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Sure. I do a lot of things based on assumptions and what "feels" right. A lot of shooting from the hip takes place. That's how we learn, right? And other people's mistakes- even though I make plenty of my own.

My purpose for weighting the bag was not to eliminate punch down, it was to keep everything submerged and wet throughout the ferment AND during EM (extended to 4+ weeks). I still agitate in the first 3 days to mix/stir as I believe there is benefit for extraction. I'm also a little OCD. 😉

Good information and thought process. How do you submerge the skins? I used 2 glass weights (about 400 grams) on my last ferment and they were still not enough to hold the skins down. I was considering using more but they are also taking up valuable space as these kits foam to the top as is.

How long does wine last when you use this? For reds, do you use it and then refrigerate or just put them on a shelf?

Probably something similar but not sure of the brand we had. The pump didn't seem to work well. I also decant 1/2 bottles and put the remaining in the fridge so it's not exposed. I find this works OK to split a bottle into two days/servings.

What I should buy is a vacuum pump system for saving opened wine. We received one as a wedding gift 13 yrs ago but it was a POS. I'm sure the technology has gotten better.

That's what I do too. This is why I force my wife to drink with me. 😆

I don't disagree. I've done numerous taste tests over the years with aerated vs non-aerated wine and I agree that it typically makes a difference. Because of that, I used to aerator everything and thought that it did what decanting does- just faster. Since I started decanting, I've come to...

I'm not a huge believer in aerators. I think they make a difference but not much more than swirling wine in a glass and letting it breathe for a few minutes. I normally decant all RED wines unless I'm not going to finish 75% of the bottle. IME, decanting can turn an OK wine into a great wine.

I should've said I would like for someone to make one that is affordable in a larger size. I've seen some larger pails but haven't seen any with a locking gasket that I trust for a liquid tight seal. I've considered spiedels but they jump from 8 gal to 16 gal without a size in between and...

if the wine is off-gassing (which is likely the case during the ferment down to 1.01 SG), there is little/zero chance any air will get INTO the bucket through that little hole that the CO2 is escaping from. i'm not arguing or trying to convince anyone that their process is incorrect, i'm just...

I guess I don't see the point of a towel on top of the lid. If it's to cover the vent hole, a piece of tape makes more sense to me. The lid overhangs the bucket and creates a lip similar to the eaves on a house. There will inherently be a gap on the sides that a towel will not cover. If the...

Does adding colorpro increase the foaming/fermentation action? I ferment at room temp, 70 to 73F. If so, that might be adding to the issue. It's honestly more annoying than a problem. I like a clean/neat process.

If i understand you correctly, the issue I have doing what you mention is having a gap on the bottle side of the lid that would allow a fruit fly or gnat to gain access. Unless your mean leaving the lid centered on the bucket but loose (not snapped) and if this is the case, I don't understand...

I wish a company made a 9 or 10 gallon fermentation bucket with locking lid. The FWK kits I've done foam to the top and soak the towel. I keep a clean set of towels that I handwash in oxyclean and star-san and soak in kmeta before draping over the bucket. This is the only downside IMO to...

Well, I attempted to get it to seal. I was on day 3 and was down to a couple drips every few seconds from one of the heads. Everything else was tight. I ran out of time though because I needed to leave town. So I decided to not burden my wife with trying to get it closed up. I pulled the...

Some kit instructions have you rack after the first week. This first rack is technically going into the secondary fermentation vessel. On the kits that say to rack to secondary in the first week, I personally don't believe there is any consequence by staying in primary for 2 weeks. In my...

Nothing says you need to do an EM. You can also just stick to the 14 day in primary and then move to secondary/clearing stage. Any particular reason you are doing EM? The kit I'm running EM on is due to the fact that I'm leaving town. EM fits my work/life schedule better. I for one cannot say...

Here is a current kit I have doing an EM. In fact, it just got locked down today. Everything in the bucket is what started out in primary. Essentially it's still in primary during the EM process.

Here is a current kit I have doing an EM. In fact, it just got locked down today. Everything in the bucket is what started out in primary. Essentially it's still in primary during the EM process.