Bucket lid problems

I’m about done with plastic buckets my lid is seeping air out and I’m worried about contamination,  any one have some easy solutions to sorta seal down the lid during this fermentation,  I was thinking about cutting out some wood and sorta trapping it between the flanges and the lid for compression I know with co2 pushing out I’m fine for now but I’m just worried about after.

It happens…
The co2 pushing out during fermentation prevents anything from getting in. The co2 blanket will protect the beer after assuming you are not always opening the lid to check on the beer. If you do extended primary you can always remove the lid and seal with plastic wrap or rack to a carboy/keg.

If you typically just let the beer drop clear and then package IMHO you’ve got nothing to worry about:)

Yea figured I was over thinking should of just RDWHAHB, my over thinking did get my mind going and might make a gadget to fix the problem for no messes in the future we will see if I’m ambitious and make what’s in my head lol

Thanks for the ease on my mind tho too lol

I fermented for years in plastic bottling buckets… still do some batches in them.  My buckets never sealed completely.  Rarely had a lot of action in the airlock.  Can be a little disconcerting not being able to “see” that the yeast are doing what they are supposed to.  But, in my experience, I never had a problem, they yeast always did their job and no contamination related to the leaky lids… That was with probably 200+ batches in the last 5 years in buckets.  Not that everyone of those batches was perfect - but none of the problems was related to the lid in my opinion.

I used buckets without airlocks for a solid year. Just set the lid on top and put a half filled growler to keep the cats honest.

I use the orange carboy caps on my better bottles these days for the thermowell. They don’t seal worth a damn and I now use large hose clamps to seal them up. That is less to do with leaking and more to do with a strong krausen popping it off.

I feel even better now guess I’ll just set the bucket in a trey to keep the stairs tidy and not sticky lol, woln’t worry about this from now on,  like I said first time experiencing this with the lid usually kept pretty sealed for my last 20-30 batches so was alittle alarming at first but then I RDWHAHB and all your responses eased my mind thanks guys

I use buckets exclusively now, and can normally get them to seal well enough to show strong airlock activity by pushing down hard every couple inches around the lid.  Also, it’s easy to push the airlock in a little too far and lose the seal around the grommet and therefore lose airlock activity.  I try to replace my buckets (and lids) after a year, partly for clean new buckets and partly for new, pliable seals in the lids. Regardless, the CO2 blanket will protect the beer as long as you don’t leave the beer in there for months, or open the lid every day. Love my buckets.

Will only pop the top in two weeks for grav sample and one or two other times depending on second grav sample for bottling

I too have used buckets.  I have several of the clear 8 gallon buckets that do not have any seal in the lid.  I worried about the CO2 blanket leaking out after ferment was finished.  I used some of that press n seal in the grove of the bucket.  Trimmed it with a razor blade and they sealed right up.  It stuck to the lid and worked great.  That was before I learned it wasn’t an issue.  I now use CurTec vessels with the seal screw on lid.  It has a rubber seal.  My favorite primary I’ve used yet.

I’ve seen you mention these before. Where are you getting them? Most info I could find is for commercial orders.

I bought my latest ones off ebay.  It is the first time I’ve seen them for some time.  They are the 15 gallon size.  They were around $35 each.  Came from CA, in lots of 2.  I’m wanting 2 more, they are perfect for 10-12 gallon batches.  Nice handles, easy clean, and love the screw lid.  I’ll look up the link.

It seems that my buckets seal pretty well when they are brand new, but lose their seal with use. That might be due to some deforming of the lid seal area after wrestling the top off with a pail opening tool a few times. Doesn’t seem to affect the fermentation at all, though.

If I can’t find a grommeted lid, I’ll just loosely set one on the bucket without an airlock. I’ve also done “open” fermentations by just placing a paint strainer bag over the opening to keep flies out. As long as you package within a few weeks, you should be fine.

I’m sorry in advance for this novel-sized reply.

I’m a long-time bucket fan for all phases of fermentation.

I use buckets for everything from IPA to lagers to lambic. Primary, short conditioning (‘secondary’), and long-time mixed fermentation.

For sours, I’m often criticized for using buckets (and even by the Mad Fermentationist himself), but I think a few practices significantly limit oxygen pickup.

  1. FILL IT UP. I try to get at least 5.25 gallons in my 6 gallon bucket. My batches that turned to vinegar have been due to under-filled fermenters (both buckets AND carboys). If I’m using a big krausen producer in primary, I use Fermcap and have never had issues with blow-off. For lager strains, most bretta, and 3724, there usually isn’t enough krausen to worry. (Side note: I think blow-off tubes are a potential source of contamination, but that’s another post)

  2. Replace lids often. For long-conditioning beers, I won’t use a lid that isn’t a PITA to remove. It doesn’t take too many cycles for a lid to lose its shape, so those lids get marked “MALT” and are used for grain storage. I’m currently testing some lids with O-rings I found at the LHBS; I’m not yet convinced they fit more or less snug than the regular lids.

  3. Limit opening/sampling. This is probably the reason most homebrewers have issues with buckets. More sample = more oxygen and more wear on the lid seal.

  4. Keep airlocks full. An empty airlock will allow more oxygen in than the lid. I’ve switched to 3-piece airlocks for conditioning buckets. Also make sure that the grommet fits tightly around the airlock. Don’t pull the airlock to fill or ‘peek’.

  5. Healthy, active cultures. I propagate dregs and mixed cultures so they are healthy before pitching into wort. This greatly reduces the overall aging time. My sours are usually ready to keg in under a year, but I’m confident that at least some bretta will stay in suspension for much longer. For clean beers, the same rules apply: healthy yeast and fermentation conditions allow the yeast to protect the beer from oxygen.

  6. Limiting acetobacter exposure. You can’t make acetic acid without oxygen, alcohol, and acetic acid bacteria. I try to minimize acetobacter in my mixed cultures by stepping up dregs in the bottle and tasting before adding to a culture or batch. I also regularly feed the cultures, which help push oxygen out and keep bretta dominating. It also helps to keep the exterior of bucket and lid clean.

  7. Flush with CO2. If you can, flush the bucket before transfer or even after opening. This is less critical, and I’m guilty of skipping it on occasion, but it will help (again - with buckets or carboys).

WHEW! Sorry again for the diatribe, but hopefully this helps some of my fellow bucket brewers!

Well if this is the case, why not just ferment in stainless kettles that will last forever?

I’m assuming you mean something like this one.  If so, that’s something I’ve been thinking about quite a bit.

http://morebeer.com/products/brew-bucket-stainless-steel-fermenter.html?gclid=CPy_8c-VhcMCFepAMgod8hkA6g

Until I decide, I do like regular old buckets, though.

I was actually talking about plain old kettles with the lid resting on top. There is a pretty cool thread on HomeBrewTalk about cutting a silicone hose and putting it on the rim of the kettle and clamping the lid on with binder clamps. Seems like it could be a good way to seal a kettle for fermenting.

Never heard that one. I’ll have to read up. Thanks.

Yeah, it seems pretty slick. Don’t think it’ll work with every kettle, depends if it has a lip or not around the edge for the binder clips to grab on to to make a good seal.