Curse of the 1.020

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I have three ESB style beers currently fermenting - all had starting gravity 1.055-1.058. All used liquid yeast starters. I make up my starters in a flask with 900-1100 mL water and half a cup of pilsner DME. I inoculate the starter and let it go for 18-24 hours before pitching. I swirl it four or five times by hand during that period. The flask opening is covered loosely with tinfoil.

I whirlpool and siphon my wort into the fermenter, leaving the trub behind in the kettle. I aerate by siphoning from the top of the liquid and allowing bubbles to enter the siphon and bubble up through the wort in the fermenter. After reading some threads here I am considering getting the aeration kit from Williams.

The first two beers used Thames II yeast from Wyeast (advertised 72-78% attentuation, 60-70 deg. F). Current temp. in fermenter is 66-68 deg F. They are currently both hung up around 1.022 after 3 weeks in primary. I had not roused them before but I did shake the fermenters vigorously today after I took the readings. Each beer used about 11.5 lb maris otter, 0.5 lb crystal malt and a pinch of roast barley, mashed at 154-156 deg F. One of them had a pound of flaked corn as well.

The third beer had a similar grain bill but used White Labs 007 dry english ale yeast (70-80% attenuation, 65-70 deg F). Current temp is 66 deg F. I thought this one would ferment dry for sure. After 8 days it is at 1.020. I have more hope for this one than the other two and will give it two more weeks in primary. Mashed at 154 deg F.

All of these beers were made using a three step mash (122 deg F protein rest, 154-156 deg F starch conversion, 168 deg F mashout, sparge 170-175 deg F).

Ideas for solutions / source of problem:

- Rousing the yeast. Is it just a homebrewers myth or can you get a few extra points that way? I will give the Thames II beers one more week in primary and will rock the bottles every day, although I admit I find myself wondering if doing a magic attenuation dance wouldn't be just as likely to help.....

- Oxygenation. Maybe bubbling air into my siphon and up through the wort in the fermenter isn't enough, although it made me feel clever when I thought of it. Perhaps I will look into an oxygenation kit or go back to manually aerating the wort with a small sanitized stainless steel bowl.

- Temperature. I have had good results so far with 66-68 degrees F in my basement, but maybe with these yeasts it's time to find a way to kick it up into the low 70s?

- Starter. I read somewhere that if the starter is not heavily oxygenated the yeast will be least attenuative. Or maybe I am stressing or tiring them out somehow by making the starter? Would it be better to just pitch the smack pack or vial directly? Can you use your oxygenation kit on a starter or would that be overkill? I really don't see myself spending the money for a magnetic stir plate.

- Enzymes / pH problem. I thought these were to be added only if you used a lot of specialty malts. One of the beers had a pound of flaked grains, but all had more than 10 lbs maris otter. Is it is possible my three step mash is somehow adding a lot of non convertibles to the wort?

Any suggestions greatly appreciated.
 
Two things stick out to me here...

#1- Mash temp. 154-156 is a touch high. The enzymes may convert stuff in to unfermentable sugars at this temp. I am not an all grain expert but it seems like that is high for everything I have read. 152-154 is about what you want. From what I gather 152 is pretty much optimal; however, I have not experience to back up what I just said.

#2- I used liquid yeast for many batches and also made a starter for most of them. I thought for some reason liquid was better. After switching to dry yeast my beers are infinitely better. No matter how much aeration I did with liquid I always had off flavors and attenuation problems.

If you are having these problems you need to switch to dry on the 3rd batch or so to rule out yeast issues.


I say switch to 152 mash temp and dry yeast (unless you get an oxygen cane) and that ESB will be a completely different animal.
 
Two things stick out to me here...

#1- Mash temp. 154-156 is a touch high. The enzymes may convert stuff in to unfermentable sugars at this temp. I am not an all grain expert but it seems like that is high for everything I have read. 152-154 is about what you want. From what I gather 152 is pretty much optimal; however, I have not experience to back up what I just said.

#2- I used liquid yeast for many batches and also made a starter for most of them. I thought for some reason liquid was better. After switching to dry yeast my beers are infinitely better. No matter how much aeration I did with liquid I always had off flavors and attenuation problems.

