Aeration Question

I have been on a bit of a string of very long or stuck fermentation's. I don't have a large boiling capacity only about 3gal and I top up the rest of the way (23L/6gal) with tap water. I stir like crazy prob about 5 min before I pitch the yeast, was wondering if the tap water and the stirring are creating enough oxygen for the yeast to chow down on or am I needing to look else where for my problem.

Yeast: S-04, S-05, Coopers (problem with them all)
Ferm temps: Steady 68
Water PH: 6 - 6.5
Type: Extract (Coopers PA & Stout, Morgan's IPA, and Yuris TSPA)
Hydrating Technique: Follow the directions on the yeast manufacturers website to the T.
Cooling: With Immersion chiller (13min max)

Hope some of that info helps fill in any other questions. Thanks

Can i ask why you think its stuck?

Coopers stout: SG 1.050 FG(ATM)1.018 Coopers yeast
Coopers PA: SG 1.046 FG 1.020 (pitched more yeast and got that going again)
Morgans IPA: SG 1.048 FG 1.012 took 5 weeks to get there s-05
Yuris TSPA: SG 1.060 FG 1.018 (I think the Attenuation is actually correct for that one.

BadBeagleBrew said:

Coopers stout: SG 1.050 FG(ATM)1.018 Coopers yeast
Coopers PA: SG 1.046 FG 1.020 (pitched more yeast and got that going again)
Morgans IPA: SG 1.048 FG 1.012 took 5 weeks to get there s-05
Yuris TSPA: SG 1.060 FG 1.018 (I think the Attenuation is actually correct for that one.

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Since these are all extract beers I would say you are doing fine. You need to keep in mind a couple things:

1: it is almost impossible to mess up the OG and if you are short or long it is usually due to a poor mix of top off water and wort. Unless you royally screw up your volumes assume you hit the number

2: extract will usually have a degree of less fermentable grains in them and for any reason sometimes they just finish around 1.020 for really no apparent reason.

3: things you can try next time: as fermentation slows you can raise the temp a bit and swirl the vessel to rouse the yeast to keep them active. Also, do not use cooper's or munton's yeast, they just are not good. Get a better quality yeast or begin using liquid yeast and making starters. Aerate better-try pouring the wort back and forth between buckets or really stir the crap out of it. O2 is really important for initial cell growth.

In the end you've made beer so keep at it!

Most of my brews, after cooling to pitching temperatures, I shake them like crazy for at least a couple of minutes. We're talking waves sloshing around inside like a noreastern storm. The fermentation has always taken off like gang busters. The last two I tried less airation, just dumped the wort in to the bucket, falling a few feet and spashing. The result was a slow start to the fermentation, and not nearly as much airlock activity.

Can you explain how you "stir your wort" for airation? How much splashing is involved? Is the result a head of foam?

I always pitch in about the middle of the temp recommendations for the particular yeast and always do late extract additions. I usually stir until it starts to foam. Sometimes not so much. I was under the impression though that due to the aeration jigger on my home faucet I was introducing tones of O2 into my wort.

BadBeagleBrew said:

I have been on a bit of a string of very long or stuck fermentation's. I don't have a large boiling capacity only about 3gal and I top up the rest of the way (23L/6gal) with tap water. I stir like crazy prob about 5 min before I pitch the yeast, was wondering if the tap water and the stirring are creating enough oxygen for the yeast to chow down on or am I needing to look else where for my problem.

Yeast: S-04, S-05, Coopers (problem with them all)
Ferm temps: Steady 68
Water PH: 6 - 6.5
Type: Extract (Coopers PA & Stout, Morgan's IPA, and Yuris TSPA)
Hydrating Technique: Follow the directions on the yeast manufacturers website to the T.
Cooling: With Immersion chiller (13min max)

Hope some of that info helps fill in any other questions. Thanks

Click to expand...

Check my sig for the extract pictorial. I have a great example of aerating using a bottling bucket in there.

Alright so it may very well be my poor aeration causing the problem, I don't have a strainer so I may just end up dumping it back and forth between 2 sanitized buckets.

dfc I did do something similar to that with a Fest Brew kit I just did, I racked into a carboy and held the tube at the top. I don't have a bucket with a spigot so I may just rack from the BK and hold the tube to get the desired splash effect.