Fermentation went nuts, and we have a huge overflow...what to do?

[hossfly]

Ferming 5 gal. in a 6.5 gal. glass carboy, and after about 18-24 hrs of vigorous fermentation I get up this AM and have krausen all over the sides, the airlock is full, and she is still happily blowing stuff out the top.

Should I just wait till the krausen falls, then clean and sanitize around the top, take the airlock out, clean it up and re-install?

Will this risk infection since the airlock is compromised, or will the CO2 sill pushing out keep the nasties out too.

Just looking for advice, since I know this is not the first time it's happened to many, if not most experienced brewers.

BTW this is only my second batch, and the first one did nothing like this.

 

[MachineShopBrewing]

I would clean and sanitize around the top and either clean out the airlock or install a sanitized blow off tube. If your airlock clogs with krausen you will have a serious mess on your hands when the pressure reaches critical mass to blast the whole bung and everything off of it.

 

[NTXBrauer]

I would spray sanitizer around the airlock, pull it out and insert a sanitized blow off tube ASAP to avoid a possible eruption.

 

[bethebrew]

I would clean and sanitize around the top and either clean out the airlock or install a sanitized blow off tube. If your airlock clogs with krausen you will have a serious mess on your hands when the pressure reaches critical mass to blast the whole bung and everything off of it.

Happened to me with blackberry stout. Serious mess indeed.

OP sounds like you got off relatively lucky. You always risk it with an airlock!

If you used the full sized blowoff tube be sure the jar with sanitizer is above your liquid level in the carboy by a few inches. Siphoning can be bad news too!

 

[Calder]

A blow-off tube would be the best thing to do. However, if you don't have one or not sure what to do, you could just pull the airlock and put a large plastic beaker (upside down) over the mouth of the carboy.

The 'stuff' will still come out, so you will need to protect the floor, but it will stop any bugs falling in, and any potential explosion.

If you leave the airlock on, trub can build up in it and effectively block it and allow pressure to build up. At that point, one of 2 things can happen; the airlock can blow out followed by a stream of messy fluid (I've had it hit the ceiling before, and believe me it is a pain to clean up), or of the stopper is in hard, the carboy could crack (even messier).

Once the ferment has settled down, sanitize and replace the airlock.

You are correct, the CO2 generated will protect the beer.