Airlock low on water

[CMiddle]

New to the forums and new to brewing, I went and check a batch I have in a 6.5 fermenting bucket and noticed that my 3 piece airlock was below the fill line. to the point the the float cap was fully exposed. Tell me what I need to know about why it lost water and how bad this batch is busted... Thanks in advance!

 

[Colorowdy]

Your beer is fine. Your yeast produce Co2 that pushes air out if your fermenter. The airlock bubbles you lose starsan. Add more starsan wait couple weeks and bottle if ready. Everything will be alright.

 

[Brew-Jay]

I would clarify Colorowdy's response slightly. Add starsan solution. That is, mix it with the proper amount of water first. Or some people even like to put vodka in there. But I would think that vodka would evaporate even faster. Now I'm rambling.

 

[CMiddle]

thanks guys! I truly appetiate the speedy responses!!

 

[Brew-Jay]

thanks guys! I truly appetiate the speedy responses!! what amount of starsan would you suggest i add??

For the solution, you add 1 oz Starsan to 5 gallons of water. You can extrapolate down if you don't want to make an entire 5 gallon solution. Then just fill to the fill line. A little evaporation over time is normal, so just keep an eye on it. But the odds that your beer is infected are pretty low. I'm sure by now you've heard the old saying, "RDWHAHB."

 

[Demus]

Water is fine for airlocks, save the starsan. More importantly, save the vodka!!

 

[Brew-Jay]

Water is fine for airlocks, save the starsan. More importantly, save the vodka!!

I've heard of cases where water from the airlock gets sucked back in the beer. That's what would make me use something sanitized, although it has never happened to me. Just be sure not to use the Louie IVX.

 

[Demus]

There's certainly nothing wrong with using starsan or vodka, just wanted to make the point that it's not necessary.