If you are having these problems you need to switch to dry on the 3rd batch or so to rule out yeast issues.


I say switch to 152 mash temp and dry yeast (unless you get an oxygen cane) and that ESB will be a completely different animal.

Thank you for your reply. I do agree mashing at 156 is a touch high. I wanted malty, around 1.015-1.018 but over 1.020 is too sweet. Maybe next time I will mash these at 152-154.

I have had mixed results with liquid yeast. I do all my american style and light ales with US-05 dry yeast now. I have had luck doing some belgian and english styles with liquid yeast, particularly the British III and West Yorkshire limited edition from Wyeast. I wish they would make the West Yorkshire a permanent offering because it made some of my best beers ever, malty but with a low FG and well balanced. I have been trying to find another English style yeast that will replicate that effect. Maybe I will try a dry one like Nottingham or S-04 next time.
 
IMO, more than likely the mash temperatures were much too high for whatever reason. It's also likely that your actual mash temperatures were much higher than you thought they were. This is a fairly common problem. Been there, as they say.
 
Maybe your thermometer is going bad and your temps are actually much higher.

My only two beers to end up over 1.020 FG were a Wee Heavy (og 1.083, mashed 156) and a Porter. I forgot to aerate the porter, didn't check the hydro before bottling and had a couple blow up on me.

I would guess your aeration method isn't cutting it. Shake your fermentor like crazy to aerate next time!
 
Maybe your thermometer is going bad and your temps are actually much higher.

Catt22 said:
IMO, more than likely the mash temperatures were much too high for whatever reason. It's also likely that your actual mash temperatures were much higher than you thought they were. This is a fairly common problem. Been there, as they say.

Thank you for your replies. My mash temp is measured with a brewmometer and an electric meat probe type thermometer. I just checked them both against boiling water and room temperature water and both were within 1 deg. F of each other. That leads me to believe they are fairly accurate, although I guess they could both be off.

I think mashing at 156 is a wee bit heavy for this style, next time I will keep it below 154 for sure. I guess if I thought I was at 156 and was really only even a degree or two hotter it could explain the high FG. Oh well, nothing to do but drink some really sweet beer and hit the exercise bike.

I also think aeration is still an issue as I seem to be hitting my FG target more consistently with dry yeast which are cultured in highly aerated environment. Anyone out there with an oxygen stone want to help convince me to spend the $50?
 
You coul add some more sugars to dry it out, but that may also "thin" the flavor of the beer. DME,LME,honey,maple syrup,etc will dry it out for sure.
 
I've been mashing in the 150-152 range and getting much better FG results. If you have the grist formulated right, you can still get something malty, but not too sweet, and have it finish in your desired range.

I see adding just sugars as a band-aid fix (on a sucking chest wound). IMO, you need to get the kinks out of your process. It could be something simple as the thermometer not being accurate enough. Try checking with a couple different ones to see where they read.

I've been using pure O2 to oxygenate my wort lately and can't see ever going back to the old methods. I'll be getting an air/gas flow meter soon, so that I can see how many L/minute I'm infusing with. This is more important with bigger brews, but still important with lower OG batches. Since mine tend to be over 1.060, I'm using it for all batches.

A properly made starter is important. I picked up a stir plate since my last brewing and will be using that for all future starters. I've already tested a couple of stir bars to make sure I can create a good vortex for the starter sizes. I have a 2L flask, as well as a 3.3L jar that I can use on the stir plate. So I'm pretty much set for most of my batches. I'll probably get a second 2L flask before I make my next BIG brew (target of ~10% ABV, or better)...

As for the person who didn't like the results from liquid yeast... I've been extremely happy with the results I've gotten from Wyeast Activator packs. I do think that freshness, as well as proper handling of liquid yeasts is critical. I've not used any White Labs yeast, but I can't imagine they wouldn't be just as good (for final products)... Personally, I like how much info I get with the liquid yeast (Wyeast), to help match the yeast to what I'm brewing. Of course, I'm using only a few different yeasts, since I'm brewing a smaller range of styles (all ales from the British Isles). I'm focusing on the narrow style range to ensure I have everything else nailed before I start going to other regional styles. It could take me several years before I'm ready to move onto the next group/region... Many happy years mind you. :rockin:
 
+1 - try dry yeast, properly rehydrated as this will take the yeast out of the equation.

