Possibly silly question about airlock and beer kit aeration

[teriyakimonkey]

I've drilled a hole to take an air lock in a fermenting bucket and have a question:

Do I have to put some water in it or will the foam put enough liquid in it?

Also when making a beer from a kit should I be aerating the wort by adding the water from height to give a good foam? I think I've read it makes it easier for the yeast to get to work.

Thanks.
:thumb:

 

[Mark1964]

you need water in the airlock so you can see if fermentation is taking place and a good stir with something sterile will help aereate

 

[artiums_enteri]

Most people use sanitizer in the air lock so even if anything does get through the device it won't survive.

As far as aeration, yeast are living organisms which must have the propped volumes (ppm) of O2 to ferment healthily and alleviate diacytal and other chemicals which occur during fermentation, but that heathy yeast will consume.

I have followed a practice discussed by jamil Zainachef from the Brewing Network for quite some time. I run my wort from the boil bottom valve of the boil kettle to the bottom valve of the closed stainless conical. That way I know there is no splashing, and zero chance of introducing outside oxygen to the fermenter. From there I use my sterile O2 can with an infuser stone and based on gravity of the wort, pitch rate of the yeast, and how dry I want that beer, I put the desired ppm of O2 in the fermenter.

 

[Mark1964]

Bit of a chore we just open tap on boiler from a height let hot wort fall into fermenter add yeast at correct temp never had a duff one yet :thumb:

 

[teriyakimonkey]

Thanks, and ...

blimey!

I have absolutely no idea what was said in post three. I'm a proper newbie making beer from kits.

 

[jonnymorris]

you need water in the airlock so you can see if fermentation is taking place...

I may be being picky but, you need water in the airlock to make it an airlock. It has the added beneift of enabling you to see when fermentation is taking place (and sounds good). I use a spirit, i.e. vodka in mine to eliminate the chance of the water going 'off' though this is highly probably an over-kill.

p.s. post 3 lost me too. I clearly have much to learn.

 

[adrianmole72]

Bit of a chore we just open tap on boiler from a height let hot wort fall into fermenter add yeast at correct temp never had a duff one yet :thumb:

+1 :thumb:

 

[jonnymorris]

Re: aeration... I just give it a good stir though am considering 'investing' in a paint mixer to use with my power drill (to give it a better stir).

 

[artiums_enteri]

I was referring to the importance of sterile oxygen dissolved in the wort to emphasize proper yeast health, flocculation, and attenuation. A lot of times when brewers ask questions about low attenuation and high FG the first thing I like to examine is pitch rate and oxygen dissolved into the wort.

A brewer could make the best wort in the world, but if an inadequate amount of yeast is pitched or not enough O2 has been introduced into the wort, there will be a lot of attenuation problems. www.mrmalty.com is a good resource to check both numbers when creating a recipe.

 

[Mark1964]

Not being funny but we all use malty. The guy is a beginner so maybe best to explain in an easy to understand manner........ for a beginner :thumb:

 

[teriyakimonkey]

Yep I'm green as green can be. Well not that green.

I've now got my second kit on the go. I'm doing a St. Peter's Ruby Red.

I'll have to find a good book to read about it all.

 

[puravida]

I do exactly what you said and pour my wort from shoulder high into the bucket. Wouldnt fancy that with aome of the huge batches some of these boys brew though. My 20L is heavy enough!! You even can use a handheld electric whisk to froth up and add oxygen if it is properly sanitised.

I too use vodka in my airlock. Not only is it sterile but it also means if any gets sucked back into the bucket for any reason it is not going to give off flavours.

 

[artiums_enteri]

A good book to start with "how to brew." There is a lot of good info for beginners in there. As far as being new, I always give the same advice to newbs who join my brewing club. It's always good to learn good habits right off the bat.

 

[keith1664]

Out of interest artiums, where do you get your O2 from? Is it easy stuff to get hold of and how much does it cost per brew?

 

[artiums_enteri]

It's an easy find. I go to home depot or lowes and get a 1 pound can for about 5 bucks. That one can lasts about four months and we brew about 3-4 times a week. Normally we hit the wort between 10-30 seconds depending on starting gravity. Of course higher gravity beers and a higher pitch rate will require more O2. Remember, the yeast are living organisms which just like us need oxygen to survive and feed. If they deplete the O2 supply, the yeast will go dormant to stay in a survival mode.

I use a food grade 3/8 inch tube connected to an infuser stone sold by www.morebeer.com. I use the same type of stone to carbonate the beer a bit quicker.

 

[keith1664]

Ahh, you're in the States. Sadly we can't just pop into our equivalent (B&Q) and pick up some O2 as they don't stock it. If it was more easily available there'd be less of us shaking fermenters and using paint mixers!

 

[artiums_enteri]

Really? I lived in Holland for 2 years where I was brewing quite a bit, and the local hardware store had small O2 cans. That's strange.

 

[shearclass]

That's strange.

Well, not really, as we don't live in Holland.

 

[artiums_enteri]

But surely you have a local hardware store. Where do you get the C02 for force carbonating kegs? I'm sure the same shop would carry oxygen. Perhaps talk to a local DIY welder and learn where he goes for welding gas. It's the same gas used in breweries.

 

[teriyakimonkey]

Those in the UK could possibly get a bottle from a branch of BOC but I doubt it'd be small enough. Or you can get small brazing kits which have a small bottle of oxygen. I'll look it up when I have time and post it here.