Small Leak at Spigot in Primary

[Avvakum]

Hey folks,

I made an unfortunate discovery while examining my recent Belgian Pale in the primary:It's leaking ever so slightly from the bottom half of the spigot.

It's not a lot--it's been what looks like it adds up to 30 drops or so since I put it in the Big Mouth Bubbler 4 days ago--but it's made me worried about sanitation and any little nasties that can get in there.

My only option for tightening it would be to reach through all 5.5 gallons of the brew to tighten the inside nut while holding on to the spigot, which seems like way too large a risk. Do I suck it up? Chalk it up to experience and try to switch to secondary the minute my FG stays consistent for a period of time?

My solution right now is to get clean up the mess to get rid of any possible insects and put down a layer of paper towels, folding up one to rest beneath the spigot.

This will teach me to primary with a fermenter that has a spigot! Is there anything else I can do?

 

[Gnomebrewer]

All of my fermenters have spigots. Some of them leak a few drops. I've never had a contamination. Yeast colonies are quite good at keeping out intruders. Definitely don't go sticking your arm into the bucket - you'd end up with off flavours from oxidation.

 

[kh54s10]

That is why I wouldn't trust any fermenter with a cheap plastic valve. Maybe a Stainless Steel fermenter....

You might try some cling wrap if you can wrap it tightly around the area where it is leaking.

 

[Braufessor]

I love using buckets with spigots for primary - no siphoning. Some minor leaking does happen on occasion.

* Get a spray bottle to keep star san in and spray off the spigot to clean it up.
* I put a plastic baggie over my spigots with rubber bands to keep nasties out.
*Spray the spigot well with star san before transferring anything through it.

Under no circumstances should you put your arm in your beer. Your beer is fine. Put a towel under the bucket to catch the little bit that is leaking.

Also, be careful about rushing it to secondary..... you could end up stalling fermentation and not getting a great beer. My minor leaks almost always end up stopping on their own.

In the future:
*I use a rubber gasket on the inside and outside of the bucket.
*I put a couple gallons of star san water in the bucket and set it on the counter to check for leaks. If there are some leaks I can then stick my arm in and adjust it back and forth so it does not leak........ before my beer ever goes in it.

Make sure you are taking spigots COMPLETELY apart when cleaning and sanitizing. The body of the spigot generally breaks down into 2 parts. Nasties can hide in there if you don't disassemble them.

I have fermented 250+ batches in buckets and SS brew buckets with spigots over the last 5 years. They work great, but you do have to get a system down and some of that is trial and error.

 

[unionrdr]

I made a gasket out of some rubber patch making material I found at Lowe's. Trace a pattern of one of the spigot seals on it. Cut it out with a razor knife.

Then, make sure the spigot & parts are clean, then sanitize them, along with the new seal. Then install spigot, new seal, then the old seal, & lock lug. It now won't have to be tightened as much to seal well!