I also have had better fermentations when using Wyeast Nutrient in the boil.
 
I've been mashing in the 150-152 range and getting much better FG results. If you have the grist formulated right, you can still get something malt, but not too sweet, and have it finish in your desired range.

Thanks for your advice, I agree and will probably stay below 154 for now. I am feeling pretty confident about my thermometers, at least enough to put off buying a third for now.

Golddiggie said:
I've been using pure O2 to oxygenate my wort lately and can't see ever going back to the old methods. I'll be getting an air/gas flow meter soon, so that I can see how many L/minute I'm infusing with. This is more important with bigger brews, but still important with lower OG batches. Since mine tend to be over 1.060, I'm using it for all batches.

I am looking into this as well based on suggestions from this board, particularly the other thread in the fermentation forum. What kind of 02 setup do you have and what models of flow meter have you looked at?

I like the price of the dakota mentioned by SirBC on page 21 of this thread but I would like to know how easy it is to hook up, I am functionally illiterate regarding gas delivery systems.
 
I'm looking at the Dakota flow meter... Right now, I have the Williams air stone kit (on the SS wand) that I'll be connecting to my 10# O2 tank (from my welding rig, that I've not used in many years). I already have the regulator updated to provide O2 through the correct size tubing. I'll just need the flow meter to go between the regulator and stone wand...

Once I have it all setup, I'll post a picture, or a few of them... I just checked my O2 tank... It has 1750 PSI remaining in it... :D Should be enough for a few batches. :rockin:
 
You didn't tell us anything about your mash equipment. What type of mash tun are you using? Kettle or cooler? I would guess it's a kettle of some kind if you are doing step mashes, but maybe not. I still think the mash temperatures were higher than you thought. Your target conversion temp was given as 154-156*F. You would only need to be four degrees higher than that to push it up to 160* which would definitely be too high. Your thermometers appear to be in agreement, so I think you could safely say that they are not the problem, however, how they are used might be. Knowing the true average mash temperature is the key, but not always easy to achieve. I suppose you could do everything the same way except lower your mash target temperature by 8 degrees and see what happens. That little experiment might tell you a lot.
 
Not that I have to tell you, but take this in steps so you know for sure what your issue is.

Since you seem to like using liquid yeast brew a batch but drop to 152 mash temps and use the same exact yeast process you did last time. If it attenuates to where you wanted it then you know it was your mash temp.

If that does not solve the problem then go to a rehydrated dry yeast at 154-156 temps. If that solves the problem then you know it was probably low oxygen levels in the yeast. Instead of splurging right now for an oxygen cane you can know if that is the problem with a $3 pack of yeast.


Some times I think us brewers get to anxious to make the beer exactly as we intended without trying to learn our system or processes. Often times we will change 10 different things each batch and then get a great result, but have no idea which process it was that made the difference. Take baby steps here. Brew the same batch with the two different processes as mentioned by almost every... different mash temp then dry yeast or vise versa. You will then be able to have the products to compare to each other and will learn from it.
 
I'm thinking that this may be a direct fired mash tun without circulation, relying only on stirring to mix the grain bed. This can easily lead to overheating the wort below the FB when heat is applied and especially so when running a fairly high flame to ramp up the temp more rapidly.

I would run another batch changing nothing but the mash target temperature. I would lower it to 145* and see what happens. If you are running way high again, you will truly only be at 152 or 153 which should give you something that will ferment out. I would change nothing else, including the batch size.
 
You didn't tell us anything about your mash equipment. What type of mash tun are you using? Kettle or cooler? I would guess it's a kettle of some kind if you are doing step mashes, but maybe not. I still think the mash temperatures were higher than you thought. Your target conversion temp was given as 154-156*F. You would only need to be four degrees higher than that to push it up to 160* which would definitely be too high. Your thermometers appear to be in agreement, so I think you could safely say that they are not the problem, however, how they are used might be. Knowing the true average mash temperature is the key, but not always easy to achieve. I suppose you could do everything the same way except lower your mash target temperature by 8 degrees and see what happens. That little experiment might tell you a lot.

