Test run

I had a couple of mr beer kits left over from my play phase--X-SWMBO #1 got me mr beer for christmas in spite of specific instructions, lol!--and I decided to put the vienna lager and canadian whatever it is in with 3 of the 'booster' packs and boiled it all together and put it into one of my 6.5 gal fermenters. Now the kits are 2 years old and the yeast looked terrible, and I don't see any signs of bubbling in the airlock but I do smell the esters pushing past the poorly seated airlock grommet. So the question is, it appears that fermentation is occuring but the airlock grommet is poorly seated and letting gas out. I applied the appropriate 'man tool' to the problem--duck tape--but of course all that is hopefully doing is redirecting dust away from the small opening.
Do you think it will make it? I'm not too worried as this stuff doesn't really taste or smell right pre brewing--not enough hops, can definitely taste a preservative like aftertaste in the unfermented wort, but hey, who knows if it will turn out.
I am not one to take babysteps and I'm going to brew an extract kit next--brewers best cream ale with extra hops to make it palatable to me--as soon as I get the wort chiller fixed and then next week we are doing all grain with my chef buddy and chemical engineer buddy who have brewed alot before so I kinda wanted to free this fermenter if it isn't going to work.
Also, is it safe to transport a loaded fermenter--I haven't figured out how people do the 'brewing get togethers' and if so how?

mimo777 said:

Also, is it safe to transport a loaded fermenter--I haven't figured out how people do the 'brewing get togethers' and if so how?

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No comment on the old kits and questionable batches, but I've road-brewed several times and had to transport carboys full of fermenting wort.

I've done it three ways. I've sat it on the floor of the car, between the front seat (which was moved as far forward as necessary) and the back seat, I have put it on the floor in the front of the car (with the front seat forward to press it against the dash and hold it in place), and I have sat it directly in one of the seats and belted it in (pull the belt all the way out and it ratchets back in so that the belt won't extend accidentally).