Airlock question

[parrothead]

The little plastic cap that comes with the basic plastic airlock,does it need to be attached on ? Have been told it does but i can't see how the gas escapes if the lid is on THANKS!!

 

[Tom]

1st welcome!

no its not necessary. But it will keep the fruit flies out. the cap is not air tight and will still release the fermentation gas.
I dont use them.

 

[Rocky]

If you look closely, the cap has a series of little holes in it.

 

[saddlebronze]

The way I look at it is during fermentation, I don't use the dust caps, but if you are going to age your wines for a while, the dust cap cuts down on evaporation, so you don't run the risk of having the airlock go dry on you.

 

[parrothead]

Thanks , really like the site and i'm really enjoying my new found hobby

 

[Runningwolf]

1st welcome!

no its not necessary. But it will keep the fruit flies out. the cap is not air tight and will still release the fermentation gas.
I dont use them.

Welcome aboard! I agree with everthing Tom said above but I do leave them on to keep out fruit flies.

 

[Rocky]

I might be having a senior moment here, perhaps, but I don't see the upside of not attaching the cap to the airlock. Can someone enlighten me. Thanks.

 

[Flem]

I agree Rocky, the little cap lets the air escape and keeps the critters out. Can't see any benefit in not using it.

 

[robie]

The little cap will also cut down on the speed of evaporation. I like the "S" shaped air locks better than the three-piece, because I seldom have to top-off the S air locks, but the three piece air locks have to be topped-off every other week. in my climate.

 

[arcticsid]

Welcome to the forum Parrot. I hope you find it helpful and can learn the answers you seek.

I personnaly dont use an airlock. I use what is refered to as a "blow by tube". It is nothing more than a cork with a hole in it. Attach a length of tube and run it into a glass or other vessel of sulfited water. It can burb, but it cant suck air back in.

No need to worry about evaporation.

 

[robie]

Welcome to the forum Parrot. I hope you find it helpful and can learn the answers you seek.

I personnaly dont use an airlock. I use what is refered to as a "blow by tube". It is nothing more than a cork with a hole in it. Attach a length of tube and run it into a glass or other vessel of sulfited water. It can burb, but it cant suck air back in.

No need to worry about evaporation.

I use the same method when I have a fermentation that is very active and creating a lot of foam, which can stop up an air lock. AKA "wine volcano".

 

[mmadmikes1]

I nice post to remind us all new people are new and simple stuff we all take for granted is a question that still needs an answer

 

[North_Ga_Jug-Or-Not]

Thats how alot of folks around here do it too. For space reasons I use airlocks, if I had more room or an entire basement to work with I might do this. But I guess if I was going out of town for a week or so it wouldnt hurt to do this to the batches I have going just to be sure the airlocks dont dry out while im gone. Just surround one 5 gallon bucket with all the carboys and run all the hoses into one bucket.

 

[Lurker]

Yep, it keeps things out of the wine so I use them. I do have a problem with dropping them into places that I can't reach without moving carboys. Therefore you may see some of my locks topped with a cotton ball.
Sid, I'd like a pic of your gadget, maybe one with your lady standing next to it.

Richard L.

 

[lloyd]

Wine is for Drinking Whisky is for air locks. I have been using whisky, vodka, or what ever hard stuff for my air locks. I find that the plastic disks help a lot with Evaporation.