I am mashing in an 8 gallon polarware kettle with false bottom. It has a brewmometer inserted in the typical setup. I also use an electric meat probe type thermometer which I insert into the top of the mash, it is taking readings about 3-4 inches from the top of the mash. Between the two, I am taking readings at the top and the bottom of the mash column, not so much the center. They are within 1-2 deg of each other. I am open to any other suggestion as to how to determine the average mash temperature.

Using this same setup, I have in the past successfully managed to get light, dry beers mashing at 150 (using US-05 or Wyeast american ale) and malty beers mashing at 156 (West Yorkshire and British III). It is only this current crop of English style beers that have been coming out way too malty.

Someone suggested it but I should have mentioned I use 1/4 tsp Wyeast yeast nutrient boiled 15 minutes.

When using dry yeast in the past, I have not rehydrated, but just sprinkling it into the wort has always yielded 1.013 or lower. The only dry yeast I have used is US-05 for light American ales, I may try S-04 or Nottingham for my next English batch.

Rollinred, your advice is well taken. If I modify too many things next time trying to fix the problem, I won't know what the problem was even if the beer comes out improved. On the other hand, I have two really sweet beers to drink and pawn off on friends and I would like to try and have the next one hit below 1.020.
 
I'm thinking that this may be a direct fired mash tun without circulation, relying only on stirring to mix the grain bed. This can easily lead to overheating the wort below the FB when heat is applied and especially so when running a fairly high flame to ramp up the temp more rapidly.

I would run another batch changing nothing but the mash target temperature. I would lower it to 145* and see what happens. If you are running way high again, you will truly only be at 152 or 153 which should give you something that will ferment out. I would change nothing else, including the batch size.

You are thinking correct, that is my setup. I am thinking you are correct. Especially because I did notice some scorching at the bottom of the tun when I was brewing these beers. These are my first step mashes so I ended up using more fire than I intended, because I did not have the infusions calculated correctly.

On my most recent batch (yesterday) I used heat infusions to raise the temps and only fired the burner for temperature correction of a few degrees during the sacchrification rest. I also had to use the burner to get the mash out because I had a large grain bill and there was no room for more infusion water. There was no scorching at the bottom of the tun this time.

If I understand you correctly, you are saying direct firing of the tun without stirring will cause the liquid under the FB to overheat, thus overheating the entire mash. Will using infusions to control the temps and only using the burner for minor corrections solve this problem, ie I can trust my temp readings as accurate in that case?

I like your suggestion, I think I will do it next weekend. I am a little nervous about 145 deg, if your hypothesis is incorrect this will result in a wasted mash or some very better hop juice at best? Should I try your proposed experiment or just resolve to use infusions only to control my temps?
 
I have only had attenuation problems a few times and it came down to yeast issues as pitching 2-3 packs of dry yeast saved those batches. As long as I baby my yeast I get great attenuattion. The yeast gets at least a week on the stir plate with dap and wyeast nutrient added to the starter. I always do 2 liter starters for all beers, beers with an og of 1.090 and over get a 3-4 liter starter. I use wyeast nutrient in the boil also and servomyces for the bigger beers. And of course a minute of pure oxygen with a stone. I completely agree with the comment that you can get beers attenuated low and still have a malty mouthfeel as I usually get great attenuation and don't perceive my beers as thin at all. Your mash temp may have something to do with the problem but I have mashed at 156 before and attenuated much lower then 1.020 especially with a recipe that is mostly base grain.
 
What Catt is saying is that without a continuous stirring motion inside the brew kettle and having the burner on the lower portion is going to heat up to well over 160 before even your kettle thermometer reads the temp you want.

If you use the burner to raise temp I would suggest stirring the whole time the burner is on. If you were at 156 temp on your kettle thermo and you light the burner without stirring I can could easily see your temps bellow the FB at 170 or more, and you have no way of actually measuring those temps. The other problem is that the liquid below the false bottom will not move upward in the kettle as easily even when stirring. The only thing that will circulate it is convection, which takes even longer when you have grain in the mash that does not circulate at all.

I am curious, how much temp do you loose on that kettle during mash and how often do you have to turn on the burner?

I think this is still an issue where mash temps are suspect and yeast is a possibility. That is why I suggest getting mash temps squared away and test that first. I suggest not using the burner after dough in as circulating the mash is the only way to get consistent temps that way. You may just have to go with a small strike water volume initially and do hot water infusions several times during the mash.


