Cold Crashing with Vodka in Airlock

[Oyarsa]

I have cold crashed two beers. Both were 3 gallon jobs. I use vodka in my airlock and simply placed the fermenter and airlock in the fridge. I can't say I'm a beer connoisseur and might not notice oxygenation if it blew me in the face, so it's possible it sucked in oxygen elsewhere, but both times the vodka was still in the airlock. I figure it's ok if vodka is pulled into the beer.

I saw the previous post about cold crashing and oxygen, but it seems it got off track, so I figured I'd start a new thread to see if this is sufficient for an average beer drinker/beginning home brewer.

 

[Vale71]

It doesn't need to pull oxygen from elsewhere, unless you overfilled the vodka will still be in the airlock no matter how much air it sucked in, it will just have bubbled backwards. The vodka doesn't get spit out either when fermentation is ongoing and it's bubbling outwards.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

Vodka vs water has nothing to do with oxidation. Its a sanitation/infection thing.It's WAY overkill in my opinion. I tried it a few times for the hell of it. Its almost a guarantee it wont make a bit of difference. If your comfortable drinking your tap water without it killing you good chance an oz of water isnt going to infect your beer.....Try this if you dare. Dump the same amount of water in your airlock in your finished beer that has alcohol in it, killer of everything, and see if it gets infected...I think not

Drink the shot and feel warm and fuzzy thinking about your beer....you'd be way better off

 

[Oyarsa]

Heh. Good point. I top off with tap water at the end of a partial boil and it hasn't infected it...yet.

I guess my logic of the airlock being a one-way "valve" is incorrect, then?

 

[Vale71]

I guess my logic of the airlock being a one-way "valve" is incorrect, then?

Yep. Think of it more like a revolving door that needs to be pushed (in this case with pressure) but that can be pushed in both directions and will work just as well regardless.

 

[CascadesBrewer]

I use vodka in my airlock

I cannot say much about the aeration side, but I personally think it is a very good idea to use Vodka in your airlock. We are not talking about water fresh out of the tap, but water that has been in your airlock for a week or two getting sucked into your beer. I used Vodka when I used Iodophor as my sanitizer (even if studies say a few oz of that is not detectable in beer). These days I use StarSan and I put some StarSan solution in my airlocks. I don't have any solid evidence of contamination from tap water, but a $10 bottle of cheap Vodka fills a lot of airlocks and, in my book, is cheap insurance.

 

[Maverick986]

I cannot say much about the aeration side, but I personally think it is a very good idea to use Vodka in your airlock. We are not talking about water fresh out of the tap, but water that has been in your airlock for a week or two getting sucked into your beer. I used Vodka when I used Iodophor as my sanitizer (even if studies say a few oz of that is not detectable in beer). These days I use StarSan and I put some StarSan solution in my airlocks. I don't have any solid evidence of contamination from tap water, but a $10 bottle of cheap Vodka fills a lot of airlocks and, in my book, is cheap insurance.

Do you suggest using vodka over StarSan? Or are both more or less equal here?

 

[Homergah]

I've had the water in my airlock turn brown when I'm doing long term wild fermentations. I don't want that in my beer, even these funky ones. I switched to diluted vodka. 2:1 v/w. It never turns brown.

 

[RM-MN]

With a 3 piece airlock you don't have to fill it to the "fill line", just add enough water to keep the bugs from sneaking under the inside floating piece. With that little water it won't get sucked back into the fermenter when cold crashing.

Better yet, get an "S" shaped airlock that works both directions.

 

[CascadesBrewer]

Do you suggest using vodka over StarSan? Or are both more or less equal here?

I cannot say much about the antiseptic properties of StarSan -vs- Vodka (or -vs- Water), but I guess a small bottle of StarSan + a bottle of distilled water would fill a LOT of airlocks. If you don't use StarSan a small bottle of vodka is probably more convenient. I mix up a small bucket of StarSan so that is more convenient for me.

 

[Gilbert Spinning Horse]

Yep. Think of it more like a revolving door that needs to be pushed (in this case with pressure) but that can be pushed in both directions and will work just as well regardless.

That depends on the type of airlock, the 3 piece ones will suck in the fluid when you cold crash.

 

[Vale71]

My bad, I was assuming the most common type of airlock, the S-shaped one.

 

[Jtvann]

Wondering why everyone doesnt use a blow off regardless of blow off potential. It's the exact same thing as an air lock, just on a much larger scale.

