Dirty Airlock

I'm back with another question! So I checked the ferment bucket last night and I had spill-over in my airlock. I moved the bucket to a clean place and removed the air lock, washed it, filled it with clean, cool tap water, and replaced it.

When I checked again this morning, the water was dirty. No spill-over, but definitely heading that direction. I currently don't have the set up to tube spill-over in to a bucket. Any thoughts?

I moved the bucket to an even cooler place, as per responses to my other thread. The room temp is about 60 degrees F, the bucket is at 64-66.

When this happens, is it okay to keep washing the airlock and replacing the water to the fill line?

lazysunday said:

When this happens, is it okay to keep washing the airlock and replacing the water to the fill line?

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I imagine it would be ok, but probably better to put a blow-off tube on it. You should be able to get the tube locally.

Yes it is ok to do that....but, you are risking a big mess. If your airlock gets clogged and the pressure builds inside the vessel, something is going to give. You don't want to clean this up do you?

ncbrewer said:

I imagine it would be ok, but probably better to put a blow-off tube on it. You should be able to get the tube locally.

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Awesome, thanks. Now that I think about it, I might be able to just plug my siphoning tube over the air escape in my air lock, into a bucket of water. Do you think that would be sufficient?

A couple of things. You will be fine washing and replacing the lock but you need to sanitize it each time. A spray bottle of Star San is always good to have around! You should also be filling the airlock with either Star San or cheap liquor. It wont matter if it gets sucked back into your brew and it keeps nasty stuff from growing and getting to your beer. Finally, you could pick up a couple of feet of clear vinyl tubing from any hardware store for a couple bucks tops. Then just remove the cap and little inner piece from the airlock and slide the tubing over the post sticking up. 1/2" tubing works great for a cheap and quick blow off.

Good luck and welcome to your new addiction!

If you are getting krausen into your airlock, it's only a matter of time before a blowoff will become necessary.

If you don't have the 1 inch tube needed for the typical carboy blowoff, you may be able to make a jury rigged blowoff. If you have a 3 piece airlock (i.e. the kind with the floater inside), take the top lid off, take the floater out. Force your tubing onto the little pipe in the airlock. Put the other end of your hose into a bucket/bowl/whatever filled with sanitizer.

I used this method for a couple of brews. It works, as long as the narrow airlock tube part doesn't get blocked.

TANSTAAFB said:

A couple of things. You will be fine washing and replacing the lock but you need to sanitize it each time. A spray bottle of Star San is always good to have around! You should also be filling the airlock with either Star San or cheap liquor. It wont matter if it gets sucked back into your brew and it keeps nasty stuff from growing and getting to your beer. Finally, you could pick up a couple of feet of clear vinyl tubing from any hardware store for a couple bucks tops. Then just remove the cap and little inner piece from the airlock and slide the tubing over the post sticking up. 1/2" tubing works great for a cheap and quick blow off.

Good luck and welcome to your new addiction!

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Thanks! I appreciate all the feedback! I ran home and grabbed my bottler tubing, sanitized it, forced it into the 3 piece airlock and dropped the other end into a bucket with the last of my starter sanitizer.

Any recommendations about changing the water out? I suppose I'll just do it every day.

If you have the tube in Sanitizer you can leave it unless it gets really dirty. I usually look to see if it is still blowing off and leave the dirty Sanitizer until I quit seeing yeast being pushed through the tubing. Then I clean and sanitize the lock and tubing and replace the Sanitizer in the container. Once blow off is over you can even just clean and replace the airlock (filled with Sanitizer of course!)

Agree, no need to change it out often.

Just don't leave krausen-infused water sitting there for, say, a month... unless you like growing mold and/or interesting pelliciles.

Don't ask me how I know.

lazysunday said:

Awesome, thanks. Now that I think about it, I might be able to just plug my siphoning tube over the air escape in my air lock, into a bucket of water. Do you think that would be sufficient?

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One caution: a lot of airlocks have a semi-closed bottom, with a cross shaped opening. You'll need this to be fully open. Some folks just break off the tabs that close over the end.

Hi - first, apologies to the OP if this is seen as hijacking the post, but it looks like the original question has been answered.

I brewed on Saturday and filled the fermenter in the evening. I checked on the fermenter a few times yesterday, the last check up been at about 10pm (Sunday) and there was nice activity in the airlock the whole time and it was clean...

This morning (Monday) the airlock looks like it does in the photo. At the moment there isn't any activity, but not worried about that.

Do I need to clean the airlock? I am petrified about infection (my fear probably isn't warranted) so would rather avoid any risk of infection that may arise from cleaning the airlock if possible.

The fluid you can see is santised water mixed with the wort that has blown through - it isn't blocked.

I plan to bottle this weekend (recipe said 4 days in the fermenter) so it won't stay there for a month while mold builds up

Thanks (again to the OP - I hope I haven't offended).

First-DON'T PANIC! Second-Relax Don't Worry Have A Homebrew (substitute craft beer as needed until homebrew is ready). Third-remove and clean the airlock. You can put a piece of sanitized foil over the hole while you clean if you like. Fourth- re-sanitize the airlock and spray the hole and surrounding area with sanitizer. Fifth- leave it be for a couple of weeks. Kit instructions suck, it will not grow mold, and the yeast still have some work to do after the visible and active part of fermentation is over. You will have better beer when you bottle it up and you can speed up the carbing process on a couple of bottles by sticking them in a warm spot. I know you wanna drink it now, but you patience will pay off! Welcome to your new addiction!

TANSTAAFB said:

Welcome to your new addiction!

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Its an obsession and an addiction

I did as you have suggested and its all fine and I am calm.

I am calm. I am. But I still check the fermenter every few hours!

Brother I've been at this for a few years now and I STILL get excited when the yeast start taking off and the airlock is rocking and I STILL check my fermenters constantly!