Wide Neck Fermentation Bottle - IKEA Hack

I make a lot of small batch homebrew, because my flat is tight on space and because sometimes I would rather try out a recipe before I make a massive batch of the stuff. I also make a lot of sauces and pickles, and the odd batch off kimchi to boot. All of these things need to ferment down without the air getting to them, but for anyone who has ever tried to brew with anything other than liquid in a carboy (demijohn) knows, well, its pretty tough to clean out or even get the mixture out through the little neck…

That’s why you need a wide neck fermentation bottle!!

What you need

This hack is simple. You need the following –

• A 365+ Carafe and Stopper from IKEA. Dependant on where you live that should set you back around $5
• An airlock from a homebrew shop. That shouldn’t be more than $2
• A drill, and a 5mm drill bit

And that is it…

In order to make the fermentation bottle, simple remove the cork from the carafe, and place on a work bench (or something else that you don't mind drilling through... I used an old pallet).

Whilst holding the cork steady, gentle drill through the centre. This will be super easy, so don’t put too much pressure on the drill.

Clean the cork (or if you are brewing straight away, throw it in with your sterilising solution).

Insert the airlock into the hole in the cork, put the cork onto the bottle and ta-da!

This is a really simple IKEA hack admittedly, but it can introduce you to brewing on the cheap (the IKEA bottle is cheaper than a glass carboy in most countries). It also helps you make smaller scale, so is great if you are making simple and small test batches. And finally, the carafe is dishwasher safe, so cleaning and sterilising is also super easy.

So what is stopping you... go, brew!