If i have a 10 gallon fermenter and only do a 5 gallon batch in it. will that much head space hurt in the primary fermentation phase?
Massive head space in primary
- Thread starter calicojack
- Start date
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Nope!
You want headspace in primary. And you want oxygen for about the first half of your fermentation. And having lots of headspace really helps with that.
Once it's stopped producing a lot of CO2 though, that's when you should start to care about headspace and rack it into a 5-gal carboy.
You want headspace in primary. And you want oxygen for about the first half of your fermentation. And having lots of headspace really helps with that.
Once it's stopped producing a lot of CO2 though, that's when you should start to care about headspace and rack it into a 5-gal carboy.
I've actually found that having a bigger headspace (i.e. a 3 gallon batch in a 6.5 gallon bucket vs a 5 gallon batch in the same bucket) makes for much easier, more thorough aeration. I can REALLY shake it all up and I know oxygen has gotten all the way down to the bottom, and I've moved all the yeast that's tried to settle on the bottom back up into suspension.
I'm going to be looking for a bigger bucket, personally, for my 5 gallon batches so I CAN have better headspace in primary!
I'm going to be looking for a bigger bucket, personally, for my 5 gallon batches so I CAN have better headspace in primary!
This is why I often split a 5-gal batch between two 5-gal buckets, especially if there's a fruit bag involved.
