coopers kit & Krausen Collar

[JustRod]

well im on the fence about buying the cooper diy kit
and I would like to know more about coopers Krausen Collar
how much does the Krausen Collar help?( taste/cleaning?)
is it worth buying the kit?

so how well does it work with out a airlock?
thanks

 

[Teromous]

My beer turns out just fine without a collar.

I could see it helping out if you remove it while it's still wet. Krausen leaves these rings which eventually turn into a crust when they dry. It can discolor the plastic (no more than the rest of the beer does) and can be a tad annoying to clean...but honestly I just soak my fermenting bucket in warm water and PBW and it practically peels the crud itself...

 

[HopSong]

Works great. If you do a big beer in it you will NEVER NEVER NEVER have to worry about a blowoff tube. Very easy to clean. The newer versions have good valves. I guess the older ones had problems. Also, if you have one of those big rope buckets, it's easy to fill part way with water and put the DIY into it for better thermoregulation.

That said, I have gone to making small batches and no longer use mine.

 

[unionrdr]

IDK,I still use my Cooper's Microbrew fermenter. After trimming some molding flash of the top of the fermenter in the lid seal area,it seals great & the aurlock works as it should. The spigot on it hasd a recess where it screws in to keep the seal in place. No problems with it. The krausen collar is an interesting idea. handy if you want to get ity away from the beer as it finishes fermenting after initial fermentation is done. I just rinse mine out well,then soak in PBW solution up to the top of the crud ring. Soaks itself loose.