Should You Use a 3-piece or S-shaped Airlock for Fermenting Homebrew Beer?

Learning to homebrew

Airlocks are critical  during fermentation

To avoid infection, carbon dioxide needs a way to escape without letting in outside bacteria or wild yeast.

But, does it really matter if you use a 3-piece airlock or an S-shaped airlock?

The truth is that any airlock will work well during fermentation as long as it is clean and filled with sanitizer.

NO!

Let's walk through my ideal setup:

A 3-piece airlock, a blow-off hood, and a blow-off tube

This style is WAY easier to clean and holds a lot of sanitizer.

3-piece airlock

Often overlooked, a blow-off hood allows you to use both a blow-off tube for maximum effectiveness during active fermentation!

The blow-off hood

The blow-off tube

Adding the blow-off tube allows carbon dioxide and yeast to escape your fermenter more quickly - avoiding a huge mess!

Learn more about proper airlock and blow-off setup by reading the full article!