Rubber Stopper Imparting Bad Flavors?

[bthedlin]

I went to my LHBS looking for #8 rubber stopper with no holes. (I just bought a Speidel fermenter from Morebeer but need a new stopper so I can use a thermowell and air lock) They didn't have any but recommended a local science surplus shop. I picked up a couple stoppers there but they have a strong rubber smell to them. They look like a normal stopper but they are black. Do I have to worry about them imparting any smells or taste to the beer? Are there certain types of rubber that is recommended for brewing?

Also, how would you recommend drilling them out for the two holes?

 

[GodsStepBrother]

I have never used those black ones for fermenting, but I did drill some white ones a while back. I just used a drill bit, very simple.

I do not think the rubber stopper will impart any kind of flavor to the beer, being that it is on top of the carboy/fermenter. It never touches the beer, unless you do not have enough head room and the krausen rises to the top. If I were in a bind I would boil them for a couple of minutes. That will hopefully get rid of that rubber smell.

Not to sure what type of plastic they are though.

 

[DMartin]

My stoppers always leave a rubber smell in the mouth of the carboy, but it never affects the product. Just dont do anything stupid like push the stopper into the carboy.

 

[bthedlin]

I'll try boiling them and see if that helps. They shouldn't get in contact with the beer but it would be a lot of wasted effort over a $0.80 part if it did.

I read that if you freeze the stoppers first you'll get a lot better result when drilling them. I am going to give that a shot.

 

[helibrewer]

The best way to drill stoppers is with metal tubing of the appropriate diameter. Sharpen the edge, put the tubing in your drill and cut the hole. You can cut out a portion of the side of the tubing to allow the rubber plug to exit the tubing.

Brass tubing works great.