vodka in airlock?

Has anybody used vodka instead of water for the airlock? Are there pros and cons to doing this, or nothing special?

I've started using it, the way I understand it the main pro is that if you get suckback all it's gonna do is raise your ABV and not contaminate your booze with detergent or sanitiser.

Yep, used it for years. 1/2 gallon of the cheap stuff will last a long time.

Vodka is all I use now.

Pros:
I usually have vodka on hand anyway.
It's easy to find locally.
You can use it for things other than airlock filling.
If you get suckback you boost your ABV a tiny bit.

Cons:
It evaporates faster than water/starsan.
If you top up your airlocks just before work, and spill a little on yourself, people that smell you might think you're drunk.
You can't drink all your starsan and run out.

Same principle with Whiskey and Tequila I would assume?

I know at least one rookie brewer around here uses tequila, but I sure won't. Vodka is a neutral spirit, so that little bit of suckback isn't going to impart off flavors on your beer. Whiskey and tequila might make the beer taste a bit funny if you get too much suckback.

I wouldn't think that there would be enough whiskey or tequilla in an air lock to hurt the flavor any, but just to be on the safe side, I would use the vodka.

Boris is probably right here. Even if you dumped in 3 S-type airlocks worth of liquor, I doubt you'd notice the difference. If we're talking 3 piece airlocks, I think that would be enough to effect flavor.

Either way, if I'm given two options, and one is slightly safer, I'll take the safe route everytime where my beer is concerned.

Well I hate vodka and love whiskey. I'll use whiskey . We used whiskey on the Stout airlock we just brewed, and Tequila in the GF brew airlock (it was in the fridge, but I never drink the stuff).

One of the reasons I use vodka is I don't fill my airlock until after I carry my fermenter into my beer closet. There is always vodka in there.

Something that always gets looks is when I'm in the liquor store buying nice beers and liquors and I ask the cashier for the cheapest vodka behind the counter. BTW, why do they keep the vodka behind the counter?

I use Vodka also, it is a great way to make sure that no germs get in. I have a half gal of military special on had so it is the best use for it.

+1 on the vodka, steralization, and a increase in the abv if the airlock empties into the wort. Though , really how much can the abv be affected by less than a shot of vodka?

llazy_llama said:

You can't drink all your starsan and run out.

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Buy cheaper vodka. I know that cheap vodka can't possibly be as horrible tasting as gut rot cheap gin... but figure anything for $15 in a half-gallon plastic bottle is going to be sufficiently bad that you'll imbibe mouthwash for the alcohol content before you ever bother trying to move on to THAT stuff.

A shot of vodka for the airlock, one for me, and one for my homeys.

Vodka works great. I have used it since the beginning.

CiscoKid said:

Buy cheaper vodka. I know that cheap vodka can't possibly be as horrible tasting as gut rot cheap gin... but figure anything for $15 in a half-gallon plastic bottle is going to be sufficiently bad that you'll imbibe mouthwash for the alcohol content before you ever bother trying to move on to THAT stuff.

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True, but as it was pointed out to me, 32 oz of Star San is $12.50. It only takes a few drops of Star San to turn one airlock worth of water into sanitizer, so that one bottle will last a long time. For me, 1 liter of cheap vodka is $7, and it won't last even 1/10th as long as a bottle of Star San used for the same purpose.

I mostly use vodka for my airlocks because if I run out of Star San, it'll be 3-5 days before I can get more since there's not a LHBS near me. If I run out of vodka, I can just run to the store and grab more no problem. Star San is probably cheaper for most people, but if I run out of Star San on brew day, I'm screwed.

Summary: As with nearly every other Vs. debate in this forum, both work. Use whatever you want.

llazy_llama said:

True, but as it was pointed out to me, 32 oz of Star San is $12.50. It only takes a few drops of Star San to turn one airlock worth of water into sanitizer, so that one bottle will last a long time.

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Good point, I never thought of that.

llazy_llama said:

Summary: As with nearly every other Vs. debate in this forum, both work. Use whatever you want.

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Isn't that the truth.

I'm gonna try this for sure

llazy_llama said:

It only takes a few drops of Star San to turn one airlock worth of water into sanitizer, so that one bottle will last a long time. For me, 1 liter of cheap vodka ... and it won't last even 1/10th as long as a bottle of Star San used for the same purpose.

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I know this is an old post, but I thought I'd comment on what Lazy said; I find that suck-back on the lager and Kölsch I have going now is pretty high, so I'd be worried about getting that Starsan in my beer. Any thoughts about that? I have been using Vodka, and I am hopeful that it's the right move; I'm feeling good about it based on the observation of suck-back.

This is slightly on topic but off, but .. ...

