Vodka kit help

[chris_newton]

Hi All

Firstly apologies if this is in the wrong section, i am sure it is but cant seem to find where to post it.

I have just bought a Vodka starter kit, now i appreciate that people are probably against kits, and i do intend to make all this stuff properly, as i used to do lagers, wines a few years ago, and got really into it.

anyways in the instructions its says to fill your fermenter with 5 litres (9pints) in total. Now then it does say you can use a glass demijohn but i am a bit concerned as 9 pints fills it right to the very top of the demijohn and i always thought there needed to be a bit of a gap to stop it exploding etc while it ferments...so firstly is it ok to fill to the top or is this not wise?

my second question is i have a 5 gallon fermenting vessel that i used to do my lager in, could i do this vodka kit in that? or will there be to big of a gap between the liquid and the the airlock for it to ferment...sorry if these seem very basic questions i am just really unsure on the best way to go, ideally i would like to use my bigger fermenting vessel but with there only being 1 gallon in a 5 gallon vessel im not sure if it will work...any help will be much appreciated and sorry again if this is in the wrong section

Chris

[KevP]

I'll answer Chris but I fear you'll not get a great deal of help as you've come to a beer forum, you may find better luck on a mixed brew forum or similar.

Sorry mate.

My initial thoughts though are that you'd have miles to much headroom between brew and lid, plenty of room for contaminants to get in, and with high alcohol stuff I should imagine you'd be wary of evaporation.

[Providence]

I'm assuming you've got one of those high alcohol kits. If that's true then the best way of getting round your 'headroom' problem is to make up the sugar into a solution with water and only put half of it in the demijohn. Then wait for the initial fermentation to die down and top up until you get close to the neck in stages.

You are right in thinking that doing it in a 5 gallon container would not be a good idea.

[Curious Brew]

Maybe someone could move this to the Other Brews section?

Might have more luck there.

[chris_newton]

why is it not a good idea though??? does it matter how much room is left? just out of interest???

[Providence]

why is it not a good idea though??? does it matter how much room is left? just out of interest???

Somebody might explain it better but I think it's because of possible infection by airborne bugs. The more air gap that needs to be filled with the CO2 from the fermentation, the more chance of getting an infection. You could be all right but most authorities say that one should try and use the right size vessel.

[Curious Brew]

why is it not a good idea though??? does it matter how much room is left? just out of interest???

Somebody might explain it better but I think it's because of possible infection by airborne bugs. The more air gap that needs to be filled with the CO2 from the fermentation, the more chance of getting an infection. You could be all right but most authorities say that one should try and use the right size vessel.

True, but I think that any layer of CO2 will stop oxidization no matter how thin. Providing the vessel isn't knocked or tipped the brew should be fine.

[RatboyOllie]

ive done these in both and both turned out fine. if you put it in the demijohn then be sure to stand the demi inside a tub or something because it WILL escape and make a mess of the carpet ! Didnt have any bother with doing in the 5 gallon fv either, worked just fine, just make sure ya keep an eye on the airlock and dont let it dry out.

enjoy !

I must say though, the resulting liquid that you get from these kits tastes nowt like vodka but theyre still fun to try.