I am new to using thermowells and the one I have made of silica can be a pain. It usually only occurs at the start of fermentation when the carboy and silica stopper are wet. I haven’t found a remedy or way around this yet. I try to make sure the carboy hole is dry but if I’m pitching liquid yeast usually I get some yeast on the side. And I have to wipe the yeast off to get the thermo well to stick.
Has anyone else had a similar issue to this?
I have encountered a similar problem with bungs for fermentation locks for glass vessels.
I’ve had this sort of trouble trying to insert an oversize tube for blow off in a drilled stopper. I’ve learned two things:
If the stopper is drilled to fit a normal airlock but you insert something larger, it expands the stopper and it keeps popping out. Possible solution: try a stopper the next size down. Other option: drill your own stopper to fit your application. (You need to make a tiny hole saw for this, drill bits won’t work.)
Silicone stoppers are super slippery and don’t want to stay in anything you stick 'em in. They suck. I hate them. Only solution: Get a real rubber stopper.
I like the idea of putting it in a rubber stopper. I think I tried this, but my friend was like, why don’t you let the silicone dry? But then when I pitch yeast a got a bit on the rim of the carboy. So fml.
I think I was more concerned about having my probe in the middle of the carboy than the stopper sticking. Which was dumb on my part.
I will probably look into making a special stopper. Thanks for the input.
If your using some kind of harness with straps, a long strip of Velcro works well. I run mine on each side of the Thermowell or airlock and around both sides of the harness.
Greetings - first, I use a funnel when pitching the yeast. The funnel forces the yeast to pour straight down and does not allow any to come in contact with the carboy opening. I typically soak my funnel in my 5 gallon bucket of StarSan solution a few minutes before use. No worries.
Second, I have read many reviews where the silicone bungs are very problematic. Drilling is an option, but rubber is the best solution.
I use a small piece of insulation to cover my temperature sensor and wrap a piece of elastic with Velcro strap around the fermenter to sample temperature from the outside surface. Seems to work fine. 