Sauer System Fermentation Airlocks – Lids, Grommets, Gaskets, Stoppers – for Regular Mouth Mason Jars – 4 Pack

The "heart" of the airlock system is the Masontops lid. It is heavy-duty and highly resistant to absorbing any aromas or odors from fermentations. I have used Masontops lids on homemade pickled peppers and kim chi, as well as on other items for several years...and I am impressed with their quality! Integral to the lid is the thick, heavy-duty, silicone sealing ring, which is replaceable, should it need to be replaced. The sealing ring is also removable for thorough washing/cleaning. It appears that the silicone grommet in the lid is also easily replaceable, if that is ever needed. The airlocks are well designed...and the stopper plug for refrigerated storage without changing lids, completes the airlock system. I've been fermenting for decades...wine, beer, sauerkraut, chili peppers and full sour pickles. As with most things, I began with a "kit" or a "starter set" (model railroading, here). Kits are basically good to see if you are really interested in learning more about the "skills" needed to pursue that interest/hobby. So too, it was, with Mason Jar fermentation. Mason jars have their limits...they need "headspace", so whatever you are fermenting is limited to roughly 50%-80% of the jar's stated capacity...and "more" headspace creates fewer "issues" than "not enough", especially in the early, comparatively "violent" stages of fermentation. My first Mason jar "kit" included 3 lids with integral "waterless" airlocks, 3 fermentation weights (stones) and a vacuum pump (large syringe)...and a recipe book which, well...it is what it is, as it were. Air, particularly oxygen and the air-borne, wild bacteria and mold spores, are NOT friendly to fermentations; and the vacuum pump was a bit of a "joke"...more "well, it won't do any harm"; but I seriously question it's functional value. Basic rule is that you don't break a fermentation "seal" unless there is still a sufficiently active ferment present that will re-establish the necessary carbon dioxide "buffer" in the headspace. "Sampling" actively fermenting foods, including wine or beer, reveals precious little about the finished product. Fermentation is complete when it's done...and not before...period. That said, there is really nothing safer than a properly maintained, water-filled, correctly functioning airlock for a "closed system"...in this case, the jar and the lid/airlock with the sealing ring. I will state that I am NOT interested in the probiotic value/benefit of the fermented foods, I ferment for TASTE...my goal is to make them shelf-stable (sterile canning) or refrigerate them for relatively immediate consumption upon the completion of the ferment. The ONLY truly usable item that I found in the original kit was the fermentation weights with their molded-in "finger grab"; but even with most wide-mouth Mason jars "of size", there is still a small shoulder to contend with, so that may pose challenges, depending on what one is fermenting. Fermentation "springs" and "gates" may offer increased functionality for some food items. Needless to say, my first Mason jar fermentation kit was quite disappointing; but at least I learned what NOT to buy/use! The waterless, one-way airlocks may have their place for some folks, but NOT in "my kitchen"! There is no visual indication that they are functioning...and they are rather easily subjectable to damage that may not be easily discernable. I and my wife have reached an age where "large scale for home use", crock-based fermentations of sauerkraut, peppers and pickles result in far more than we can use. The amount of canning and/or refrigerator space requirements means that large-scale fermentations are simply NOT as much fun as they once were! Mason jar ferments are small enough to make it all FUN again; but even on a small scale, there is absolutely no substitute for quality components and "sound" fermentation and preservation practices. Fermentology's Sauer System lids and airlocks ARE the quality components that you really need to make every ferment as successful as it can be!!!

Great product. I have tons of mason jars of varying sizes, and didn't want to buy different glass jars to use, so this kit works perfectly for any brand mason jar with a WIDE mouth, not regular mouth size. Brewing up some lacto fermented ginger beer in no time! I made my ginger bug over 10 days with some store bought ginger, then brewed up a batch of ginger liquid base for two jars. Pored in, inoculated with some of the ginger bug, and away we go! My light sugar count is still bubbling away every 3 minutes or so several days after inoculating with the bug. Works great and recommend them. They don't feel cheap like some units, and look to last a lifetime if treated well. Don't buy a generic knockoff. Stick with the TEAL. Buy Fermentology!

These were so easy to use! They fit the jars beautifully and seem durable enough to keep going through many uses! The quality is worth mentioning as they don’t seem cheap or flimsy and they’re nice and thick. I really like that they’re made of a good plastic that will keep going and not rust over time. They are sleek looking and aren’t an eye-sore when they’re on the jars.

Getting ready to use them today. Appear to be good enough

There are a few different versions of vent lids for mason jars and I prefer this one. The seals are good and easy to maintain and the lids and water check valves are fairly well made. They are thin plastic and can break if dropped or hit, but are great for their intended use. I prefer this type of vent because I can see what is going on and I trust the mechanical part where it is simply a small thimble placed over a tube with water around it forming a seal. Easy and simple. Other versions have a silicon flapper or device which is to allow CO2 out and no oxygen in...I can't verify this is the case...what if a small piece of debris is introduced to the flapper seal? It could possibly hang up and leave an opening to allow oxygen to be introduced into the jar. This set up is a tried and true method and is basically how fermenting pots are designed.

Works Great!

I love the ease of use of these wide-mouth mason jar lids for fermentation. I have been fermenting without the one-way gas exit systems, but have had a few mishaps with kahm yeast growing where brine submerging wasn't maintained. While not dangerous the taste is, well, off. This system has resulted in perfect fermentation. I am still using glass weights to push the veggie materials to submerge through the brine, but as I understand, I may not need to do this as oxygen cannot enter. That makes it even easier to use. The addition of "plugs" to use so that the lids can be used to store finished product is a plus. Not sure I would use it as I prefer to transfer to nice pouring bottles.

