Blow out. What now?

[edwar039]

Hey All!

I am on my fourth batch of beer and am making a bass in a 6.5 gal glass carboy. I guess the fermentation lock got jammed up so a bunch of pressure built up after about two days of fermentation and blew the top off, squirting beer all over the house.

I cleaned up and reset the fermentation lock but it is currently not bubbling. Did this blowout ruin the fermentation process?

I believe my options now are to:

a) add more yeast.
b) bottle and see how it turns out.
c) transfer to a secondary fermentation bucket and add more yeast; it's only been about a week so I doubt all the sugars have completely fermented.

Any advice would help a lot!

 

[Face Eater]

I doubt you ruined anything. I would check the gravity and see where it's at. It may be done fermenting so check the gravity for a few days and if it's stabile or consistent for the next few days proceed to bottling.

 

[Nytelyte]

A blowout will not ruin anything unless its uncovered long enough for nasties to get in, and that is unlikely. Most likely its just done. Let it age the time you were going to anyway, leave it alone, take your hydrometer readings, and when its done, bottle it and drink it.

I just went though an explosion recently with my first heffe, and its now the Hindenburg Hefeweisen, opened the first one yesterday and its great.

Chalk it up to some experience & use a blowoff tube in the future.

 

[Pezman1]

Like everyone said:

A blowoff does not ruin fermentation.

Wait a bit, then take FG readings like normal.

Use a blow-off from now on, every time, every beer, always..... really.

Pez.

 

[edwar039]

Thanks so much for the help guys!

We're definitely going to invest in a blow-off tube. The recipe called for two weeks total of fermentation so I'll wait it out till then to bottle. Also, take record of the hydrometer readings.