Fermenting bucket leaking air?

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beckyjc

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Hi all,

Hope you don't mind a quick question from a newbie?

We've just got a brand new brewing kit and are attempting our first brew (Admiral's Reserve). We started it on Sunday evening and all seems to be going well (froth on top, gravity has dropped from 1.055 to 1.030 already, except that we are seeing NO bubbles in the airlock at all. Not one. Can only presume that we're leaking air somewhere, though the lid is on tight, grommet seems secure around the airlock etc.

Soooo really just trying to work out:
1) If we've missed something obvious / are doing it wrong (entirely possible)
2) What to do for the best now that we've identified this problem

Appreciate any/all advice.

Cheers,
Becky
 
It will be fine, a lot of people don't even use an air lock and just leave the lid slighly loose. People read too much into air lock bubbles.

So dont worry !
 
They tend to leak. The blanket of co2 will sit just above your beer and stop oxygen getting to it. If you're really worried then cling film around your lid/rim, but really there's no need.
 
Thanks guys! That's the sort of answer I was hoping for :D

Fingers crossed for good beer soon then. I read that Admiral's Reserve is best if left to condition for a couple of months though. It might be lucky....
 
Thanks, I've stuck a load of cans of food on the top now to weigh it down a bit, will see if that helps. Less worried about the bubbles than the beer not ending up drinkable, but bubbles would be reassuring I guess.
 
The Wilko own brand fermenting buckets seal brilliantly if that's what you're after.

Dave
 
I found the same with the Richies FV's the lid snaps shut and i always get bubbles in the airlock , the cheap one i have doesn't and the airlock never shows signs of fermentation taking place.
 
I bought a cheap kit on Ebay from Home Brew Online and the FV has sealed perfectly on my 3 brews so far. Plenty of bubbles from the airlock. The only problem Ive had is it nearly sucked the water from the airlock into the beer when I took a sample from the tap.
 
i have 7 and 6 of them are youngs never once had a bubble from any of them the 7th cant remember where i got it from no name on it but the wife only moans when i do glug glug thats why i never use it!!!
 
This one was from home brew online too. Adding weight to the top hasn't helped, so I'm just going to give up now and leave it in peace to finish fermenting. How will I know when it's done though? Stable gravity I guess?

Also - will it be OK to use this bucket for wine now or should I cough up for another? I was hoping to do a 30 bottle wine kit (which I acquired some time back) in it next, but not sure that's a good idea now?

Sorry for so many questions, just new to this brewing lark and trying not to screw it up!

Thanks,
Becky
 
beckyjc said:
This one was from home brew online too. Adding weight to the top hasn't helped, so I'm just going to give up now and leave it in peace to finish fermenting. How will I know when it's done though? Stable gravity I guess?

Also - will it be OK to use this bucket for wine now or should I cough up for another? I was hoping to do a 30 bottle wine kit (which I acquired some time back) in it next, but not sure that's a good idea now?

Sorry for so many questions, just new to this brewing lark and trying not to screw it up!

Thanks,
Becky
Click to expand...


Becky it will be fine, I have never seen a bubble out my air lock and I done loads.. nothing to worry about as long as your lid has a pretty good seal and no gaping gaps it should be fine.. My lids are flexible flimsy type which I think is likely the cause of this but I push them on and snap them down and in spite of this they concave and leak the gas but they produce good brew..

You do not need to replace your FV.. Just try to keep the lid on best you can and dont do anything which can disturb the cloud of co2 between the lid and your brew. This in itself will help protect the brew..

Of course the best thing to do is to relax and try to leave it alone but of course we all know how hard that is :p
 
None of my FVs have airlocks. They work perfectly and I've been brewing for years with no problems. So how do you know when they've finished fermenting? - I leave mine in the warm for 2 weeks, and after that take a peak - by then there'll be no foam on top and the beer will have started to clear. Then I pop in a clean hydrometer and take a reading - it's always ok, & then I bottle it.
 
I stopped using an airlock. Extra trouble, really. Especially cleaning it. As the post above says, you can simply leave 2 weeks, that usually works, test with a hydrometer to be certain.
 

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