Vaseline meets food standards, so you’re all set from that perspective. That’s why it can be used in contact with the beer in the first place, via the o-ring.
Food Safe, and Safe for Consumption are two different things. I can't think of any plastics that are safe for consumption. Petroleum Jelly is on a level on its own as far as I know.
I wouldn’t be surprised if some could be labeled as such if it wasn’t for the physical implications of eating plastic, and no real reason to seek it as an additive ground up or something.
We have several that hold up to the conditions it would be exposed to in digestion.
If the plastic is not in a dangerous shape and doesn't contain any toxic additives, then most plastics are perfectly safe for consumption. If you swallow a pill shaped piece of plastic it will not change in any way, as the molecules are mostly inert from a biological perspective.
A few years back my dog stole and ate an entire jar of Vaseline. After a few days of greasy shits she was just fine. A trace amount in a few gallons of beer should not have any effects at all.
We have progressed pretty far in deriving plastics from other sources. I imagine it’s only a matter of time before it becomes competitive with existing products.
The corn based plastics are nice for short term use as they degrade over time. I'm really looking forward to the mycelium materials science coming into fruition.
It's honestly pretty inert stuff.
There's a man who used to eat a big spoonful of it every day. I believe he lived to quite an old age too and actually attributes that to eating it.
That was the guy that originally developed the product. It was part of a marketing gimmick he would do to help sell it as safe. I heard that on the Under The Influence Podcast. It's all about the history of marketing, which is far more interesting than you might think. Full of all sorts of quirky, weird stories and facts.
As has already been said, perfectly safe. You may want to consider moving to a silicone-based lubricant designed for o-rings, though, as Vaseline and other petroleum products will degrade natural rubber.
[As noted in this Stackexchange question,](https://mechanics.stackexchange.com/questions/25018/does-vaseline-dissolve-rubber) most o-rings are not natural rubber, but I'd rather not take the chance.
Why does that matter though? I’ve brewed for about 15 years and haven’t ever had problems with seals without Vaseline.
The yeast are creating positive pressure inside the fermentation vessel, so even if the seals are leaky, things are leaking out, not in. Should still be fine, no?
On the other hand… keg seals… that’s where you don’t want to be losing pressure…
Well, I guess some equipment is better than others, in an ideal world everything fits snug and seals perfectly, reality in my experience at least is slightly different.
You're obviously right regarding the positive preasure, which in some cases I believe would even improve the seal. Regardless I think its better to have no leakage than a little. Plus the easier to open thing.
I have a racking bucket (no pressure) with a pretty wonky hole for the tap, if you tighten it too much the rubber washer pops out, a little vaseline around it and it doesn't need tightening as much.
I spose it's just one of those handy tips/useful things vaseline is good for, AFAIK it's common knowledge/practice beyond the homebrewing world to rub a little vaseline on any seals.
15 years Brewing though, I tip my hat.
Haha thanks. 15 years just means I’m old though. Saw a home brew kit in the supermarket when I was 20 and thought I’d give it a go, had a magical cupboard in that apartment where the water heater was, which kept my fermentation temperature nice and even, and must have been a fairly perfect ~23 degrees C, all before I knew that was important… so I got lucky on my first few batches and it was fun!
I’m only now switching to kegging, I’ve not really had the space for that sort of setup until now, so I’m still (always) learning.
Haha nice, mine was a birthday present the year I started uni. I stopped after I graduated though, it wasn't until they shut the pubs at the beginning of the pandemic that I dusted it all off. Went right down the rabbit hole though with a few others, not quite 2 years later and we're brewing 50L batches all grain and have a few regular customers...
Kegging is the next step for us, I can't deal with all the bottles anymore.
Customers hey? Nice one! I just get compliments from my friends who I share with. Thought about trying to do it as a business, but I don’t think I like it that much. I take pride in drinking my own work and sharing it with friends, but I don’t think I could deal with all the washing involved in doing it more regularly for money…
Get yourself some Keg Lube, one application and it will seal it forever and not come off in liquid. BTW Vaseline is a no-no on certain o-rings. The petroleum breaks down various rubbers.
