

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Re: blowing liquid out of the airlock

Post by bitter_dave » Thu Nov 07, 2024 7:59 pm

paulg wrote:
Wed Nov 06, 2024 9:25 pm
bitter_dave wrote:
Sun Nov 03, 2024 6:37 pm
It seems like the issue is the starsan foaming. I use good old fashioned water in my airlock and never had a problem
yes thats correct.I always worry about the airlock liquid being sucked in,but I guess that would only happen during a cold crash or during kegging
I've cold crashed beer and if the water in the airlock has ever been sucked into the beer it hasn't done any harm. A little bit of water in a sterilised airlock is unlikely to do any harm I would have thought. When I bottle I take the top off the airlock.

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