Blow off tube problems while cold crashing

I went to bottle my beer the other day after cold crashing it in the fridge. I had a blowoff tube still attached rather than using an airlock. I am using a 1/2" ID tube attached to part of the airlock. When I looked in the fridge I noticed the water in the jug was about half gone and I did not ever dump it out and poor fresh water in it even after the krausen went into it during fermentation .

Apparently the water got sucked up through the tube and into my beer. I guess the temp. difference caused a pressure difference and sucked it up into the carboy. Hopefully it is not contaminated. This is more of a warning than anything, but I was just curious if this has ever happened to anyone else. If so, did your beer get contaminated?

Kevin

 

People get suckback all the time, and things end up fine. In the future, you might consider using a Starsan solution or vodka instead of straight water. That way, nothing can get in your beer, even if there is some suckback.

Here you'll have a small risk of infection, but if you're sanitation is good, suckback shouldn't be a problem and if your sanitation "sucks", suckback is the least of your worries.

 

If he had used a jug of straight vodka or star san and half of it got sucked back into the fermentation vessel wouldn't he have fortified beer or really sanitized wort?

I think a good question is what is the volume that got sucked back?

 

It was probably about 10 onces of nasty water. And by nasty I mean the initial fermentation that had blown out. I just didn't have an extra airlock lying around. I am going to purchase 2 more airlocks next time I brew another batch. I had never heard of this being a problem.

Kevin

 

You will still get suck back with an air lock, just less volume. Buy some cheap vodka; it is worth the peace of mind

 

switch from the blow off tube to an airlock once the krausen starts to drop.

 

Not if you use the S-type ones. They'll just bubble backwards. I still fill 'em with Star San, though.

 

Yep. this is my first time with this problem. I couldn't get my blow-off tube off from my airlock without breaking it, so that's why I used my blow-off tube. Def. learned a lesson and I'm gonna bye 2 airlocks next time I brew. Also gonna upgrade the ol blow off.

Kevin