Brewing beer with no airlock

[wallyfrog]

Hey everyone, I recently bought a brewers starter kit. The kit includes a primary fermenter with lid and a glass carboy. This will be my first time brewing so I will be using extract from a can. My primary fermenter's lid has no hole for an airlock and the cover does not snap on tightly (snaps on but sits loosely). I am wondering if it would be ok to brew in this primary fermenter until the beer is ready to bottle?

 

[CrustyBrau]

Could drill a hole in it, and get a grommet from your LHBS...

 

[prosper]

I never use an airlock during primary fermentation. It's completely unnecessary, and often counterproductive.

 

[northernlad]

Rack it into your carboy and cover loosely with film and a rubber band. As it is fermenting go to your LHBS and get an airlock. Drill a hole in your bucket lid the size of the airlock stem and install.
Meanwhile I'll be over here wondering how an airlock could remotely fit the definition of counter productive.

 

[skidaddytn]

your primary plastic vessel sounds flaky... you want a controlled airlock, not one that is leaky.... I would buy a rubber bung with a hole for the glass carboy and some plastic tubing from the hardware store and run the tube into a milk jug half filled with water (with a *small* amt of bleach) and ferment in the glass carboy instead... its more fun to be able to watch it bubble, churn and ferment anyhow...
if its your 1st batch, don't worry about the secondary stage...
just keep it away from sunlight in a closet or throw a towel over it... only fill the carboy up ~85-90% with beer or you will have lots of blow off (which is ok, if your water jug can contain it)... the first time I used a 5 gallon bucket for the blowoff water interlock (this is overkill)... you will learn the proper headspace to leave in your primary vessel over time...

 

[ChshreCat]

Having a seal isn't that important. One of my fermenters doesn't seal so I never see a bubble in my airlock. It makes good beer. One day I couldn't find the lid so I just covered he bucket with sanitized aluminum foil. Beer came out fine. Just drill a hole in the lid, get a drilled stopper that fits in the hole and you're set.

 

[prosper]

Meanwhile I'll be over here wondering how an airlock could remotely fit the definition of counter productive.

they get clogged up with gunk, which then makes a nice feeding ground for microbes

 

[wallyfrog]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I do have an airlock and rubber bung for the glass carboy. I was hoping the plastic fermenter would have an air tight lid with a hole for airlock. Seems like a lot extra work to mix all the ingredients in the plastic fermenter, then siphon the mixture into the glass carboy for fermentation. Maybe I will try fermenting the beer in the plastic fermenter with the loose lid and no airlock. If the beer doesnt turn out good, I will try the extra work and use the glass carboy next time.

 

[skidaddytn]

forgot about that... if you use a carboy for primary... you also need a giant funnel which you can find at wally world usually... if your plastic vessel is leaky it may still be fine anyhow... i've never tried one that leaked...

 

[skidaddytn]

wait a minute... mix ingredients in the fermenter? do you have a no-boil kit?

 

[wallyfrog]

Yes, just have to boil 3 litres of water and mix it with the can of ingredients and sugar.

 

[starrfish]

HAVE YOU STARTED? would suggest a boil of hopped extract (15 min minimum) ....

 

[wallyfrog]

No, I have not started. The instructions said for be to boil just water in a pot. Place the boiling water in a fermenter. Heat the can of extract in a different pot of water and add the mixture into the fermenter with the boiling water. Should I do something differently?

 

[kcpaige89]

No, I have not started. The instructions said for be to boil just water in a pot. Place the boiling water in a fermenter. Heat the can of extract in a different pot of water and add the mixture into the fermenter with the boiling water. Should I do something differently?

If I'm not mistaken, you should boil the ingredients for at least 15 or 20 minutes. Also, if you ferment in the carboy, do not add boiling wort to your carboy, it will not be a good/safe experience.

 

[skidaddytn]

I don't claim to be an expert on how to make Canadian beer... BUT... most often times the extract process goes:

boil water in LARGE pot -> add grains extract -> boil longer and add hops -> cool this mixture down in BOIL POT to a level where you won't kill the yeast ~95F -> pour cooled mixture into fermenting vessel (this is the first time this vessel is used)-> top this sugar concentrated vessel off with water (unless you did an entire 5 gallon boil) -> add the yeast -> seal off container with an airlock and let sit for at LEAST 2 weeks (the longer the better... some of us rack into secondary container to clear some of the trub.. some don't)...

bottling day is a whole new topic...

don't pour boiling water into your fermenter...

 

[starrfish]

missed the glass part! DO NOT pour boiling wort into GLASS! It could shatter and if not hot , even warm at 90° may blow the rubber stopper bung as it cools.

 

[Pommy]

Skimming through the thread Id assuming this is a no boil kit, people say that you should boil to ensure that the extract is sanitary. I used to do those kits, and still occasionally do to keep my supplies up, and I have never boiled the extract or had an infection. I haven't tested it but I believe that boiling the extract is going to negatively effect the hop flavour of the kit.

 

[Pommy]

also I would expect the plastic fermenter will be for the primary fermentation, then a secondary in the glass carboy. Probably then transfer back to the primary for bottling provided it has a spigot.

 

[COLObrewer]

. . . . .There is also going to be a blowoff situation here at some point, this is when your fermenter is too full and the krausen/hops/beer/yeast gets into the seams and plugs it up causing a buildup of pressure and eventually the lid will blow spewing fermenting beer all over. I suggest drilling a hole in this lid and grometing for a blowoff tube, and installing said tube on every primary fermentation.

Keep on brewing my friends

 

[wallyfrog]

Pommy is right, it is a no boil kit. The primary fermenter is a 10 gallon plastic. With the size of the fermenter and the lid not tightly sealing, I should'nt have to worry about blow off. Is secondary fermentation required, or is the fermentation in the bottles considered secondary fermentation as well?