Step to 5L and then split to 8 mason jars

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

TTB

Active Member
Joined
Nov 28, 2012
Messages
44
Reaction score
6
I'm planning on making a 1L starter from a new vial, stir plate for 24 hours, crash overnight, decant, step up to 2L, stirplate for 36 hours, cold crash overnight, decant, step up to 5L, stir plate for 72 hours, cold crash, decant and split the slurry to 8 mason jars and put those in the fridge.

I plan to use the mason jars for my next 8 carboys I set to ferment, should all be used within the month. I'm going to do a starter for each one.

Anything wrong with this plan? Any tips or things you would do differently?

Thanks in advance!
 
When you step 2 Liters to 5 liters you don't have to crash it. Because the volume is so much larger the alcohol in the 2 liter starter will be very dilute. You can just top off with 3 litters of water and add 500 grams of DME. (same amount of DME as you would for a 5 liter starter)

If you keep everything clean the jars will last several months at least.
 
When you step 2 Liters to 5 liters you don't have to crash it. Because the volume is so much larger the alcohol in the 2 liter starter will be very dilute. You can just top off with 3 litters of water and add 500 grams of DME. (same amount of DME as you would for a 5 liter starter)

If you keep everything clean the jars will last several months at least.

Ok awesome thanks. Thay makes things easier.

How long do starters take to finish on stirplates? I kind of randomly chose 24 hours for 1L, 36 hours for 2L and 72 for 5L.

Don't we just want the yeast to grow and multiply and not begin fermentation? How does that play into the timeline.
 
Good point robfar. 1.5 litters is probably as small as you would want to go with 100 billion starting cells. I missed that he is building up from a new vial. Also the times are all pretty long. 24 hours on a stir plate each should be fine.
 
I wouldn't sweat sterilizing personnally. This time of the year, I never have issues with infection. I just make sure to clean the jars even if brand new with soap and hot water, rinse well and soak in star san. Then fill to the top of each jar with sealed bottled water after decanting most of the liquid and dividing. Add some bottled water on top of the yeast before trnsfer to make it easier.

The starters will take about 30 hours if it is spinning medium fast the whole time at about 70F to 75F ferment temp (67-72 air temp). I make starters at about 5:00 PM and stick in the fridge at about 5:00 AM two days later. With a flashlight identify tiny bubbles rising up from just below the surface indicating active fermentation. When the bubbles are gone, crash.

Make sure to use ferm cap (I use 4 drops on big starters) on the second step or it will make a mess. After about 5 or 6 hours, you may get a nest of bubbles or krausen above the liquid. Swirl the flask by hand to disburse it. Then it will stay down until finished.
 
Just go to the 2L level, then split into 8 half-pint jars.

Sanitize jars before use.

Store jars in the fridge.

Let the yeast settle in the jars, decant the liquid, and replace with distilled water.

I just woke something similar up after 2 years. I just took one half-pint jar off a starter, and pitched the rest.
 
Ok thanks a lot guys.

Do most people recommend decanting off wort and replacing with sterile water for storage?
 
I decant the beer and replace it with clean water. I have seen high bacteria counts in the liquid.
 
Back
Top