Air lock question

[Carbonator]

I'm a bit pissed orf! I don't like the S-bend style air lock, so I thought I would try the cylinder shape one with the removable top cap. Big mistake. I'm loosing most of the water in it into the wash from the violent bubbling.

Is there a longer version, about 20 or 30 cm or some trick to stop the water loss into the wash?

[Kenster]

Carb, is your concern the actual water entering the wash or the fact that the lock is not effective...either way, i have been running an 85lit esky as a fermenter for well over a year now.I have a heater wire (fishtank) and temp wire running into it with the lid not firmly down. I regularly lift the lid to have a squiz, bubbling etc... and have had zero issues with ferments/spoilage or the like.When i cant see any more action i test with a hydro and again a day or so later. When the FG is fine.. all good.
Suppose i am saying some pay too much attention to the air lock (which i did use ages ago and found it a pain)... Just My 2c

[orcy]

Can make one easy enough with some clear tube i expect. Ive seen breweries just run a piece of pvc tube into a bucket

[ThePaterPiper]

I have only ever used glad wrap with a pin hole in it. Use the rubber ring from the lid as an elastic band. That's for beer, which is much more likely to get bugs because of the lower amount of alcohol and from what I have seen in my limited spirit experience, much slower ferment.

[bluc]

I use a u bend of copper pipe into a jar of water....

[Zak Griffin]

I just screw the lid down on my fermenter...

[hillzabilly]

With 50lt and larger fermenters those small air locks just can't handle the volume ,with my 200lt one I just pushed a piece of silicone hose onto the inner section of the cylinder type and put the other end into a clear 5lt water bottle(with hole cut in lid) with a couple of inchs of water in ,works well fa me.cheers hillzabilly ;-)

[Carbonator]

Thanks guys, I have a 50L or 60L plastic (Rheem ?) fermenter. It's inside a fridge (light globe for Winter) with that opaque plastic beverage or beer line coming out via a side hole to the air lock and is mainly for indication I guess. The fridge is up on top of an old stove, so it is high enough to gravity drain the fermenter when time comes, thus the air lock is not much lower than the ceiling.

I may have to ditch the the plastic air lock and hang a schooner glass up there and bend the beer line downwards into the glass.

[Kenster]

Carb, piss the airlock off, justs stick a kind of lid on the fermenter, check the SG when u think it is done... it wont get sick like beer. Dont over think it... we often do. Spirits is easy.

[db1979]

:text-+1: for glad wrap, I don't even hold it down with anything special, just wrap it over the edges. Use the KISS principle.

[Nino]

:text-+1: for glad wrap, I don't even hold it down with anything special, just wrap it over the edges. Use the KISS principle.

I use glad wrap and a couple of rubber bands to seal it, I also use an aquarium heater in my washes and find that the rubber bands keeps the glad wrap nice and tight around the chord.

[db1979]

I also use an aquarium heater, but I'm just not worried about the seal that glad wrap makes. I don't put any holes in it so it needs to have some gaps for the CO2 to get out.

[orcy]

On my 200l fermenter i use a towel thats been wet with starsan and wrung out. Easy as pie.

[Sam.]

I also use an aquarium heater, but I'm just not worried about the seal that glad wrap makes. I don't put any holes in it so it needs to have some gaps for the CO2 to get out.

On beer ferments I use glad wrap with the rubber o-ring out of the lid of the fermenter. It makes a pretty tight seal and the CO2 still finds it's way out :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[bluc]

I have been contemplating making a bubble cap type one just for giggles..
At moment i just use 1/2in copper pipe bent in a u. One end into drum through rubber grommet other end into a jar of water. But like you said it can suck back especially if tap is opened without cracking the lid..

[hillzabilly]

I worried about contamination from air lock liquid that gets sucked back into the fermenter,so now use feints instead of water diluted to about 30-40% abv ,so no drama ifn it happens now.cheers hillzabilly ;-)

[Doubleuj]

Glad wrap all the way for me.

[P3T3rPan]

I worried about contamination from air lock liquid that gets sucked back into the fermenter,so now use feints instead of water diluted to about 30-40% abv ,so no drama ifn it happens now.cheers hillzabilly ;-)

So you have no fruit flies?(carrying the mother of vinegar)

[Plumby]

Glad wrap all the way for me.

Me too.

[bluc]

I worried about contamination from air lock liquid that gets sucked back into the fermenter,so now use feints instead of water diluted to about 30-40% abv ,so no drama ifn it happens now.cheers hillzabilly ;-)

So you have no fruit flies?(carrying the mother of vinegar)

Do fruit flies attack spirit?