Cleaning fermenter lid

Hey all,

I am sitting at work now, thinking about my beer fermenting away and realized that I don't think I sanitized the lid to the fermenter. I rinsed everything before use, and don't think I sanitized it before putting it on. I brewed last night, and the airlock was bubbling this morning. Is it okay to take the lid off, mix up some sanitizer and sanitize it, or will that harm the fermenting? Thanks in advance!

You could probably take it off and clean/sanitize it without too much trouble, since all the CO2 being produced will most likely create a protective blanket that should keep the beer safe for at least a limited time. Of course, if the fermentation has created a krausen big enough to hit the lid already, it could be pointless to try to clean it now. You never rinsed the lid at all before putting it on? If it was in a relatively clean environment, you're probably okay anyway. I'll leave this open to other opinions though.

It'd be ok to do that, but if you are already at a strong ferment, I wouldn't worry about it. you will probably get more bacteria in there from opening it than leaving it alone. Anything that was going to get into it has, and hasn't hurt anything yet. I'd bet you are good to go.

Cool. I rinsed it with just regular water, not sanitizer. It was hanging around my kitchen, which is decently clean but not spotless. Not entirely sure where it had been as there were two of us brewing. I will take a look at it real quick and see how much it has started, or could this contaminate it? There were a few things in the process that could have contaminated the batch, this being one of them, so IDK. LOL, I need to get out of work and have a cold one.

Im sure you will be fine...if uopen the lid u will open it to more harm so i think u should just let it be

Alright. Sounds reasonable. This brings me to my next question though. When should I take hydro readings? Or is it best to just let it sit since I know the yeast is healthy and fine, and wait like 2-3 weeks? The stupid book the kit came with is practically useless. This site has been WAY more helpful than it. Thanks!

Take the hydrometer reading for final gravity right before you bottle, but also before you add the priming sugar, as that will distort the reading. I usually just use a sanitized turkey baster to remove a few ounces before I rack to my bottling bucket. If you wait three weeks, the fermentation will certainly be completely finished. Of course, if you get some crazy hydrometer reading that doesn't make sense, be sure to consult with us before bottling.

Sounds good! I just found out that the lid may have been on the floor (just got home). Does that change your recommendations? LOL, wow, all this reading and whatnot and I can't even get the stuff clean!

If the beer was a standard strength beer, say 1.050 OG or so, I doubt the krausen will get to the top of a 7 gallon bucket and mix any nasties into the beer.. At this point, I'd say leave it be, since opening it could suck in a bunch of junk from the air. If it's going strong, the yeast should overpower any other minor contaminants.

Awesome news thanks for the help!

Wait until the krausen has fallen back into the beer at the absolute minimum before taking a hydrometer reading.

I'd give it a week past that personally. 3 weeks if it's a normal brew will be plenty of time.

Is there a way to see where the krausen is at without taking the lid off? I have a white plastic bucket as my fermenter. The airlock stopped bubbling, but I take it that since it bubbled a little bit, the yeast is doing its thing. I was planning on waiting a week and a half to two weeks before opening the lid. Does that seem like a good plan? Thanks for all the help! And you all are right, it is hard to be patient.

Rdwhahb

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Yeah, the first few batches are a PAIN to wait for, but once you start stockpiling, it gets a lot easier! Just relax and leave it be for now. Does your bucket had a tap at the bottom of it?

My bottling bucket does. I will have to siphon it into the bottling bucket. I went by the fermenter this morning and the airlock smelled like beer, so I think that is a good sign. No bubbles still though. I will just wait it out.

If you're not seeing bubbles, you should check to make sure you have a tight seal. The CO2 could be seeping out through a gap in the lid-bucket seal.

Gotcha, I will check when I get home. I was seeing some bubbles before, but they have stopped.

Hmm, if it already was bubbling and stopped, it may have just slowed down to the point where you didn't notice it. I forgot you said it had already been bubbling. I thought you were saying it hadn't started at all yet. It's probably fine then.

Gotcha, thanks for the help! One last noob question though (at least for the moment), when we put the cooled wort in the fermenter, the temp was about 65-70 degrees. It has been sitting there for a few days and now the room temp is 80-85 degrees with the fermenting wort at 78 degrees. Should I move it to my basement where the temp is constant 70 degrees (bad air but I had a different thread on that) or leave it where it is, and let it ride. Thanks!

I would definitely move it to the basement. 78ºF is a bit too warm for fermentation, and it's only going to get warmer where it is now. You'll get a lot of fruity esters at those temps. 70ºF is pretty spot on for most ales. Whatever bad air you're talking about won't matter, since you've got an airlock on the bucket and it's out-gassing.

Thank you! I will move it tomorrow morning. I just didn't want to disturb it going down two flights of stairs.

As long as you don't roll it down the stairs, you should be fine. Just take it nice and easy.

I will have to send you a bottle of it when it is ready. Unless it is terrible and then we will know why, LOL! *eyes lid suspiciously*