Solves multiple problems without nearly as many issues

 

[Homergah]

Wondering why everyone doesnt use a blow off regardless of blow off potential. It's the exact same thing as an air lock, just on a much larger scale.

Solves multiple problems without nearly as many issues

I use a blow off. But if I'm sitting on a beer in a fermentor for months, I'm replacing the blowoff with a lock. Usually for convenience and/or space saving.

 

[Jtvann]

I use a blow off. But if I'm sitting on a beer in a fermentor for months, I'm replacing the blowoff with a lock. Usually for convenience and/or space saving.

That makes sense to me. Never left one for that long, outside of lagers, so didn't consider it.

 

[Homergah]

That makes sense to me. Never left one for that long, outside of lagers, so didn't consider it.

I will eventually kick the blow off bucket over and spill everything. Or someone else will and I won't know about it till days later.

It's funny though, I feel like such a hobbiest noob putting an airlock on!

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

Do you suggest using vodka over StarSan? Or are both more or less equal here?

Dont use Star San it foams like crazy and will foam out the little holes in the plastic airlock cover.Not thats its a big deal but why bother lookin at it.

 

[kh54s10]

Dont use Star San it foams like crazy and will foam out the little holes in the plastic airlock cover.Not thats its a big deal but why bother lookin at it.

I have used Starsan EVERY time for 7 3/4 years. Who cares if it bubbles a little. BTW I have never gotten "foaming like crazy", are you mixing it too strong?

Be careful if you cold crash with a blow off tube. I see so many posts where someone had the blow off tube in a gallon or more of Starsan and it got sucked back. You really only need enough Starsan to keep the end of the tube submerged. Then there is not enough to create a reverse siphon.

 

[Homergah]

I have used Starsan EVERY time for 7 3/4 years. Who cares if it bubbles a little. BTW I have never gotten "foaming like crazy", are you mixing it too strong?

Be careful if you cold crash with a blow off tube. I see so many posts where someone had the blow off tube in a gallon or more of Starsan and it got sucked back. You really only need enough Starsan to keep the end of the tube submerged. Then there is not enough to create a reverse siphon.

Absolutely. Also, if you use a large diameter hose the vacuum will not be enough to pull it into the fermentor. Honestly tho, when I get to the point of cold crashing, I'm pulling the blow off bucket in favor of a bag full of co2 sealed to the end of the blow off tube. No worries.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

I have used Starsan EVERY time for 7 3/4 years. Who cares if it bubbles a little. BTW I have never gotten "foaming like crazy", are you mixing it too strong?

Thats what I said...it's no big deal but why bother looking at it. I'm sure I didnt measure it out and just dumped a little in the airlock.

I didnt like looking at the foam but thats just me. To each their own

And it did foam out the holes in the cap

Vodka would be my choice if I worried about airlock sanitation

 

[Jayjay1976]

Don't use vodka in your airlock, once the ethanol evaporates you have basically water left which won't protect your beer from infection. If you don't believe me, leave a shot out on the table overnight and taste it the next morning, the alcohol will be gone. Starsan on the other hand is quite the opposite; as the water in it evaporates over time it becomes more concentrated and hence more effective at killing any microbes that find their way into your airlock.

For additional protection, stuff a starsan-soaked cottonball in the top of the airlock (S-type) and snap the little cap on it. The cotton will quickly dry out but acts as a filter during suck-back and will keep fruit flies out of the starsan, while the acidified cotton is unfriendly for mold formation.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

Don't use vodka in your airlock, once the ethanol evaporates you have basically water left which won't protect your beer from infection.

Thats interesting I never heard that before. So a shot of Vodka left out overnight no longer has alcohol in it...ya learn something new every day

 

[Jayjay1976]

Thats interesting I never heard that before. So a shot of Vodka left out overnight no longer has alcohol in it...ya learn something new every day

I learned that in college, in exactly the circumstances one would imagine.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

I learned that in college, in exactly the circumstances one would imagine.

LOL..thats funny. I could only imagine that scenario...."Alright...which one of you jokers stole the alcohol out of the Vodka...Jokes over...give it back"

 

[Jayjay1976]

LOL..thats funny. I could only imagine that scenario...."Alright...which one of you jokers stole the alcohol out of the Vodka...Jokes over...give it back"

More like, "look at all these sad lonely shots nobody drank, well, I don't mind if I do!"