Airlocks Or NO Airlocks???

[ILOVEBEER]

Hi there,

I have four carboys for fermenting. I brewed with a friend the entire time I brewed and he had special fermentation stuff....anyway....I have seen several pics on this site where people use a large clear hose into a bucket of sanitized water for blowoff and some use the standard airlocks which I have. What is the deal with the variation in airlocks used?

Is one better than the other?

Thanks
Joe

 

[Gritsak]

Assuming a 5g batch, if you're fermenting in a 5g carboy, you will have hardly any head space and will need a blowoff tube (airlock would easily get clogged and/or blow off). If you have a 6.5g carboy, you can likely get away with using a stopper and airlock. Much of what i've read suggests NOT using a 5g carboy with blow-off tube because active fermentation can result in losing a decent amount of your beer through the tube, although lots of people do it.

 

[Spludge]

As Grit said, the blow off allows the your carboy to spill out excess during active fermentation. If you have a airlock on a 5gallon carboy it will likely blow off during this time. I use a blow off the first few days and then switch to an airlock, after the active ferment is over.

 

[JuanMoore]

I think a lot of brewers use both. For me it depends not only on the amount of headspace, but also the type of beer I'm brewing. If it's a very high gravity brew, or has lot's of protien rich grains (oats, rye, wheat, etc) I'll use a blow-off tube even when there's a lot of headspace. Once the initial fermentation is over, sometimes I'll switch from a blow-off tube to an airlock in order to make more room in my fermentation fridge.

 

[sudbuster]

Hi there,

I have four carboys for fermenting. I brewed with a friend the entire time I brewed and he had special fermentation stuff....anyway....I have seen several pics on this site where people use a large clear hose into a bucket of sanitized water for blowoff and some use the standard airlocks which I have. What is the deal with the variation in airlocks used?

Is one better than the other?

Thanks
Joe

No. One is good and the other is good. If i am brewing a lager (witch is normal for me) I use an air lock because the kraeusen is not to great. If I brew a Wee Heavy, then I use a big blow off 'cause the thing is going to want to come out of the fermenter. That's all.... Cheers

 

[Gumbys_Brew]

i use both methods . just depends on the OG of the brew and what i have available.

 

[mordantly]

or if you add 2 oz dry hops itll jump on out!

 

[ILOVEBEER]

sounds great. My carboys are 5 gallons each and I will brew 10 gallon batches so I would have 2 going at one time.

How far does the large blow off tube get placed into the carboy?

Thanks

 

[The Pol]

How far? Just far enough to get it to seal.

 

[DrinksWellWithOthers]

How far does the large blow off tube get placed into the carboy?

Just far enough into the carboy neck so that it stays put.