Airlock?

[mcbrown]

My directions mention I can either use water or vodka. Vodka? Why vodka?

 

[Revvy]

vodka or any sanitizer is preferable to water, because there is a risk of suckback into the fermenter due to temp changes or jarring the fermenter. So you want something that can actually kill any microorganisms that potentially could get inside.

 

[unionrdr]

Yup,cheap vodka gives nasties that do get into the airlock alcohol poisoning beforethey can do any harm. Cheap & effective,1 5th fromn the grocery shelf goes a long way. Plus it's neutral in flavor.

 

[KISS Brew]

I always have extra Star San around, so I use that.

 

[certaut]

5 star star san, been using it for years. Cheap and works well, I got it in a spray bottle and clean the kitchen, meat grinder and slicer with it also works well in the bathroom for cleaning. The plus is it repels hornets and wasps on brew day and won't make the brew smell like bug spray. As far as vodka,, быть российской крови ,, I use vodka for better purpose

 

[bob1852]

Is 40% vodka really enough to kill bacteria? I've read you need ~60-70% alcohol to be effective.

I've used vodka in my airlocks for years, but have been reading some other sources suggesting it's not as effective an anti-microbial as we may think.

 

[unionrdr]

It's stil strong enough to dry out their cell walls & kill them that way. Even those pesky lil fruit flies bite the big one that get through the lil holers in the airlock cap.