First batch, screwed up I think (too cold to pitch?)

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.

BrandonB

Active Member
Joined
Jun 19, 2009
Messages
25
Reaction score
0
Location
Krum, TX
Well, everything was going well on my first brew.

I got the wort in a bucket with ice water and it dropped temp QUICK! But I still thought I'd need more to get to 80* so I used 2 8lb bags of ice (saw it recommended in instructions and a book). Now I have ice-wort....

What do I do? Wait it out to get to pitch temp? Pitch it anyway? Throw it over the fence and start all over?
 
wait, you added ice to your wort? if so this is never a good idea since ice is full of dormant bacteria waiting to breed in something like say, sugary nutritious water. you could boil it again to get the volume down and kill bugs, but of course then you will have to cool it again, but maybe add the ice to a bath outside of your kettle as opposed to in.
 
What is your temperature now? It it's above 60 I'd pitch without any worries. If it's colder than that, you'll probably just have to wait for it to warm up a little for any yeast activity to occur, witch will most likely take 24 to 48 hours to occur anyway. Whatever you do, don't throw it "over the fence," it will probably be fine.
 
hopsy, I was worried about the cleanliness of the ice, but seeing it in a few books and such I figured it'd be ok. With my luck, I doubt it.
I can't boil it again, I'm at 5 gallons and I have a 5 gal pot (for now).

And ottobrew, it is actually below 60*. Can I pitch the yeast, or do I need to wait for the temp to come back up? I'm still amazed at how it dropped so much.

The first time I brewed with some coworkers it took forever for the temperature to drop using essentially the same methods.
 
Depends on how much lower. Are we talking like 35 or 40 degrees, or more like 55. If you're in the higher range just pitch. If you're really low duct tape a heating pad to the fermenter and let it heat up for a few hours.

Also, if you pitching a liquid culture that's still in the fridge, just throw it in there, you should be fine. If it's at room temp and you're really low (under 50) let the wort warm up so you don't shock the yeast. Hope this helps.
 
I'd probably just pitch it. If you have liquid yeast, you might want to put it in the fridge for a short time so it doesn't get thermal shock hitting the cold wort.
 
ugh, yep, its liquid yeast.

I guess I can just put hte lid on the bucket for the night and pitch in the morning?
 
I'd pitch before heading off to bed. The yeast will get going, just more slowly. Waiting will just increase infection risk. How cold are we talking? 50? 35?
 
49* Its icy!
ambient is 78* in that room, 72* in the room i plan on allowing it to ferment.
 
i would say just pitch it. leave the yeast out of the fridge for a half hour or so, or however long you think it will take for it to get to around 50 degrees, and pitch it. when it gets into the right zone it will start doing what it was born to do. a lot of trappist breweries pitch at pretty low temperatures and allow the temp to rise. or it might not and then youve learned a valuable lesson! either way its better than throwing out 5 gallons of blood sweat and tears.
 
+1 on pitching. Whatever is in it when it reaches room temp will get a foothold. You want that to be your yeast and not whatever bugs might've been in the ice.
 
Thanks everyone. I hope it turns out ok. When I see some bubbling or progress I'll be sure and post.

I may get going on a 2nd batch sooner than before, just as a precaution... (I know, I need to relax some, I'm trying)
 
Thanks everyone. I hope it turns out ok. When I see some bubbling or progress I'll be sure and post.

I may get going on a 2nd batch sooner than before, just as a precaution... (I know, I need to relax some, I'm trying)

just make sure you dont add the ice to the wort. What you might of seen is whats called an "ice batch". What you want to do is put your fermentation vessel into a larger tub and then add ice around your vessel. I would head to HD and just buy one of those tubs you use to keep a keg cold.
 
I also read about using "ice". I did this in my first batch and thought I ruined it. Read the post on never throwing a batch out and stuck with it. Turned out great! So hang in there.

I froze 2.5g un-opened container of mountain spring water and cut it out of the plastic. I set it in the fermentation bucket and poured the hot wart over the ice block. Unfortunately the wort did not melt all the ice. I pitched my yeast anyway and it took longer, but it eventually started fermenting.

I have now tasted the beer and it is great! First batch a success, I am hooked!

Thanks to this forum I stuck it out and it worked. I hope you have the same success.

Sean

P.S. I did have to shake the bucket to get it to start (after two days), but then it started bubbling like crazy.
 
