I'm new to brewing, my primary fermentor is equipped with a tap my problem is that where the tap is connected to the bucket has a very slow leak in 24 hours i lost maybe half a teaspoon is there any way to seal this with the beer still inside my fermentor? Or maybe even just leave it for the week and fix it after I bottle?
Leak!! Please help!
- Thread starter isaac89
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d3track
Are you sure about that?
Fix it after you bottle unless you have another fermometer to transfer to.
Try spinning it clockwise. Maybe you will get lucky and it will tighten up on the locknut. Maybe it will leak worse?
I suspect you may be fermenting in your bottling bucket...
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which, of course, is not a bad thing. just probably better to check that it's tightened all the way next time. i only ferment in bottling buckets. it adds a bit of work, but it functions pretty well. you just gotta make sure you take it apart and sanitize well each time, then make sure it's tightened all the way when you put it back together.
i don't think it should allow an infection in. it should be a good enough leak that any foreign bacteria should be falling away with the beer that's dripping.
my lhbs sells a little hex screw driver type of plastic tool for tightening the nut on the inside. if you could get your hands on something like that, and make sure to sanitize it well, you could easily fix your problem. it looks something likes this:
http://www.bryggselv.no/products/krannkkel-til-pet-gjringskar
http://www.bryggselv.no/products/krannkkel-til-pet-gjringskar
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I've seen posts where someone sanitized their arm to reach in and tighten the spigot. I've done the same thing to do much less (like pull something out that I dropped in). Those were leaking a lot more than yours though so I'd just leave it and maybe transfer to GASP...... secondary when main fermentation is done.
It may be one of the few times I'd transfer to secondary.
It may be one of the few times I'd transfer to secondary.
yeah, good strategy with the arm sanitation.
and i agree that this might be one of the few occasions when a secondary might be preferred.
and i agree that this might be one of the few occasions when a secondary might be preferred.
There is nothing wrong with fermenting in a bottling bucket (any bucket with a spigot). The problem is making sure the thing is sanitary.
ALWAYS disassemble and clean and sanitize your spigot immediately after fermenting or bottling. Just letting hot water and cleaner run through it will NOT clean it out well enough. Allow the thing to dry before putting back together. Mold WILL grow in there!
I personally don't ferment in my bottling buckets, but some people do and prefer having the spigot on there to siphoning the beer out.
ALWAYS disassemble and clean and sanitize your spigot immediately after fermenting or bottling. Just letting hot water and cleaner run through it will NOT clean it out well enough. Allow the thing to dry before putting back together. Mold WILL grow in there!
I personally don't ferment in my bottling buckets, but some people do and prefer having the spigot on there to siphoning the beer out.
If it's leaking only a small bit I'd leave it alone. You can make it a lot worse.
Put something under it so it won't ruin your floor.
Put something under it so it won't ruin your floor.
At that slow rate, I would probably leave it. If you tighten it from outside, only a quarter turn. This works, but the risk is that the spigot could be cracking. Then tightening will break it. In case the leak worsens, you might put the whole thing in a cooler or tote, even a plastic garbage bag. Five gallons of spilled wort would make a big mess.
I guess I'll be the voice of dissension here. I really don't think fermenting in a plastic vessel with a plastic spigot is a great idea. I personally wouldn't trust the flimsy plastic spigots to be watertight for weeks at a time, nor would I trust them not to introduce an infection, if they weren't completely watertight. A leak during bottling is no big deal at all, since it doesn't take very long, and a big leak wouldn't be left alone to drain the bucket on the floor. A leak during fermentation could be a real mess, and the only real fix is to then transfer to another fermenter.
I just think that having a spigot to drain the beer is really a very small reward, when a siphon works quite well.
Though, maybe I'm just being overcautious...
this isn't really a point worth arguing. it's definitely a "whatever works for me works for me. whatever works for you works for you" type of situation. i've done plenty of batches in my buckets, and they work just fine. of course i have to make sure things are tightened, but to be honest there's even been times between two or three different fermentations where i didn't even take it apart. i usually fill them with untouchably hot water and dish soap for a few days after fermentation. then rinse and air dry. never had an infection. never had a leak. never had an oxygenized beer, not even in the beginning when my bottling techniques were not so great.
i'm not going to tell everybody they should be fermenting in bottling buckets, but the op obviously already is, so it's honestly gonna be fine. he just needs to make sure it's tightened all the way next time. for me they're the cheapest to come buy, and therefore they're the type i buy.
Use seal tape http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thread_seal_tape
I had the same problem the first time I used my spigot fermenter and this worked perfectly. Just tape it around the edges of the tap tightly.
I had the same problem the first time I used my spigot fermenter and this worked perfectly. Just tape it around the edges of the tap tightly.
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