worst noob screw up ever. my beer IS ruined

[chaydaw]

There is no way any shard of glass that could do any harm would get through a fine mesh strainer. That is simply a fact. Yes, a SHARD of glass would do harm but anything getting through a fine, wire strainer would not do a thing. The OP said that most of the hydrometer was recovered, including the bulk which is the bottom half. Personally I would have no problem drinking this as long as it was strained through a fine filter.

 

[brewit2it]

There is no way any shard of glass that could do any harm would get through a fine mesh strainer. That is simply a fact. Yes, a SHARD of glass would do harm but anything getting through a fine, wire strainer would not do a thing. The OP said that most of the hydrometer was recovered, including the bulk which is the bottom half. Personally I would have no problem drinking this as long as it was strained through a fine filter.

You are correct. This thread and all the others where someone mentions broken glass in beer proves my point about the irrational fear of swallowing broken glass.

Basically for a piece of glass to do any significant damage to gastrointestinal tract it would have to be very large, to the point where it would have to have been swallowed intentionally. In fact go to Google and do a search for medical case reports of injury from swallowing glass. You won't find anything other than a child who aspirated a glass ball and had it stuck in his throat for 1 1/2 years before he had it removed. Pins, razor blades and needles can do some damage but these are only swallowed intentionally. Remarkably, even razor blades can often pass without incident.

Here's a nice discussion of why swallowing glass is unlikely to cause harm, and certainly any pieces that passed through fine strainer are no risk to you at all. If not irrational then the fear of broken glass is at the very least unfounded.


The gastro-intestinal tract, or gut, is a long, flexible but tough, muscular tube with a delicate lining surface which is being constantly replaced. The muscle layers squeeze gently to propel food through and to mix it as it is digested. Indigestible materials like sweet corn husks and tomato seeds, as well as man-made things, pass through unchanged.

The human digestive tract has the capacity to cope with a very wide variety of food and drink as part of the normal diet. Man has evolved as an omnivore and has adapted to a mixed diet from a variety of sources. Bones in meat and fish are usually removed but may be swallowed, usually without hazard. Foods from plants may include tough, fibrous and spiky parts which are not eaten deliberately but can pass through the intestine without problem. Most of these non-nutrient components of the diet can be digested to some extent making them less hazardous.

Materials like glass, plastic and metal are not changed in their passage through the bowel and might, in theory at least, be more hazardous than natural substances. Occasionally children or people in disturbed mental states swallow these sorts of things deliberately and it is remarkable how rarely they develop problems.

The risks of swallowing these materials depends on their size, shape and sharpness. Small pieces can travel right through the bowel and be passed normally without problems. The bigger the person, the larger the piece that can go through. In general, narrow objects pass through the bowel more easily and smooth ones are less likely to get caught.

Sharp objects such as glass fragments might be expected to cause damage but rarely do so because of the gentle way in which the bowel handles them. Small splinters or spikes could cause perforation but this is very unusual. A small perforation rarely leads to peritonitis and usually heals quickly with any leakage contained. Small fragments may also cause a little bleeding into the bowel which can be detected on tests in the stools but serious blood loss is very rare. Ground glass, despite its reputation in thrillers, has no serious effect on the bowel.

The mouth, particularly the tongue, is very adept at detecting anything of different texture in food or drink. Children and adults will spit out something that does not feel right. Babies and the elderly may not be so discriminating which could put them at greater risk. Once food has been swallowed it passes quickly down the oesophagus (gullet) into the stomach. The narrowest point of the gastrointestinal tract is the exit from the stomach, called the pylorus. Objects which are too large to pass through will therefore stay in the stomach. They can often be retrieved using a flexible instrument called an endoscope which is passed down through the mouth. Anything which passes through the pylorus is unlikely to cause further problems.

 

[Wiezer]

If you're making a five gallon batch of beer, it may be wise to use a 6.5 gallon fermentation container.

 

[malweth]

Although it sounds like it wasn't a problem, most hydrometers and floating thermometers have steel shot, not lead. You can check it with a magnet.

I recently had this problem in a batch of skeeter pee (with a thermometer). I'm more worried about the metallic taste than any glass. (I still may dump if that doesn't go away). I no longer use glass directly in the brew. Transfer the wort to a sanitized cylinder for readings then return the wort back to the fermenter.

This beer I would just rack and filter, risking the possibility of oxidization. Filtration probably isn't necessary, but I wouldn't share the beer with others unless I did.

 

[redde2brew]

If it was my first batch of beer, I would at least let it settle and bottle a few if not all. Hey you only brew your first batch one time.

 

[cms]

I'll have to trust you on that! But straining a beer through fine mesh would cause oxidation and ruin the beer anyway in my opinion.

Obviously we can disagree, no worries!

I might try to tie the bag around the input end of an auto-siphon. It may stall the siphon if the bag gets plugged up, but there's no air to mix it with in there.

I agree with the secondary in this case (although I secondary anyway) and leaving 2-3 inches behind (to lower the chance of jamming up the mesh with trub, etc.)

 

[petey_c]

I sometimes seem to be the poster child for "schist happens", hence my reluctance to trust fate. Logically, the strainer should do the trick. Maybe you can call it Pain (or pane) in the Glass. Let us know how it turns out. pete

 

[Lumberg1]

Don't drink it!

Send it to me and I'll drink it! 

But seriously, drink it. Beer is beer and dumping out beer should be a crime!

 

[astropunk]

I'd drink it if it was strained. I've been known to drink beer straight out of broken bottle tops

 

[mev]

some people eat glass for the hell of it. I don't think there is anything special about their digestive system that allows them to do so. If I were you, I'd strain the hell out of, maybe even through a filter, and secondary. You have to keep your first batch, even if you are the only one who drinks it.
To ease your mind, maybe pour your first bottle or two through a filter as well to make sure nothing is in there.

 

[Rivenin]

personally, i'd dump it. even if it is safe, i wouldn't want glass in anything i am drinking/eating except for the container in which it resides.

 

[Ravenshead]

Strain if you must, but as I said gravity has already taken care of that for you. As long as you leave the last 3/4 in. or so of liquid in the fermenter you're golden. If you use a secondary you're even better. I'm not even counting on the fact that the glass in a hydrometer is so thin that you could probably chew it without injury.

I would have no problem drinking your beer. You can even send it to me and I'll prove it.

 

[donjonson]

whats a flook?

 

[KayaBrew]

My advice is to use punctuation. Capitalize letters at the beginning of sentences. Use spell check. And break up those huge blocks of text. As to your brewing issues, I don't know what they are since I stopped reading after 2 "sentences".

 

[jason81]

i meant to type floor, i think theres a few other spelling errors there too

i will be straining and racking to secondary and will drink it, it is my first brew i have to see how it turns out