Blow-Off problems

I have a 5 gallon batch in a 6 gallon better bottle so I didn't think I'd have a problem with blowoff, but I do.

I was going to pull out the airlock and slip in a blow off tube setup, but I can't pull out either the airlock or the stopper. Kraeusen is coming up from the bottle and into the airlock and foam out of the airlock.

Any suggestions?

if you have a blow-off tube big enough to fit into the mouth of the carboy, sanitize it, pull out the airlock and stopper, and put the tube in.
if you don't, pull out the airlock and attach sanitized siphon tubing to the the hole in the stopper...
or dremel about half an inch off the bottom of the airlock and it'll be less likely to get clogged up.

my problem is that I can't pull out either the airlock or the stopper.

El Cazador said:

my problem is that I can't pull out either the airlock or the stopper.

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oh...in your first post, you said "I can pull out either the airlock or the stopper"

umm...i don't know what to tell you, man.
you got any friends who are tough enough to wrestle the little piece of rubber out of there?
a shotgun, maybe?

I think that the yeast i used in my last batch was bad i have absolutly no blow off and was wondering if anybody knew if I would run into any problems by adding another packet of yeast

burnsy said:

I think that the yeast i used in my last batch was bad i have absolutly no blow off and was wondering if anybody knew if I would run into any problems by adding another packet of yeast

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you'll have to be more specific with your problem. also, it's polite to start your own thread instead of hijacking someone elses....

anyway, what makes you think your yeast is bad? what was your OG and what's your SG now? how long has it been since you added this yeast? at what temperature are you fermenting (or attempting to ferment)?

sorry about that Im not very good with this stuf I dont even know what a thread is so dont anybody be mad! Ill try and figure this site out and hone my on-line ediquite. anyway I have not noticed any activity in my airlock so I begining to get worried that the yeast was bad because its been in my trove of brewing stuff for a year or two, but the date was sept 06' also I failed to dissolve the yeast in luke warm watter before adding it to the wort and I dont know what the signifagance of that is. I guess what I need to Know is how long should I wait to see some activity, and will it cause any adverse effects to add another packet?

Im currently at 72 deg and what is og and sg? and I added the yeast at 9:00 this morn

ahh, i see your problem... patience
it may take 24-48 hours to see activity. what was the temperature when you pitched the yeast?

Lou said:

oh...in your first post, you said "I can pull out either the airlock or the stopper"

umm...i don't know what to tell you, man.
you got any friends who are tough enough to wrestle the little piece of rubber out of there?
a shotgun, maybe?

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I'll try to pull off the airlock tonight. I tried and tried last night, but it felt like it was going to break off.

I've seen a hook like device that wedges in between the stopper and the lip of the bottle. Does anybody know what it's called?

it was 70 deg when I pitched the yeast, I did not disolve it however I just sprinkled it directley into my wart in the fermenter, do you think I'll be OK?

burnsy said:

it was 70 deg when I pitched the yeast, I did not disolve it however I just sprinkled it directley into my wart in the fermenter, do you think I'll be OK?

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i guarantee success.
make sure your fermenter is sealed and everything is airtight so the only way for CO2 to escape is through your airlock....

right thanks so much!

To the OP. can you not fit a butter knife between the stopper and the side of the carboy? That's how I get my stoppers out. Work a little at the time around the stopper and it should wiggle out .

Jester4176 said:

To the OP

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at least somebody is paying attention!

Thanks for the tip, I'll try it if I need to. So far it's not too "junky", and it's just foaming, but it's fairly clean. I don't think I'm going to need a blow off after all, the fermentation was hot and heavy at first, but it's starting to slow already. The next hurdle is getting the stopper out. The butter knife trick should work.