Wort Airation

[coffeegod]

Does anyone use an airstone to pump air into wort? How well does it work? Is the airstone necessary or could I just drop a santinzed tube into the wort and let fly. I have access to medical grade o2. (I just unhook grandma for a couple of hours)

 

[SporkD2]

It is very common practice to use an airstone to aerate your wort. I have use the gravity method since the end of my CFC sits 3-4 ft from the bottom of the bucket. I just let it fall from the CFC into the bucket and usually have lots of aeration.

 

[double_e5]

If you are using O2, you are going to want to use a stone.

 

[Pete08]

I screwed a 1/2 brass (almost 3/8' id) PEX elbow into my kettle's ball valve. I tickled it open a tad bit more with a 3/8" drill. I then took a piece of 3/8" od copper tube, it fits snuggly into the molested PEX fitting, and soldered a #12 piece of copper wire for use as a bail over the ball valve (just in case it were to come loose, it won't fall into the carboy or bucket). On the discharge end, I soldered another piece of copper wire and onto this, a piece of flattened copper ( it has a small convex dimple in the center) the size of a nickel. The wort comes out the end of the tube, drops 2" onto the copper disk, and sprays out. I end up with 2-3" of foam!! This seems to give me fast start times. It pulls out of the PEX fitting for easy cleaning.