Beginner homebrew trouble

[IslandLizard]

Just remember to spray starsan or something up the tap after using it, all kinds of nasties may grow there otherwise.

Yup, any beer remaining in the spigot, exposed to air will get infected. So you need to clean/rinse/spray that out thoroughly and sanitize it after use. Then resanitize right before you take your next sample, bottle from it, or use it to transfer to a bottling bucket.

If you don't... you may get infected beer.

 

[IslandLizard]

Probably worth siphoning off the top when you come to bottle as that tap is now a culture bomb. Glad it's got going. Keep us updated.

It will indeed become a culture bomb if not cleaned and sanitized (in place) thoroughly. I don't think waiting a day will be detrimental, but it becomes much more difficult to effectively remove dried-on beer from the narrow and fairly deep channel. Brewers have done it successfully...

Also keep it clean when you intent to use it for sampling and transfers. After cleaning and sanitizing you could wrap some (sanitized) plastic film around it, or a plastic baggy.

 

[GoodTruble]

The spigot/tap will probably be fine.

If you can dip or spray sanitizer around it, that certainly won't hurt.

And when you bottle, re-sanitize first and flush out the first few ounces into a drip container instead of bottling. That is usually sufficient (95% of the time). But it should be fine.

Good luck.