probably a stupid question.

I just started my first home brew kit, just to make sure/see how it all works before I become more adventurous with recipes etc.

My kit said to put everything into the 5gal fermenter and leave for 4 days. After 12 hours or so at about 16-20 degrees, I cant heat it any more, it looked like the lid was about to explode so I popped it open a crack and released the gas to avoid an explosion.

Will this wreck my beer? Should it have happened? The fermenter suggested in the kit has no airlock and is completely air tight.

 

Uh, airtight fermenter?!??! Personally, I would steer clear of anything that doesn't have some sort of way to relieve pressure. Opening the lid shouldn't cause a problem. Can you just set the lid loosely on the top of the fermenter so that it's covered, but gas can escape around the edges?

 

The lid should have a hole where you can put an airlock.

You definitely did the right thing to vent in a controlled way. Had you not opened it, it would have vented itself in an uncontrolled way (see also: explosion).

For future brews, get a lid with an airlock as it definitely should e allowed to vent. For this brew, leave the cap closed, but not tightly sealed (don't snap it down).

Your beer is NOT ruined. Cheers.

 

P.S. That wasn't a stupid question. Stupid would have been being too proud to ask and cleaning up a hell of a mess...

 

Not a stupid question at all. Air tight won’t work – CO2 is being released, and it has to go somewhere. Since you’re in the middle of a fermentation, you probably shouldn’t remove the lid to modify it. You could buy another lid with a hole for the airlock, but you still need to vent it in the meantime. You could leave the lid loose while getting an airlock arrangement, or you could leave it loose for the entire fermentation. I leave mine loose during active fermentation to prevent blow-outs, but with about a one-pound weight on it to keep nasties out.

Also, if this is a five gallon batch, a five gallon fermenter is too small. Even with venting, you still need some headroom for the kraeusen. A 6-1/2 gallon fermenter is very popular. If there really isn’t any headroom you have a problem. My guess would be to leave the lid loose (with a weight) and let the kraeusen spill out under the lid – a little messy, but you could put it on a catch basin, etc. Maybe someone else has a better idea.

(I see you got several answers while I was typing - first paragraph is redundant. Note about the fermenter size may still apply.)

 

Thanks all. Its 5 gal plus about 2 inch headroom. Ill leave the lid loose with weight on and modify before my next brew. Cheers.

 

Also, for what it's worth, you'll almost certainly want to leave it in the fermenter for more than four days. Do you have a hydrometer, to measure the density of your beer? If so, I would wait a week (at least) and take a gravity reading. Then take another one two days later, and two days after that. When the beer has had the same gravity for two or three readings in a row, it's done fermenting. However, many brewers find that leaving the beer in the fermenter for longer leads to better beer. In some cases, this can mean leaving it in for up to a month or longer, depending on how long it takes to ferment. But don't rush your beer out of the fermenter--I'd say leave it in for two weeks at a minimum, three weeks would probably be better.

 

As was stated, that isn't a lot of headroom. Definitely investigate a blowoff tube.

 

Or a larger fermenter

 

Thanks. I was thinking of leaving it for 8-9 days but ill test the gravity and see when its ready.

 

I really like my Brewers Best Vino Vessel, it is made for fermenting wine but works just as good with beer, it is 7.9 gallons, plenty of head room for an active fermentation.
Paid $13 for it at my local shop and $4 for the lid (nice rubber gasket around the outer edge and a grommeted hole for an airlock.
5 gallon bucket is just too small, you can drill a hole on the side about an inch up and install a plastic spigot and use it for a bottling bucket?

 

I will second these. They are shorter and wider to match the brewer. I think the lids for these are a breeze to take off, some of the narrow ones can be a bear at times even with the "bucket tool"