Newbie needs some advice

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

magnoliaswingset

New Member
Joined
Mar 12, 2007
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
I have my first batch in the primary fermenter right now. It has been in there for 48 hours. The fermentation has been so vigorous that beer poured out of the airlock last night. I cleaned it off before I went to bed, but when I woke up this morning the airlock was about ten feet away from the fermenter and there was beer everywhere. My first question is - is this batch currently a lost cause? The airlock could have flown off more than 8 hours ago. I placed the fermenter in a cold water bath in an effort to slow down the fermentation and cleaned and replaced the airlock. Any other advice on calming the fermentation down a little? Any advice appreciated.
 
First off, you'll just have to wait and see if you got contaminated. There is no sense dumping everything on the basis of 'what if'. You need to see 'what is'. So wait, hold off and let it ride. If you are fermenting too high then you could cool it down a bit, but it won't change much at this point.

My guess is, it is completely fine. Airlocks are really only important during the conditioning phase when CO2 production is minimum. Unless something fell directly into the fermentor don't worry!
 
I agree with zoe....it is most likely fine. Keep an eye on it, taste it when you rack to clearing tank (if you plan to) and, if you want it to really calm down, read it a nice bedtime story. I suggest Scuppers The Sailor Dog. ;)
 
Thanks everyone for the prompt advice. I'm brewing an all-wheat hefeweizen. I have 5 gallons of beer in a 6.5 gallon plastic bucket-type fermenter.
 
Use a blow-off tube if it is still fermenting. Just to keep the SWMBO happy. If I have a brew that gets close to the top of my primany (6.5 glass), I swap the airlock for a blowoff.
 
Back
Top