Contamination?

I checked on my primary fermenter today for the first time in two days and noticed that there was a crack in the bottom of the air lock. All the water leaked out and left the wort open to contamination. This is only my third brew so I'm not too familiar with the process. I put a new airlock on and it's bubbling about 5-7 times per minute. Is this normal for the amount of time it's been fermenting or is it a sign of contamination?

Any idea how (when) it got cracked? If fermentation was already under way, you're probably fine. Lots of CO2 gushing out will keep the nasties from getting in. Even if it was like that from the start, you're probably OK. Just let it ride, expect the best, no worries!

Welcome to HBT!
Chances are almost zero that anything bad happened. During fermentation so much CO2 is being pushed out, nothing going to get in. A crack isn't going to let any critters in, which is it's purpose, so your fermenter is still more tight than lots of folks'.

Nurmey said:

Welcome to HBT!
Chances are almost zero that anything bad happened. During fermentation so much CO2 is being pushed out, nothing going to get in. A crack isn't going to let any critters in, which is it's purpose, so your fermenter is still more tight than lots of folks'.

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Nurmey's right...Relax, it's really hard for your beer to get infected.

I did some research after this post and found that it really isn't that big of a deal. Thanks for the info everyone.