Are Buckets with no Seal Ok to Ferment?

[JustinBeerber]

My brewing kit came with a bucket, with spout. The lid has no gasket nor "snaps" shut. It kinda snaps, but a fly on TRT could probably open it.
I
Brewed a batch and put it in this bucket as my fermenter. It does have an airlock hole, and the airlock retains the sanitized water in it.
I'm concerned about the seal. I ordered a second bucket, so I could do multiple batches, but now I'm wondering if I shoulda got a bucket with a lid seal. The batch I have in the bucket hasn't shown any bubbles yet after 24hr. I know, it takes time, but the first batch I did in a carboy, and I had overflow at about 12hr. Head space?

 

[bigdaddybrew]

So was it water tight when you filled the bucket with some water and inverted it? When you squeeze the sides of the bucket does the airlock bubble? If you are not sure I would put the lid on the bucket and seal it with shipping tape and then order a better lid.

 

[flars]

Some bucket fermentors do not have seals. The lid will keep out the things that float through the air though. You may not see much activity in the airlock. The CO2 can escape around the rim of the bucket under the lid.
It is also possible the bucket was meant to be used for bottling since it has a spigot installed for a bottling wand.

When using a carboy it is a good idea to have at least a gallon and a half of head space for the krausen. This will usually keep the air lock from getting plugged.

 

[Potamus]

None of my buckets have seals on them. Never had a problem with infection.

 

[Weezy]

Fermentation does not need to be a sealed environment. Open fermentation, with no lid, is not uncommon as well where they rely on the yeast pitch to out perform any miniscule amount of unfavorables and the krausen to cap the wort. As was said, any lid will keep bacteria and wild yeast that floats in the air from getting in the beer.

 

[JustinBeerber]

Right on, thanks fellas.

 

[JustinBeerber]

Real quick follow up, is my air lock not bubbling because fermentation hasn't started (it's been 40hrs), or because there's no seal? I squeezed the bucket, and got no bubbles.

 

[JustinBeerber]

I took a peak, and it looks like there's action going on in there, so I think the fermentation is under way. I'm not a fan of bucket fermenting at this point though.

 

[number40fan]

It is just the lid isn't sealing. You'll be ok.

 

[IslandLizard]

You'll get used to buckets quickly when you need to clean them or carry them around. I switched back to buckets (from glass carboys) after reading some of the carboy horror story compendium.

Why doesn't the lid snap on? There's a lip the lid should snap around. A (close-up) picture tells more than words can describe.

I had a bucket fermentation where the airlock never bubbled. 2 weeks later the beer was done. I had another where the lid was breathing, like an artificial lung. Same bucket, same lid.

 

[fuelish]

Buckets are no big deal for (most) beers, wouldn't leave a "big" beer in one for long term, same as I wouldn't leave wine or mead in a carboyt after primary ferment. Using a carboy is fine for primary, just get you a big fat blowoff tube (stuffs in carboy mouth same as a stopper), and run the tube to a vessel filled with liquid of your choice - water, cheap vodka, Starsan solution -with a large enough volume to allow for collection of blowoff.... exactly the same as an airlock, just on a larger scale, and will not clog or overflow. I use a blowoff tube on all beers, meads I don't, they ferment a lot "gentler" than beer, no crazy foaming....at least so far

 

[bigdaddybrew]

During active fermentation there should be enough co2 activity to prevent oxygen from entering but once fermentation slows or there is a drop in temperature oxygen may enter the unsealed container so oxidation could be an issue. Many people don't worry about oxidation, splashing hot wort (hot side aeration), careless splashing of beer (cold side aeration) when racking or bottling. Does oxidation occur due to poorly sealed bucket lids? Oxidize your beer as a part of your normal brewing practice and you will get used to it and may never notice. Most common flaw of homebrew entered into competitions? Some say oxidation. Why take a chance, seal the lid. IMO.

 

[JustinBeerber]

How would I seal the brew BD Brew? Would a gasket have enough room?

 

[bigdaddybrew]

For now I would just use some tape. I use a lid with a gasket. I have used a lid without a gasket and the air lock never bubbled. The point of an air lock is to prevent oxygen or anything else from entering the fermenter. Has anyone added a gasket to a normal lid? Could you add a small bead of silicone? I'm not sure.

 

[Wolfbrau]

A: Yes.