Faulty fermentor

[hopnotch01]

Hey Guys, Im relatively new to homebrewing, I brewed my 7th batch this morning that will probably not turn out. The reason is because I have a faulty fermentor. I bought this fermentor from Morebeer, and the first batch I used it on, I noticed some of the wort seeping out of the bottom of the fermentor. I figured I just had not tightened the spigot enough so I dumped the batch, cleaned it, took it out, reinstalled it tighter, as tight as I could get it, but today I noticed the same thing shortly after filled it up. I quickly transferred it over to my secondary in hopes that I could save the batch with as little exposure as possible, but only time will tell. I contacted more beer about the situation but they will not do anything. I think there might be a minuscule crack on the bottom of the fermentor.

With all that said, my question is: Is there a product that will seal this seam that can be used with beer, or do I need to just buy a new fermentor?
Thanks!

 

[govner1]

First, what kind of fermentor? Bucket, glass, Better Bottle?

 

[Knkbrand]

sounds like a bucket with a bottling spigot at the bottom. I would spend money on a new bucket without a spigot....I never use mine.

 

[JeepDiver]

Most people don't use buckets with spigots for this reason, though they can work.

One major issue is tightening it down too much. If you put too much torque on the o ring will deform, causing a leak. It is better to just hand tighten without cranking it as hard as you can

 

[hopnotch01]

Yeah Its a bucket with a spigot at the bottom. I did notice that it deforms when overtightened I just guess i cant get it right. So what should I switch over to? Glass carboy and siphon? I bought this bucket thinking I could forgo the siphon when bottling, but I guess thats a bad idea.

 

[Kharnynb]

I just use basic buckets and a siphon.
glass carboys still scare me a bit

 

[Ole_Smoky]

I like the bucket with the spigot idea but I find it a little hokey sometimes, I ferment in a regular bucket and then transfer to the spigot bucket just for bottling. It took a few batches to figure out how tight to get the stupid thing so it wouldnt leak. I wasnt to concerned with the leak though since the beer will only be in the bucket for under an hr.

 

[roastglint]

RDWHAHB, If it was activley fermenting when it was leaking then it takes a lot in the way of infections to take hold and oxidation is next to impossible during an active fermentation. As long as you sanitized everything you should be fine. It's actually pretty hard to make an undrinkable beer.

 

[vincentAlpha]

Just get yourself a regular bucket and an autosiphon. Save the other bucket for bottling as unless the leak is terrible you won't lose any useful amount in the hourish you spend bottling. Even if you don't bottle it can be a useful vessel to rack to if you decide you need to secondary a beer in the same bucket you had the primary in and have to clean it first (though the easier solution to that is just more fermentors ).

 

[FatDragon]

Make sure your gaskets are seated well, don't overtighten the spigot, and you should be totally fine fermenting in a bucket with a spigot. I had the same issue as you once, now I have a better handle on how to tighten my spigot, and to be certain I allow about 1/3 a bucket of iodophor sanitizing solution to sit in the bucket on a dry floor for five or ten minutes before filling. If the floor around it is dry afterwards, we're good to go.

One benefit of fermenting in a bucket with a spigot is that you can carb with carb drops or pre-measured sugar and skip the bottling bucket altogether. I'm still working on getting the process streamlined for pre-measured sugar so this method will actually save time versus the bottling bucket method, but it has the advantages of reducing potential oxidation or infections going into the bottles, and I get a more-consistent carb in every bottle this way, since the dense priming sugar solution always sinks to the bottom of my bottling bucket and gives me uneven carbonation across the batch.

 

[MrVix]

Is your spigot one of those swivel type? I have had an issue with that swivel type but never the fixed type like this:

 

[govner1]

Yeah Its a bucket with a spigot at the bottom. I did notice that it deforms when overtightened I just guess i cant get it right. So what should I switch over to? Glass carboy and siphon? I bought this bucket thinking I could forgo the siphon when bottling, but I guess thats a bad idea.

Another reason for not fermenting in a bottling bucket is the risk of infection. Despite all your efforts to disassemble & clean around the faucet you'll eventually miss something and loose a batch!
I use BB's because of weight & safety. I brew 6 gal batches & split into two 5/6 gal BB's. They are also easy to clean.

 

[hottpeper13]

I have switched to the new Big Mouth bubblers from NB, they are plastic easy to clean, and a nylon hop bag fits. They are also narrower then standard carboys so I can cold crash them in my kegerator and only loose one space.

 

[jbb3]

Another reason for not fermenting in a bottling bucket is the risk of infection. Despite all your efforts to disassemble & clean around the faucet you'll eventually miss something and loose a batch!
I use BB's because of weight & safety. I brew 6 gal batches & split into two 5/6 gal BB's. They are also easy to clean.

+1^^^

Get yourself a fermenting bucket without a spigot. When the ferment is complete, use an auto siphon to rack into a bottling bucket with a spigot.

To get the hang of the proper amount of tightening required so the spigot seals, try different amounts tightness on a bucket of water before putting your beer in there.

OR get a FastFerment...

 

[IslandLizard]

+1^^^

Get yourself a fermenting bucket without a spigot. When the ferment is complete, use an auto siphon to rack into a bottling bucket with a spigot.

To get the hang of the proper amount of tightening required so the spigot seals, try different amounts tightness on a bucket of water before putting your beer in there.

OR get a FastFerment...

+1^ except, get a "fermentation fridge" (or freezer), not a FastFerment. Controlling the fermentation temps is THE road to better beer. Although cool looking, FastFerments are a PITA to keep cool.

Buckets are fine, just don't open them up until ready to bottle.

 

[jbb3]

+1^ except, get a "fermentation fridge" (or freezer), not a FastFerment. Controlling the fermentation temps is THE road to better beer. Although cool looking, FastFerments are a PITA to keep cool.

Buckets are fine, just don't open them up until ready to bottle.

Good point. FF does require more effort to control temp. I built a chamber to do so (see chamber build link in my signature). It will hold (2) FF.

Though FF will fit in a fridge as well. Here is an example from another HBT'er