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Warning: My kraut batch in the basement closet almost turned into a bomb
I had a 2-gallon ceramic crock going for about 5 days and the airlock got clogged with a tiny piece of cabbage. I came home from my shift and the lid was bulging up, like it was under serious pressure. I carefully burped it over the sink and a huge amount of gas shot out, it was honestly scary. Has anyone else had a specific veggie piece clog their airlock, and what's your fix to stop it?
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christophers276mo ago
Honestly that pressure is a good sign, means your ferment is super active and healthy. Airlocks are basically a set it and forget it safety net, a clog is just a fluke. That tiny piece of cabbage did you a favor by showing how much gas was building up, a good ferment should have some serious power. The fix is to just clear the bit out and keep going, no need to overthink it or change your whole setup.
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sageallen5mo ago
Wait, did you try just switching to a bigger airlock, @christophers27? I had a similar clog problem with my hot sauce ferment and swapping to a wide-mouth vessel with a 3-piece airlock fixed it right away, no more worrying about cabbage bits jamming things up.
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christophermurphy6mo ago
But that's a huge mess waiting to happen. A clogged airlock isn't a fluke, it's a design flaw. What if that cabbage piece didn't pop out and the whole jar exploded? Seen it happen with peppers. @christophers27 calls it power, I call it a risk. That gas needs a clear path out, always. Relying on luck with a vegetable plug is how you end up cleaning kraut off the ceiling. A simple burp each day is safer than trusting a tiny hole.
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