Brown floaties

I've got some brown, flakey floaters at the top of my hex nut brown ale. They seem harmless enough and the beer smells fine. Should I skim them off the top or just try to carefully avoid them when I transfer to my secondary? It's been awhile but I've had them before and I tried to skim them but some made them into the bottling bucket (no secondary that time). It has been awhile since it happened last so not sure what caused it (irish moss?). Thanks!

No worries, let them be. At racking time they'll stay on the surface, just leave them along with the sediment behind.

As an aside, you'll see all sorts of strange things in those fermentors. As long as they don't look like fuzzy mold, you should normally have nothing to worry about.

Hard to say, what yeast strain? wierd things in the beer turn out to be yeast 9 times out of 10.
My first stout was black as could be, you could not even see the yeast in the bottom. When racking to the secondary, these globs of crap floated up intermittently and slowly dissolved back down. Freaked me the %$@^ out!
Turns out it was really healthy yeast, but I still have nightmares about being in the carboy in this black beer with these huge gross things floating up from underneath. I wouldn't worry! Good Luck.

Thanks for the input. Have only had this occur a couple times before. This time I used Munton's Dry yeast so not sure that would cause it.

Have you ever brewed a very clear wort? You should see some of the freakish things that go up and down and up and down becuase of CO2. Again, nothing to worry abuot :rockin:

Foreigner said:

Have you ever brewed a very clear wort? You should see some of the freakish things that go up and down and up and down becuase of CO2. Again, nothing to worry abuot :rockin:

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No, not exactly, but I've only had stuff floating at the top surface (after a week+ in primary) a couple times. Usually the top is pretty clear and free of floaties.