Do I Need an Airlock for Fermentation?
I have been fermenting vegetables in a beautiful, old crock with success. The problem is, having only one vessel, I can only ferment one vegetable at a time. Canning jars are an option, but both the crock and the canning jars are less than ideal in terms of letting air in, as gases escape.
Gasket Hole Punch
I considered purchasing a Fermenting Lids, but Mike was willing to make a homemade airlock for fermentation for me.
I purchased 4 – 1/2″ Fermenter Lid Grommets and 4 Airlocks at a wine shop. The grommets were $.80 each and the airlocks were $1.29 each. The grommet creates a seal between the airlock and the fermenting jar lid. The airlock allows CO2 to escape during fermentation, and prevents air from going back into the  jar.
Punching the hole.
Mike used a gasket hole punch, rather than a drill, and punched a 1/2″ hole in 4 wide mouth canning jar lids. He had no trouble inserting the grommets, and then pushed the airlocks down through the grommet. Voila! For $8.86 (I paid $.50 tax), I had 4 fermenting lids.
For a good article on the safety of Mason Jar Ferments, read here. For more information on fermenting, I recommend The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Fermenting Foods by Wardeh Harmon.
More Great Posts on Fermentation
Fermented Strawberry Rhubarb Soda
Make Your Own Fermented Sauerkraut
Fermentation Weights: 10 Ideas For Keeping Your Ferments Submerged
Thank you for visiting Learning And Yearning. May "the LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace." Num 6:24-26
Buttons says
I love blogging I learn something new everyday on other clever peoples blogs. Thank you. B
susanv says
So glad you stopped by!
Lisa @ Two Bears Farm says
Interesting idea. Are they similar to pickled veggies when done?
susanv says
I think the veggies are much better than pickled! Fermenting is a way of preserving that has a lot of benefits. It keeps the vegetable raw, for one. Many vitamins are increased through the process and there is a great increase in good bacteria like lactobacillus. Canning, on the other hand destroys nutrients through heating and does nothing to make the vegetable healthier. Fermenting is how foods were preserved up until a hundred years ago or so.
sarahlizfinlay says
Does it taste like it’s pickled? I don’t think I like anything that’s pickled so I’m not sure I would like it fermented either. I’m just wondering what the taste difference is.
susanv says
Well, that’s hard to answer. Yes, in a sense. This is how people preserved and pickled before canning. BUT, I also am not much of a pickle fan, and I really enjoy these vegetables. Come to PA and I’ll let you try mine!!!
sarahlizfinlay says
The next time we are up I will stop by! 🙂
Carol L says
I’m not sure why everyone calls fermenting a way of “preserving”. Fermented foods MUST still be refrigerated!!! That is NOT preserving, it is a way of PREPARING something….PRESERVING is a way to make foods shelf stable in order to not have to freeze or keep cold in order to not mold or go bad.
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Carol, our ancestors, before canning or refrigeration, used fermentation as a way to preserve some of the harvest. Sauerkraut and pickles, for example, were kept in cool cellars for a year or more. Even to this day some delis keep fermented pickles in large barrels which are not refrigerated. While it is preferred to refrigerate our ferments today, it is not necessary. It is only necessary to keep them in a cool dark place. It is most definitely a form of preservation.
Deborah Hamby says
How absolutely cool is that! You are amazing.
susanv says
Takes one to know one!
Nancy says
Love the idea of making your own lids — awesome post. 🙂
susanv says
Nancy, you are ALWAYS so encouraging! Thanks for the opportunity every week to share a little of what’s up in my life.
Leah :) says
I love every blog. how is that possible???? i love EVERY BLOG!!!
susanv says
You’re just the happy type who likes everything!!!!! Love you, Leah!
Becky Neville says
I’ve never tried this. My mom used to ferment fruit. She called it BOOZIE. I am often amazed at the inventiveness of people. Great ideas!
susanv says
Hi Becky! I’ve only been fermenting vegetables this way so far. I hope to try fruit one of these days. I know it’s a little trickier since it can turn to alcohol. Hence, your mom’s nickname for it!
IllinoisLori says
That’s amazing…I’ve been getting into Sally Fallon’s NT, and understand the benefits of fermentation, but was overwhelmed about all the crocks and such. This is a neat idea…thanks so much for sharing it!
Blessings,
Lori
susanv says
Glad to help – of course, the idea is not my own. I thought is was worth sharing anyway for those who didn’t see the older post at GNOWFGLINS. It took me almost a year after first learning about it to give it a try. Honestly, it’s quite simple, even in a crock. We just didn’t grow up learning these things and it can be a struggle when you don’t have a mentor.
Kathy says
I’ll have to remember this!
susanv says
Let me know if you try it, and what you think.