The vodka picks up the flavor of the wort as it is fermenting. When it comes time to rack or bottle, drink it, it is very interesting.

I use the good vodka from my freezer because I usually enjoy a bit whenever I top off my airlock...

I'm a big fan of Tito's

Vodka in the airlock for me. Its like a little Russian hat for my carboy.

dap325 said:

Vodka in the airlock for me. Its like a little Russian hat for my carboy.

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SpaceportBP said:

This is slightly on topic but off, but .. ...

The vodka picks up the flavor of the wort as it is fermenting. When it comes time to rack or bottle, drink it, it is very interesting.

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You two just freaked me the fark out

Although... I have to admit...I drink the beer from my catch bowl when I bottle from the keg.

SpaceportBP said:

This is slightly on topic but off, but .. ...

The vodka picks up the flavor of the wort as it is fermenting. When it comes time to rack or bottle, drink it, it is very interesting.

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I've thought about doing that a million times. Next time I brew a batch that doesn't blow off into the airlock I may give that a whirl.

Don't use gin if you have fruit fly issues in your house. My airlock gin was brown with a few dozen dead flies in it... EWWWW!

Note to self, don't improvise when running out of cheap vodka, get off my lazy arse and go to the damn liquor store...

I feel inspired to distill a little of the fresh beer for use in the airlock on the next batch

StarSan wins the show for me! I used to use vodka and actually went through it faster than you'd think

If you make a couple gallons of starsan and put it in several spray bottles you'll have plenty of the stuff for all of your sanitizing needs and then also some for airlocks. It does no harm to have it sucked into your bucket either.

But now I feel the need to try this beer/vodka cocktail and drink it straight outta the airlock! I feel a new trend coming on, homebrewers across the country will soon be hitting the parties up with their airlock drinks in hand! Woot, woot! Party, party!

I realize this is a pretty old thread, but I'll write anyway. I am putting vodka in my airlock now not because of suck back, but because I had an ant invasion. For some reason a ton of ants wanted the water in the airlock, or maybe were attracted to the smell. At any rate, it's a glass carboy, so they didn't get in the beer, and it's a three-piece airlock and they all died quickly of no oxygen in the airlock. But from now on it's vodka so they won't be attracted to the water anymore.

I've always just used sanitizer. However, I might give vodka a try for the following reason:

StarSan obviously bubbles/lathers up like soap. When I get a really active fermentation going, the sanitizer bubbles up a little bit and this can cause the bubbles to reach out and go out the top of the airlock, so I lose a little of it and might have to put some more in.

Vodka doesn't do that, so it seems like you might be able to more easily keep the level of fluid in your airlock that you want.

I used water for a dozen years and then I finally switched to vodka when I found out other brewers were doing that.

Gotta watch it, the vodka evaps quick.

Quite the resurrection. I've never had an issue with my airlock vodka evaporating before I was done using it. I also sanitize my caps in vodka, haven't had any rust since.

drathbone said:

Quite the resurrection. I've never had an issue with my airlock vodka evaporating before I was done using it. I also sanitize my caps in vodka, haven't had any rust since.

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It's pretty darn dry around here. I top off the vodka about once a week.

Since I always keep a Rubbermaid tub full of sanitized water nearby on brew days, I just scoop up some of that into the airlock. Works a charm.

I don't understand why plain water is insufficient. They brewed beer for centuries without sanitation, and now we're worried about germs getting through the airlock somehow?

beer brewed for thousands of years? yes absolutely
beer brewed without any sanitization tasting wonderful? sometimes when really lucky

pauljmccain said:

I don't understand why plain water is insufficient. They brewed beer for centuries without sanitation, and now we're worried about germs getting through the airlock somehow?

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You must never have had a problem with mold then...

The sanitation of the water in case it gets sucked into the wort isn't the only reason to use sanitizer or vodka. Mold can also become a problem in damp fermenters that don't have sanitizer

pauljmccain said:

I don't understand why plain water is insufficient. They brewed beer for centuries without sanitation, and now we're worried about germs getting through the airlock somehow?

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I also use vodka. I find that Star San bubbles right out of the airlock during an active fermentation and also loses efficacy over time.

And water, well, there's nothing in water that sanitizes.
The first time I made a swamp cooler, I noticed a thin slime developing on the sides of the Rubbermaid container after about 5 days. From that point forward, I always mix a little Star San with the swamp cooler water to avoid scrubbing the container when I'm done. Thinking about that slime developing in an airlock bothers me. Then the thought of suckback with the slime in there... bleh... I'd rather use vodka and top up as needed.

Yeah, guess you're right, I've just never had any problems, even when I do get suckback. I use better bottles so it happens pretty often while moving them. Guess I'll stop pressing my luck and grab a handle of the cheap stuff at the next frat party.