I also read about using "ice". I did this in my first batch and thought I ruined it. Read the post on never throwing a batch out and stuck with it. Turned out great! So hang in there.

I froze 2.5g un-opened container of mountain spring water and cut it out of the plastic. I set it in the fermentation bucket and poured the hot wart over the ice block. Unfortunately the wort did not melt all the ice. I pitched my yeast anyway and it took longer, but it eventually started fermenting.

I have now tasted the beer and it is great! First batch a success, I am hooked!

Thanks to this forum I stuck it out and it worked. I hope you have the same success.

Sean

P.S. I did have to shake the bucket to get it to start (after two days), but then it started bubbling like crazy.

Thanks, that gives me some more confidence!
 
Small update, the airlock is popping pretty good this morning. Last night it was moving some too!

Another question though. I've read I need to take a hydrometer reading 2 days in a row to see if it has reached FG yet. Wouldn't it hurt to take the lid off the fermenter to do so? It seems as if it would/could hurt if it hasn't finished.
 
Small update, the airlock is popping pretty good this morning. Last night it was moving some too!

Another question though. I've read I need to take a hydrometer reading 2 days in a row to see if it has reached FG yet. Wouldn't it hurt to take the lid off the fermenter to do so? It seems as if it would/could hurt if it hasn't finished.

It wouldn't hurt as long as you were careful with sanitization, we do it all the time...

THe only thing it would do would stop an airlock bubbling, which doesn;'t mean anything, becasue the airlcok is not a fermentation gausge, it is merely a vent for excess co2...and when you open the lid, you will do plenty of venting....
 
It wouldn't hurt as long as you were careful with sanitization, we do it all the time...

THe only thing it would do would stop an airlock bubbling, which doesn;'t mean anything, becasue the airlcok is not a fermentation gausge, it is merely a vent for excess co2...and when you open the lid, you will do plenty of venting....

Isn't the co2 a sort of protective layer over wort during fermentation?

Just being cautious...

I'm thinking I should probably take a reading next saturday or so...? How do I know when to do so? I know many have said avoid watching the airlock, but others seem to swear by it.
 
Saturday is great for taking a hydrometer sample. As I'm sure you've already read, patience is part of homebrewing.

Also, for what it's worth, I've used store-bought ice many dozens of times to cool down my partial boils with no ill effects. It's all about the sanitation. Once you go to full boils, you'll want to invest in a chiller (immersion or counterflow). And then you go All Grain....and kegs, and faucets, and oh, my!
 
I will usually, at most, take a hydrometer sample once a week, but often wait two weeks or more before I take the first post-fermentation sample if everything looks normal. I'll take one a few days before I plan on bottling to make sure I'm at or very close to my expected final gravity, and then check to make sure it's the same on bottling day.
 
Isn't the co2 a sort of protective layer over wort during fermentation?

Just being cautious...

I'm thinking I should probably take a reading next saturday or so...? How do I know when to do so? I know many have said avoid watching the airlock, but others seem to swear by it.

It does, and any excess is normally blown out the airlock ,which is meant to keep you from painting the ceiling with your beer, NOT to be trusted as an accurate gauge, half of my beers NEVER bubble in the airlock.

When you open the fermenter, any EXTRA is released....and your airlock may not bubble...doesn't mean anything is wrong, but many new brewers post that their airlock stopped, and in their mind they think fermentation has stopped as well...

The co2 is still protecting your beer.

Fermentation is not always "dynamic," just because we don't see anything happenning, doesn't mean that anything's wrong, and also doesn't mean that the yeast are still not working dilligantly away, doing what they've been doing for over 4,000 years....the yeasts are busy for a long time doing what they need to do...That's why many of us leave our beers in primary for a month, to let the yeast clean up the byproducts of fermentation.
 
On the brews that do not bubble, what do you do? Wait a week and take a sample, then go back at it a week later or so? Or are you looking for krausen?


I think I'll end up picking another fermentation bucket/bottle this week. I was thinking of putting this one in the secondary (if anything just to have something to look at) after ten days or so and starting another... I may just do one this weekend....
 
Well I couldn't wait and took a sample with a wine thief I picked up today.

1.010-2 I believe (kinda hard to read with the hint of foam on top). FG listed as 1.010


It bubbled a hint here and there after I replaced the top. I'll check again in a few days...

I did take a swig of the sample, it smells wonderful, but tastes green as expected.
 
Back
Top