I wanted to do some small batches of mead to test flavor additives, and was thrilled to finally find lids and airlocks for regular sized (not wide mouth) canning jars. They're mostly plastic but seem to be well made (not cheap and flimsy). Everything seals well, both lid to jar and airlock to lid. It comes with stoppers for the lids if you want to plug them while not using the airlocks. These also fit into carboy bungs, so you can get a bit of double use out of them if you do larger scale fermenting. I'm enjoying them so far. Would definitely recommend! EDITED ADDITION: - The small lids for the airlocks fit so tightly that it's a frustration to get them off without getting liquid everywhere. Probably not an issue if you don't use them regularly, but it's a noteworthy frustration if you're planning to use these a lot.

I tappi in dotazione sigillano male..fidatevi ho provato una decina di barattoli e una volta avvitati vengono via solo tirando senza svitare..

Very high quality and easy to use. The lids are actually made by Masontops.

This is a very good system for fermenting small batches imo, especially if one is into canning too, because jars become multi-purpose. I have five on the go currently, and I will be adding today's picked gherkins, and would have more fermenting if it wasn't for one major issue - Amazon Prime are now using Evri and our last few orders of this product have disappeared/been returned. Anyway, rant over. The lids are solid and easy to clean and beat any other small-batch system that I have used by a country mile. For large batches I use traditional crocks, but wouldn't hesitate to use these if I had suitable >2litre jars. Their glass weights are good too.

Summary The Sauer System Fermentation kit help me start my fermentation journey in an easy and safe way. All you need is 4 wide mouth mason jars in addition to this kit to get started making sourdough bread, kimchi, pickles etc. Usage Kimchi has gone up in price so I decided I wanted to try to make my own. *See recipe below in helpful hints*. After purchasing this fermentation kit I have not only made my own kimchi, but i have made sourdough bread, pickles and hot sauce safely and simply. First of all let's not confuse fermenting with pickling. With pickling you are generally drowning vegetables in vinegar and sealing them without air into a jar for an extended period of time. With fermenting we are combining salt with the bacteria found naturally in the vegetables to provide the sour flavors. In other words fermenting = salt, picking = vinegar. Home fermenting recipes usually consist of combining distilled water, salt and spices into an air tight jar with vegetables and allowing the natural fermentation process to take place over a week to several weeks. At some point during this process the carbon dioxide produced by the fermentation process must leave the jar. There are several ways to accomplish this but the Sauer System is the simplest and most fool-proof method. The Sauer Fermentation System uses and airlock system that plugs into the top of the jar. Air cannot enter the jar but carbon dioxide can leave the jar. To accomplish this all you have to do is fill the airlock up with water. It's literally as simple as that. Helpful Hints Homemade Fermented Kimchi recipe: 1. Chop napa cabbage up into chunks 2. Rinse napa cabbage 3. Apply salt literally to napa cabbage 4. Wait a few hours for cabbage to lose rigidity 5. Add garlic paste, ginger paste, anchovy paste and coarse Korea hot pepper flakes 6. Mix well 7. Pour napa cabbage into wide mouth mason jar 8. Fill mason jar with distilled water until napa cabbage fully covered 8. Screw Sauer System lid onto mason jar 9. Fill Sauer System airlock to fill line with water and insert into hole in Sauer System lid 10. Put mason jar into dark and cool are for 2 days. Replace Sauer System lid with traditional mason jar lid. Refrigerate. Enjoy! Homemade Fermented Pickles (sour without using vinegar!) 1. Cut cucumbers into spear 2. Put cucumbers into wide mouth mason jar 3. Pour hot distilled water into jar 4. Put 2-3 tablespoons of kosher salt into jar 5. Put 1-2 teaspoons garlic puree into jar 6. Put bay leaf and whole clove into jar 7. Fill Sauer System airlock to fill line with water and insert into hole in Sauer System lid 8. Put mason jar into dark and cool are for 1 week. Replace Sauer System lid with traditional mason jar lid. Refrigerate. Enjoy your home made pickles. Homemade fermented hot sauce recipe: 1. Same recipe as pickles above but replace cucumbers with your hot peppers of choice (after you remove the seeds and membranes from them) 2. After fermentation is complete blend peppers with a bit of fermentation water. Boil mash down. Refrigerate and enjoy your homemade hot sauce! Homemade Sourdough Starter 1. Mix well 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour with 1/4 cup of warm water in mason jar. Screw on Sauer system lid with filled airlock. 2. Let rest for two days 3. After two days pour off to top half of starter in jar 4. Add 1/2 cup of all purpose flour and 1/4 cup of warm water to jar. Mix well. 5. Every day for the next week pour off top half of starter and mix in 1/2 cup APF and 1/4 cup of warm water. 6. When starter doubles in size without 6 hours it is ready to be used in your favorite sourdough recipe. Conclusion The Sauer Fermentation System has opened up a new world of cooking for me. I no longer buy store bought kimchi, pickles, hot peppers. I also create my own loaves of sourdough bread. I will have bought one Sauer Fermentation System and plan to buy another when I ramp up my in-house fermentation to the point I need more than 4 jars fermenting at once.

Only received three of the four lids. The rest of the order was okay