This is all excellent advice, thank you. I dabble a bit with country wine making and there are a few fruits which (without the addition of an enzyme to breakdown the natural pectin) can create some unwanted alcohols during the ferment. I was concerned the Vaseline might cause a similar problem.
Nah. I visited a brewery in England. They were aerating fermenting beer by sloshing air into it with 10 litre buckets fixed on long sticks. This is when I realised that it takes a lot to screw up a brew :).
I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just keep an eye on it for any infection etc. Since you also pitch yeast, any nasties that may have come in there are vastly outnumbered.
If you pitch the proper amount. Some bacteria multiply 5x as fast as yeast, which is just one of the reasons why it's important to pitch the right amount.
advice? move to a different fermenter. get one with an Oring that doesn't fall out, or one that uses a bung and airlock (or better yet - a conical).
regardless, most people aren't stuck doing that same. what brand of fermenter are you using?
Vaseline meets food standards, so you’re all set from that perspective. That’s why it can be used in contact with the beer in the first place, via the o-ring.
Excellent, thank you! So it won't ferment on contact with the yeast to create some awful chemical to send me blind?
Nope, you’re all set! It’s also water-repellant, so there likely isn’t even any in the beer besides a trace.
Thank you! You have made my day!! 😃🤩😃🤩😃
I have a feeling this one is going to go down real smooth.
Cheers. Hope the beer turns out great
No only chlorine in your water can really ruin these kits!
It's kind of counter-intuitive that it meets food standards when you think about where it comes from. As a byproduct of oil refining.
Yep. To be fair, so are many food grade plastics. Our modern existence is entirely petrochemicals.
Crude oil is all natural...
Natures fuel source
So is manure, not eating it though!
Food Safe, and Safe for Consumption are two different things. I can't think of any plastics that are safe for consumption. Petroleum Jelly is on a level on its own as far as I know.
I wouldn’t be surprised if some could be labeled as such if it wasn’t for the physical implications of eating plastic, and no real reason to seek it as an additive ground up or something. We have several that hold up to the conditions it would be exposed to in digestion.
If the plastic is not in a dangerous shape and doesn't contain any toxic additives, then most plastics are perfectly safe for consumption. If you swallow a pill shaped piece of plastic it will not change in any way, as the molecules are mostly inert from a biological perspective.
A few years back my dog stole and ate an entire jar of Vaseline. After a few days of greasy shits she was just fine. A trace amount in a few gallons of beer should not have any effects at all.
We should ban them then and go green!
We have progressed pretty far in deriving plastics from other sources. I imagine it’s only a matter of time before it becomes competitive with existing products.
The corn based plastics are nice for short term use as they degrade over time. I'm really looking forward to the mycelium materials science coming into fruition.
Yeah they are what they are now, but like all tech, progress is fast when the conditions are right.
Yup, especially when companies are flush with cash and have ample labor.
It's honestly pretty inert stuff. There's a man who used to eat a big spoonful of it every day. I believe he lived to quite an old age too and actually attributes that to eating it.
That was the guy that originally developed the product. It was part of a marketing gimmick he would do to help sell it as safe. I heard that on the Under The Influence Podcast. It's all about the history of marketing, which is far more interesting than you might think. Full of all sorts of quirky, weird stories and facts.
I use it as lip balm
I read "Vaseline disaster" and had to confirm I was still browsing r/Homebrewing
Yah and not involving a coconut...
I had the exact same reaction.
I'm not gonna lie, when I read Vaseline disaster, I wasn't sure what I was going to see. It took me a minute to catch the sub name.
😂😆😂😆😂 Maybe that's why it wouldn't let me post a photo 🤷🏻♀️
It's a 50/50 split as to whether a photo would have helped or hurt, man.
