Out of control fermentation... Help!

[BeerBrods22]

Yesterday I brewed a double batch of a bourbon porter. Then split it on to two carboys for primary fermentation. Here is where it gets sticky... The first one I used a 6.5 gallon carboy and threw us05 dry yeast on top. The second was only a 5 gallon carboy that I added an activeted smack pack to of 1728 to. I left about 1-1 1/2 inches of room. This morning when I checked it the top of the air lock was off and it was foaming over. Since then it has shot off the air lock two more times. I just checked it and it looked like it had calmed down. So I took the "gunked-up" air lock off to rinse it and it shot gas and foam up into the air (like a kicked 2 liter of coke...on steroids)

So what do I need to do?
I have tried both 3 piece and the S-bubble air locks and neither of them will let enough gas out...?

!good news... It is live yeast!

 

[COLObrewer]

Blow-off tube, a long tube inserted in the airlock hole, the other end in a jar of water, keep the jar below the top of the fermentor as far as possible.

Or a piece of tinfoil until it's done with the primary phase.

 

[hotbrew]

Just hook up a blow off tube to the fermenter. A really active fermentation like that happens occasionally. Nothing to be worried about. Most of the fermentation is probably over by now but just use a blow off tube anyway.

Some people like putting the other end of the tube in a bowl of santizer or even normal water. Nothing will get up that tube to contaminate the beer anyway, just make sure anything coming out can be cleaned up easily.

 

[BeerBrods22]

Okay, thanks... I was worried I would ruin my batch.

This is my 8-10th batch and I have never seen this happen before.

 

[BeerBrods22]

So, even if I have a blow off tube I am affraid I will just end up pumping beer foam into the water bath.

So if I were to leave the airlock the way I have it a ton of co2 pressure will build up... Will that hurt the beer in any way?

 

[bad67z]

A picture or two is worth a thousand words or more. 3/8 hose I believe is the correct size. If you have to scavenge and have an racking cane or auto siphon you can use the hose from one of them.

 

[BeerBrods22]

THANKS! Yes this picture does it for me!

 

[tele_powder]

I have heard stories of airlocks getting plugged up, pressurizing the Carboy, and the Carboy breaking. That would suck. I have some 1" hose I use or sometimes I just use a wet dish rag over the top. Don't let it pressurize. Weirdly batches where this has happened to me normally turn out tasting really well as lots of the crap gets blown out?

 

[BeerBrods22]

I have a good blow odd tube going now... It is bubbling like a hot tub.

 

[Dynachrome]

Pics or it isn't happening....

 

[hotbrew]

Even if the blow off tube gets gunked up, you will never have to worry about a carboy breaking or exploding. It's pretty thick glass. I've seen a man drop a carboy full of sanitizer onto a concrete floor and it just bounced without even a crack. More than likely, the airlock will be pushed out first.

And BeerBrods22, a build up of CO2 pressure will not harm the beer in any way. That's how we carbonate beer in the first place. The CO2 pressure builds up and the beer absorbs the CO2 for carbonation.