First blow-off. Concerns?

[edroberts]

So, after 6 batches, I had my first blow-off with a Hefeweizen I brewed on Sunday night. It happened overnight and completely blew the top off my primary bucket and oozed krausen all over the floor. I re-sanitized the lid (blown 3ft away), airlock, and sprayed some startsan on the top of the bucket/krausen. Do I need to be overly concerned with any infection due to the fermenter being open for X hours overnight without any head-space?

 

[NineMilBill]

Not at the moment. The CO2 blanket provided by such a vigorous fermentation likely kept everything out. Just keep an eye on it. Likely it's fine. Remember to use a blowoff tube with that strain of yeast next time though.

 

[beerman0001]

No concerns at all. Beer is still fermenting so bugs will not have a chance.

 

[kh54s10]

No big concern for infection.

But, I hope you learned a lesson and will install a blow off tube at the start of EVERY fermentation. Better safe than to clean krausen off the ceiling!

 

[beerman0001]

Oh and don't forger to post some pics of the mess.

 

[edroberts]

Thanks all. I didn't think I'd have to worry too much about infection, but just wanted a second opinion. I DID have a 1" blow-off installed through my 3-piece airlock, but the krausen clogged the airlock. Didn't have that problem in the past. Ended up running a smaller siphon tube through the airlock hole instead.

I didn't take any pictures of the mess. SWMBO would have freaked out if she saw it with the other things stored in that room, so a rapid clean-up was in order. On the plus side it's a hefe... so the whole basement smells like banana bread.