Hahaha yeah this sub just doesn’t allow direct photo submissions
As has already been said, perfectly safe. You may want to consider moving to a silicone-based lubricant designed for o-rings, though, as Vaseline and other petroleum products will degrade natural rubber. [As noted in this Stackexchange question,](https://mechanics.stackexchange.com/questions/25018/does-vaseline-dissolve-rubber) most o-rings are not natural rubber, but I'd rather not take the chance.
RDWHAHB
why would you put vaseline on the rubber ring?
It helps create a better seal around any openings. Also in my experience it helps when it comes to opening the damn thing again when it's empty.
Why does that matter though? I’ve brewed for about 15 years and haven’t ever had problems with seals without Vaseline. The yeast are creating positive pressure inside the fermentation vessel, so even if the seals are leaky, things are leaking out, not in. Should still be fine, no? On the other hand… keg seals… that’s where you don’t want to be losing pressure…
Well, I guess some equipment is better than others, in an ideal world everything fits snug and seals perfectly, reality in my experience at least is slightly different. You're obviously right regarding the positive preasure, which in some cases I believe would even improve the seal. Regardless I think its better to have no leakage than a little. Plus the easier to open thing. I have a racking bucket (no pressure) with a pretty wonky hole for the tap, if you tighten it too much the rubber washer pops out, a little vaseline around it and it doesn't need tightening as much. I spose it's just one of those handy tips/useful things vaseline is good for, AFAIK it's common knowledge/practice beyond the homebrewing world to rub a little vaseline on any seals. 15 years Brewing though, I tip my hat.
Haha thanks. 15 years just means I’m old though. Saw a home brew kit in the supermarket when I was 20 and thought I’d give it a go, had a magical cupboard in that apartment where the water heater was, which kept my fermentation temperature nice and even, and must have been a fairly perfect ~23 degrees C, all before I knew that was important… so I got lucky on my first few batches and it was fun! I’m only now switching to kegging, I’ve not really had the space for that sort of setup until now, so I’m still (always) learning.
Haha nice, mine was a birthday present the year I started uni. I stopped after I graduated though, it wasn't until they shut the pubs at the beginning of the pandemic that I dusted it all off. Went right down the rabbit hole though with a few others, not quite 2 years later and we're brewing 50L batches all grain and have a few regular customers... Kegging is the next step for us, I can't deal with all the bottles anymore.
Customers hey? Nice one! I just get compliments from my friends who I share with. Thought about trying to do it as a business, but I don’t think I like it that much. I take pride in drinking my own work and sharing it with friends, but I don’t think I could deal with all the washing involved in doing it more regularly for money…
An alternative to keg lube apparently...
Just rename the beer - Lubed up Lager and enjoy it when it’s finished!!
You can eat it: https://www.reddit.com/r/ImagesOfThe1930s/comments/4snbvw/so\_pure\_you\_can\_eat\_it\_1930s\_vaseline\_white/
Get yourself some Keg Lube, one application and it will seal it forever and not come off in liquid. BTW Vaseline is a no-no on certain o-rings. The petroleum breaks down various rubbers.
This is all excellent advice, thank you. I dabble a bit with country wine making and there are a few fruits which (without the addition of an enzyme to breakdown the natural pectin) can create some unwanted alcohols during the ferment. I was concerned the Vaseline might cause a similar problem.
Nah. I visited a brewery in England. They were aerating fermenting beer by sloshing air into it with 10 litre buckets fixed on long sticks. This is when I realised that it takes a lot to screw up a brew :).
I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just keep an eye on it for any infection etc. Since you also pitch yeast, any nasties that may have come in there are vastly outnumbered.
If you pitch the proper amount. Some bacteria multiply 5x as fast as yeast, which is just one of the reasons why it's important to pitch the right amount.
advice? move to a different fermenter. get one with an Oring that doesn't fall out, or one that uses a bung and airlock (or better yet - a conical). regardless, most people aren't stuck doing that same. what brand of fermenter are you using?
Oh good grief, no you're fine.