Glad wrap lids

[slats69]

What's the story with using glad wrap instead of the lid & air lock supplied ? I asked my b local home brewer & he had concerns about sterilizing . He also said if it ain't broke why did it. It's it a matter of plastic is just a lazy way of doing it

 

[indica86]

I like it cos I can see what is going on and the o-ring on my FVs was getting crusty and I find it hard to sterilise (which BTW has s in it because we are Australian).

 

[queenslandah]

as with everything infection is always not far away ... i have done more brews with airlock but havnt had infection when using glad wrap . you get a nice view with glad wrap though . yes it could be the lazy way but it also is just another way . give it a go and see what you prefer . wasnt that long ago that a tea towel over an open bucket was the future ! many uk breweries still use open ferment vats

 

[stux]

When you tear off a sheet of glad wrap, the side that was facing the roll should be close enough to sterile to not matter

 

[Pogierob]

Give it a go on your next brew, it's nothing scary, heaps of us use glad wrap, I have done about 15 brews using glad wrap and the only down side I have noticed is I don't hear the bloop bloop any more, Since my fermenting freezer is under the house and I wouldn't be able to hear it anyway - no issue

 

[manson81]

I spray starsan on the glad wrap before chucking it over the fermenter. Also tear off the first foot or so and piff it. Just to be safe.

Gives a nice window into the beer which you won't get with a lid. Also saves having to clean the lid and airlock. And, if you put a light starsan mix in the airlock, saves you having to top it up.

I started doing it 15 or 20 Brews ago, and haven't looked back!

My lids are now only used to keep dust out of the spare fermenter when not in use.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

What's the story with using glad wrap instead of the lid & air lock supplied ? I asked my b local home brewer & he had concerns about sterilizing . He also said if it ain't broke why did it. It's it a matter of plastic is just a lazy way of doing it

Those homebrew shops also advocate sodium metabisuphide as the best sanitiser..

 

[LiquidGold]

It also makes it easier to fit two fermenters in one fridge if the fridge isn't heaps big since you don't have that extra height from the airlock.

 

[lukiferj]

Apart from the added benefit of seeing what your ferment is actually doing, saves space in the fermenting fridge too.

edit: beaten to the punch by LiquidGold

 

[zooesk]

I do miss the sound of the air lock

 

[BobtheBrewer]

What's the story with using glad wrap instead of the lid & air lock supplied ? I asked my b local home brewer & he had concerns about sterilizing . He also said if it ain't broke why did it. It's it a matter of plastic is just a lazy way of doing it

I put a layer of gladwrap over the top of the fermenter, secure it with a rubber ring (out of the lid) and then repeat the process. Nothing gets in, but occasionally if you use too much yeast, krausen does get out. Fairly easily fixed though.

 

[spog]

The lid on the fermentor does the same,achieves the same,with glad wrap over the top and held in place Around the rim put a couple of pin pricks in one half of the glad wrap then apply a second half layer over the area that has the pin pricks in it.
As pressure builds up it will force its way out then as the pressure decreases the second layer will block any intake of air.
It works in the same principal as a diaphraghm,
The diaphraghm is the is the airlock.
Cheers....spog..

 

[Dan Pratt]

I use the glad wrap and have for about a a year or so. I put it right to left and the back to front and use the oring. No worries....without the pin pricks....

 

[sp0rk]

The unexposed side of Gladwrap is sterile from factory
No need for pin pricks, it's not an airtight seal

 

[jaypes]

My brewing assistants have even pierced the glad wrap with their little fingers.

Brew came out fine

 

[manson81]

The rubber seal from the fermenter lid works quite well, but I also find the rubber band Yob sends with his 500g hop packs works even better. Perfect size for both my fermenters!

 

[TidalPete]

I've only used the gladwrap a couple of times when space constrictions have negated the use of a lid (read those tallish 30-litre fermenters in bar fridges).
I've read about reinforcing a double or triple-gladwrap sheath with a strip of sports tape or whatever for extra strength when needing to pierce a hole for a blow off tube so does this work ok?

 

[Gregos]

You can't beat looking through the window and seeing you brew ferment, I've been using Gladwrap for a couple of years now, no going back to lids for me, use starsan in a spray bottle and spray a bit around the thread of the fermenter before you pull the Gladwrap over it.

 

[Eagleburger]

Dam! what a good idea. I used paper towel on my first three brews. So many times I wanted to look in.

 

[Spiesy]

I don't really see the massive need to look inside, tbh.

With a lid I can see enough to know when a krausen is forming, and measure enough to know where I am in fermentation and taste enough to know everything is okay.

Plus I get to mount a blow off tube and thermowell with a lid.

Cleaning the lid is a lot easier than cleaning a fridge, if you get an overly aggressive fermentation.