Clogged spigot

[cysiam]

I just brewed a batch of oatmeal stout and it's ready to be transferred to the priming bucket. I have it fermenting in a bucket with the bottom spigot siphon.
When I opened the siphon it immediately clogged up. Any tips on how to unclog this without damaging the beer?

 

[Bowtiebrewery]

Well there are a few things you could do however i need to say one thing in the first place.

1.) You shouldn't ferment in a "Bottling Bucket" The spigot area is often the most prone to infection because of its crevices. Also for another reason is that it will easily get clogged when you try to transfer out the bottom.

Ok... now I would recommend using a racking cane and transferring it that way as this would be the SOP for any fermentation in a container (except for a Conical)

 

[lostboysbrew]

1.) You shouldn't ferment in a "Bottling Bucket" The spigot area is often the most prone to infection because of its crevices. Also for another reason is that it will easily get clogged when you try to transfer out the bottom.

I concur. The point of taking out of the fermenter is to seperate the dead yeast from the beer. If you are pulling from the bottom then you are pulling all that yeast with it. Racking cane or auto siphon recommended.

 

[cysiam]

I'm not fermenting in the bottling bucket. It's the siphonless fermenter that comes in William'sHome Brew Kit.

 

[Yooper]

I'm not fermenting in the bottling bucket. It's the siphonless fermenter that comes in William'sHome Brew Kit.

I've seen those. They aren't very popular. Most of us have "regular" buckets, and siphon from one fermenter to the next or to the bottling bucket. I think the siphonless idea is good in theory, but you can see why it doesn't really work in practice. You really want to take the beer off of the trub from above it, not in the middle of it. If you have a hoppy beer in there next time, the spigot will get clogged up with hops.

It's really simple to use a siphon, especially with an auto siphon, and I'd recommend one even with the fermenters from Williams.