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fermenting First Airlock Ferment, First Airlock Overflow

I have a real basic question on what to do when one's airlock/bubbler is overflowed into from the ferment.
I got real nice fermentation going on overnight and I'm using bubblers/airlocks for the first time.  
 
5 of the 6 bubblers were overflowed into and so I'm wondering what is the procedure to deal with this?  
 
I used vodka in the bubblers after seeing someone here or on youtube doing that.  Since I had no lids that are made for fermenting, I drilled holes into these lids and used Tackiwax to seal the bubbler in place. 
 
Should I take off the lids and clean them or should I break the wax seals to just remove the bubblers and clean and replace them?  Obviously less air will get in by just removing the wax and then the bubbler, but just want to see how others deal with this minor inconvenience.  
 
Thanks in advance for any tips :)
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Jars are to full.

I see your mash is floating from the gases and brine is settling. The gas is pushing mash to top and letting them overflow.


Scoop out 2" of the mash from each jar, clean and replace airlocks.


You can also stir that mash before replacing lid to let it gas off and get the mash to sink again.
 
Aye in an ideal world but T.i.T. 3RD DEGREE, This is Thailand, so finding such a thing relates to needles and haystacks. ;)   I brought back from the US the bubblers/airlocks and they came with #6 rubber stoppers. I'd hoped to use them but I don't have a drill bit that big, so I jury rigged it with Tackiwax.  Grommets would be great at this moment and make it easy to extract the bubblers to clean them and replace but finding them here is impossible.
 
At this point Walchit I'll probably clean them out eventually by just lifting out the bubbler which will disturb the wax ring but fixable of course, dumping the contents of the bubblers and refilling with vodka as they're still providing the airlock function now, albeit with a mix of vodka and chili juice.   :)  My "cool" dark space is in the mid 80's to mid 90° temp range so I get pretty active ferments initially.
 
Yep Masher and Sizzle Lips I filled them almost 3/4's full instead of 2/3's.  The most active part of the fermentation is over now so I suppose I can push it all back down with a sterilized spoon without moving mash to another jar (which I don't have anyway). :)  They won't overflow again.
 
I looked for these same bottles last time I was at the store I got them at before, but of course, TiT, store stocks never remain the same here so it's impossible to predict when you'll see an item again.  I didn't want to open these lids this time as my last ferment was a running battle for the entire 30 days with mold using clasp-lid style bottles.  I want these airlocks to do their thing and keep those nasties away.  Next time I promise to keep them at 2/3's full, but this time I just ran out of space with the amount of mash vs bottles I had. ;)
 
 
Masher said:
Jars are to full.

I see your mash is floating from the gases and brine is settling. The gas is pushing mash to top and letting them overflow.


Scoop out 2" of the mash from each jar, clean and replace airlocks.


You can also stir that mash before replacing lid to let it gas off and get the mash to sink again.
 
 
Sizzle Lips said:
My thoughts as well....you never left enough head space.....take an inch or so out ,clean and refill the airlocks and you should be okay.
 
3RD DEGREE said:
No need to go to all that trouble simply use O rings or tighten your lids less than snug as the natural gassing off will prevent an infection from entering your jars.
 
https://www.amazon.com/Airlock-Grommet-Fermenter-Silicone-Grommets/dp/B07JLR22K7/ref
 
 
 
 
Walchit said:
When mine overflowed it was suggested that I take the lid off and cap the ferment while I cleaned up the airlock. And I sanitized a measuring cup to dip out a little liquid b4 I put the airlock back on.
 
 
Masher said:
Jars are to full.

I see your mash is floating from the gases and brine is settling. The gas is pushing mash to top and letting them overflow.


Scoop out 2" of the mash from each jar, clean and replace airlocks.


You can also stir that mash before replacing lid to let it gas off and get the mash to sink again.
 
 
Sizzle Lips said:
My thoughts as well....you never left enough head space.....take an inch or so out ,clean and refill the airlocks and you should be okay.
 
 
3RD DEGREE said:
No need to go to all that trouble simply use O rings or tighten your lids less than snug as the natural gassing off will prevent an infection from entering your jars.
 
https://www.amazon.com/Airlock-Grommet-Fermenter-Silicone-Grommets/dp/B07JLR22K7/ref
 
 
 
 
Walchit said:
When mine overflowed it was suggested that I take the lid off and cap the ferment while I cleaned up the airlock. And I sanitized a measuring cup to dip out a little liquid b4 I put the airlock back on.
 
 
Masher said:
Jars are to full.

I see your mash is floating from the gases and brine is settling. The gas is pushing mash to top and letting them overflow.


Scoop out 2" of the mash from each jar, clean and replace airlocks.


You can also stir that mash before replacing lid to let it gas off and get the mash to sink again.
 
 
Agree with the above advice. Jars too full. Scoop a little out, clean everything up. If they're still going bonkers after you've taken some mash out, put them in the fridge for a couple of days. They'll calm down eventually. It's happened to me before, and the fridge trick worked. The cooler temps will slow them down
 
I got it sorted.  
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My main concerns were opening the lids and defeating the airlocks and also how to clean the airlocks, but I went ahead and did it.  
One by one I:
1. Rinsed out the lids and bubblers,
2. used a rinsed spoon that had been steeped in a dilute bleach bath to push everything down and scrape the sides,
2. gave the lids a dip in the same dilute bleach before rinsing and replacing tightly,
4. and then putting new vodka in the bubblers.  
 
The majority of rampant fermentation had already taken place.  If I had taken out a little from each, I'd have only have a clasp-lid jar to put that little bit of excess in, leaving me with a buttload of headspace for that and no airlock.  All I needed to do was push down and stir up the mash to get it back to close to it's original levels by breaking up the CO2 bubbles.  
 
Next time only 2/3's full as I have a continuous flow of sauces being made here and this was a time-consuming cluster.  Not too unlike me realizing I'd forgotten to add vinegar to my sauce I was bottling today after about 8 bottles!   :banghead:
Thanks for everyone's input!
 
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