Didn't activate yeast

I am trying not to worry or panic, but after everything has been going great I just dumped the yeast in the cooled wort without activating it. Now I'm aggravated, but i don't know if I should activate new yeast and add it, just wait, or dump the whole thing and start over.

Any suggestions?

Activate? you mean hydrate. What yeast did you use. I m thinking you mean make a starter using liquid yeast?
Im thinking you use a smack pack, it proably will be fine what OG did you have or is it suppose to be?

Dump and start over? Lets be serious. What was the OG? Anything lower than 1.060 will probably be fine. Give it a day or two and see if you see some activity. If you're really worried, get another yeast and throw it in.
RDWHAHB

I didn't know. I had powder yeast. It said to put it in ~100 degree water for 15 minutes before adding to the wort. Somehow I got excited to be on the last step and skipped the part where I had to hydrate it. But if it will still do its job then no worries.

It was ale yeast btw.

OG was about 1.046

That sounds like Nottingham yeast. It's best to hydrate it as described, but it should be totally fine. I bet when you wake up, your beer will be happily bubbling away.

Awesome. I'm looking forward to it. I hope it turns out remotely well. I've always wanted to brew my own. The first step in creating something great.

Thanks everyone for easing my mind.

I just started my second batch. The first time around I hydrated the yeast because a book had said it was a good idea. This time I forgot about that and just sprinkled it in per the kit directions. Surprisingly, it's bubbling much faster after one day than the first batch did. It's the exact same recipe (honey wheat), and the only other difference is the temperature in my basement -- about 70F this time, vs 75F last time, but shouldn't that actually slow down fermentation rather than speed it up?

A lot of people intentionally don't re-hydrate their dry yeast before pitching and it always works well for them. You're good.

It has bubbling fine. No worries for just sprinkling it in. Starting next batch next week. Not sure if I'll even rehydrate it this time.

I brewed an American Pale Ale from Brewers Best kit last night and didn't forget to hydrate my yeast, but I did it improperly, mixing it into warm water, but not letting it sit for 15 min. The "picture" instructions on Danster ale yeast are totally deceiving and inadequate. I should have known too because this is my second batch and I did it right the first time, but it was a different brand with yeast that has proper instructions.

Anyway, no "action" this morning, which is what had me worried, so I hope I'm OK. I guess if I don't see any tonight I'll dump it

colledge said:

I guess if I don't see any tonight I'll dump it

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if you still don't see any activite, just add another pack of yeast and that's it, no need to dump it. Be sure to sanitize the package and whatever tool you use to open it though (i dip it in starsan along with the scissors i'll use to crack it)

All the kits and yeast instructions have slightly different instructions. I generally ignore them all. For dry yeast I boil and cool 2 cups water, then stir in the dry yeast and cover with sanitized plastic wrap. Then I forget it and do my brew day as usual. When the wort is cooled i pitch it in. Until recently, for liquid yeast I warmed it up to room temp and pitched it in. The general consensus here is that it is prferable to do a starter for liquid yeast (which has a lower initial cell count) and merely rehydrate dry yeast.

colledge said:

Anyway, no "action" this morning, which is what had me worried, so I hope I'm OK. I guess if I don't see any tonight I'll dump it

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Quit your worrying, its like rocking in a rocking chair, lots of activity but you aren't getting anywhere. If you have no action by the 4th morning, worry for a long time, like 3 seconds and then take a hydrometer sample. If the gravity hasn't changed from when you put it in there, pitch more yeast.

Oh, and one more thing. NEVER dump beer until you are totally certain it has gone bad. Give it a couple months or more before you make that decision. Some of the worst disasters (in the mind of the new brewer) turn out great beer.

I usually use a smack pack, but used dry yeast because my LHBS didn't have the smack packs for American Ale in stock. I also stirred in the yeast because I honestly don't know what the heck to do with the dry stuff! Little to no activity and its been 5 days! Is my basement too cold? (around 60 to 65 F) Am just worrying too much?

CannibalAJ said:

I usually use a smack pack, but used dry yeast because my LHBS didn't have the smack packs for American Ale in stock. I also stirred in the yeast because I honestly don't know what the heck to do with the dry stuff! Little to no activity and its been 5 days! Is my basement too cold? (around 60 to 65 F) Am just worrying too much?

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Step 1. identlfy the strain of yeast and manufacturer
Step 2. go to the yeast manufacturer's website and find out the recommended temperature range
Step 2 adjust fermenter to approximately that range
Step 4 gently stir wort with sanitized spoon to resuspend yeast

CannibalAJ said:

I usually use a smack pack, but used dry yeast because my LHBS didn't have the smack packs for American Ale in stock. I also stirred in the yeast because I honestly don't know what the heck to do with the dry stuff! Little to no activity and its been 5 days! Is my basement too cold? (around 60 to 65 F) Am just worrying too much?

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At the cooler temperatures your yeast work much more slowly. You may not see much activity or you may have just missed it. The only way to know for sure is to take a hydrometer reading.

RM-MN said:

Quit your worrying, its like rocking in a rocking chair, lots of activity but you aren't getting anywhere. If you have no action by the 4th morning, worry for a long time, like 3 seconds and then take a hydrometer sample. If the gravity hasn't changed from when you put it in there, pitch more yeast.

Oh, and one more thing. NEVER dump beer until you are totally certain it has gone bad. Give it a couple months or more before you make that decision. Some of the worst disasters (in the mind of the new brewer) turn out great beer.

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+1, perfect advice! In all likelyhood, your beer is just fine. In fact I'd leave it for a week before taking a hydrometer reading. No need to dump it unless your sure of an infection. (And infections really don't happen as often as the forums might lead you to believe)

Thanks RM-MN

Things look more normal now. Just newbie anxiety. I just needed you to give me a good kick in the ass

I pitch dry yeast straight into the carboy without any re-hydration. Activity usually begins in 4 to 8 hours. Palmer's claim that "the yeast can not draw enough water across the cell membranes" because there is too much sugar in the wort doesn't seem convincing to me.