Kirsten says
Love this. I can’t afford the “fancy” ones, so this will do nicely. And will help prevent explosions that happened between my red kraut, my Indian shirt & kitchen sink this morning.
susanv says
Oh my! I avoided using canning jars for just this reason. Hope you can make some of these and avoid that problem. No one was hurt where they?
The Coal Miner and Me says
What a good post! I love fermenting foods. Another way of doing it, if you want larger containers (one or more gallons) is to buy the very inexpensive plastic buckets (food grade) they made for brewing wine. They come with a hole and grommet already in the lid for the airlock!
susanv says
Hmmm. I guess I was under the assumption that you shouldn’t use plastic for fermenting. I’ll have to look into that. Thanks for visiting!
Nancy says
Hmmm, I’ve got one of the buckets, I’m thinking of packing the veggies in glass jars and using a food grade fermenting bucket with airlock to do the several jars at once.
Kirsten says
Ok, so this is probably my first question of many: the airlocks I see online are BPA, plast what I buy at Walmart. However, they aren’t airtight. Has anyone tried doing this with one of those and adding a rubber gaskwt? Or am I going overboard with th BPA thing?
susanv says
The airlock does not in any way touch the food, so I think it’s ok. I did see glass airlocks online, but of course they are much more expensive. The wine shop where I purchased mine only had plastic.
Penniless Parenting says
I love that you made yours yourself! Looks similar to the airlocks my father would use when beer making. Probably a similar idea.
susanv says
I’m sure the airlock is similar, if not the same. I purchased mine in a wine shop.
Kristel @ Healthy Frugalista says
So far I’ve only fermented dairy. Veggies are next on my “to try” list. These lids are a great idea. Thanks for the info.
susanv says
Fermented snow peas are my favorite!
Sally says
Are these airlocks made of plastic or glass? Thanks!
susanv says
Sally, the airlocks are plastic.
HappyMrsBass@Like A Mustard Seed says
Love this idea! I will be featuring this at our Living Green link-up this week! I am so glad you shared! 🙂
susanv says
Well, thank you, Happy Mrs Bass!!!!! And thank you so much for hosting the link-up. I sincerely appreciate it.
Elsa says
You know, I’m not sure I’ve ever done anything with fermentation. I really should though. I know nothing about it though, so I will definitely have to check out the idiots guide. Thanks for sharing with Hearth and Soul!!
Jarrod says
Susan, can you tell me where your husband got the gasket hole punch?
Thank you.
susanv says
Jarrod, Mike had borrowed the punch, so I’m afraid I don’t know where to tell you to purchase it. I assume most places that sell tools would carry one.
susanv says
I found out that the punch is available from McMaster Carr: http://www.mcmaster.com/#grommet-hole-punches/=j5ham2
Cheryl says
I just purchased the airlock and a cork for it from the local hardware today. But my husband is concerned that there will still be air in the jar after we put the food in there and leave 1″ space at the top. Is there a way to get the air out, or should I not be concerned about it? Also do I fill the airlock with water or something? Sorry, this is my first time making naturally fermented foods, so I am trying to figure it all out.
susanv says
Hi Cheryl, as gas is formed in the ferment, it will release through the airlock. This should take any air left in the jar with it. Yes, you put a small amount of water in the airlock. If yours are like mine, they should have a line on them that indicates how much to fill. Hope your adventure is successful!
Monique says
Hi,
I was wondering if you tried doing with this with the bpa free plastic tops? I heard the metal ones are tight fitting, but still have bpa.. :/
Susan says
Hi Monique, no I am sorry I have not tried this with anything other than regular metal canning lids. The food inside of the jar touches only the glass jar and not the lid at all since the jar is filled to an inch below the top of the jar.
Diana says
Thanks for the great information. Got all my stuff together and bought two ginormous jars of pickles that are just about empty. They are at least a half gallon and were only $4.00 with the pickles! My neighbor eats them. Anyhow I’ve used a crock but would like to expand my fermenting and am looking forward to getting this thing in gear. Your photos are great and your information so complete. Appreciate it.
kristy says
I am so excited I found this site! I have not started fermenting but I can’t sleep at night thinking about it. I am in the works of getting started. I was having a really hard to bringing myself to shell out money for the Pickl-it system. I just can’t afford it. I have tons of canning jars that I can use and this is just perfect. Thanks so much for this!!
Susan says
You are so welcome!
Ryan says
In order to fit a 1/2″ grommet, you need a 11/16″ hole. Either your hole size is larger than indicated, or your grommet size is smaller than indicated. Important when purchasing supplies.
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Ryan,
The package for the grommet said 1/2″ and our hole punch says 1/2″. The tube that goes through the grommet is 7/16″. It all works beautifully.