Wal-Mart carries a terrific 2-1/2 gallon clear glass jar that has a barrel look to it. It makes for a terrific secondary fermenter when adding fruit to a one gallon carboy would increase the volume too much to fit. I used it for my blueberry mead and it worked out great.
The one problem is the lid that comes with it is a thin metal type with no gasket. Air can easily enter and escape. I saw on a Jack Spirko video where he talked about making your gasket using one of several methods.
The first one he mentioned he picked up from the Underground Meadery page on Facebook where it was recommended cutting out a disk from a plastic coffee can lid. I tried that and it seemed to stiff to me, and since my cut wasn't perfect it didn't solve the problem.
The second method he suggested was using a rubber can opening gripper. It's a floppy disk that you would use to open lids on stuck jars. Jack said he got one at his local dollar store, but I checked out quite a few such stores and couldn't find anything.
Today while at Wal-Mart I happened to see some Contact brand shelf liner. It seemed to be a plastic-y type material (the packaging didn't say), but was very flexible. It was also thin too so it didn't seem like it would get in the way of closing the lid. For $6 for a roll, I figured I'd give it a try.
I traced the top of the lid onto the shelf liner and using an X-acto knife I cut out the shape. Slipping it into the lid, it seemed just slightly oversized, which I thought was good because it would allow the gasket to fully contact the rim of the jar.
With the shape cut out, I slipped it into place and poured about a half gallon of water in and turned the bottle upside down to check for leaks. There were none. That convinces me it will be able to prevent air from leaking or allowing it to enter, and because it is plastic, it is washable so I can clean it after each use.
I then drilled a 1/2" diameter hole in the center of the lid to fit a bung and airlock. I think tomorrow I will use it to continue the aging process with the pineapple pepper hydromel (Mead No. 2017-6).
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