Also look at the main page under the yeast and fermentation menu. There is a thread on the first page where a brewer used an oxygen wand for the first time and was blown away by how much better his beer tasted. Again, you can solve that issue with dry yeast, but I would always rehydrate if possible because from what I have read you may even be able to double the healthy cell count versus just pitching it in out of the satchet. I can tell you that I had an epiphany just like that guy when I switched to rehydrated dry yeast. My beers are infinitely better.
 
What Catt is saying is that without a continuous stirring motion inside the brew kettle and having the burner on the lower portion is going to heat up to well over 160 before even your kettle thermometer reads the temp you want.

If you use the burner to raise temp I would suggest stirring the whole time the burner is on. If you were at 156 temp on your kettle thermo and you light the burner without stirring I can could easily see your temps bellow the FB at 170 or more, and you have no way of actually measuring those temps. The other problem is that the liquid below the false bottom will not move upward in the kettle as easily even when stirring. The only thing that will circulate it is convection, which takes even longer when you have grain in the mash that does not circulate at all.

I am curious, how much temp do you loose on that kettle during mash and how often do you have to turn on the burner?

I think this is still an issue where mash temps are suspect and yeast is a possibility. That is why I suggest getting mash temps squared away and test that first. I suggest not using the burner after dough in as circulating the mash is the only way to get consistent temps that way. You may just have to go with a small strike water volume initially and do hot water infusions several times during the mash.


Also look at the main page under the yeast and fermentation menu. There is a thread on the first page where a brewer used an oxygen wand for the first time and was blown away by how much better his beer tasted. Again, you can solve that issue with dry yeast, but I would always rehydrate if possible because from what I have read you may even be able to double the healthy cell count versus just pitching it in out of the satchet. I can tell you that I had an epiphany just like that guy when I switched to rehydrated dry yeast. My beers are infinitely better.

+1 This is what I was trying to get across. The wort below the FB probably doesn't get mixed much at all. It just pools there and cooks, possibly even reaching boiling temperature. Some of this excess heat will also move up into the lower levels of the mash and it could also overheat.

You could do a manual circulation by drawing off wort and pouring it back into the top of the MT while applying heat, which is what I did prior to getting a pump. Circulate at a fairly fast rate for best results and keep the flame fairly low. It's a lot of work, but if you are direct firing a MT with a FB, IMO it's essential. If you go this route, you can stay with your original target temp of 152+ and forget the 145* suggestion. That was if nothing else was changed and you followed your procedure exactly. Remember to only change one thing at a time if at all possible. The infusion method would probably be a lot safer at this point. Maybe even just try a single infusion with no direct heat. Cover the MT with a sleeping bag or something to help retain the heat. Add some boiling water for the mash out if you have room. Calculate your infusion volumes carefully.

I am convinced that you low attenuation problems will largely disappear once you get a firm handle on your mash temps. I am also convinced that this problem is responsible for a lot of hair pulling among home brewers. I speak from direct experience as this plagued me for a time as well. No more though.
 
+1 This is what I was trying to get across. The wort below the FB probably doesn't get mixed much at all. It just pools there and cooks, possibly even reaching boiling temperature. Some of this excess heat will also move up into the lower levels of the mash and it could also overheat.

You could do a manual circulation by drawing off wort and pouring it back into the top of the MT while applying heat, which is what I did prior to getting a pump. Circulate at a fairly fast rate for best results and keep the flame fairly low. It's a lot of work, but if you are direct firing a MT with a FB, IMO it's essential. If you go this route, you can stay with your original target temp of 152+ and forget the 145* suggestion. That was if nothing else was changed and you followed your procedure exactly. Remember to only change one thing at a time if at all possible. The infusion method would probably be a lot safer at this point. Maybe even just try a single infusion with no direct heat. Cover the MT with a sleeping bag or something to help retain the heat. Add some boiling water for the mash out if you have room. Calculate your infusion volumes carefully.

I am convinced that you low attenuation problems will largely disappear once you get a firm handle on your mash temps. I am also convinced that this problem is responsible for a lot of hair pulling among home brewers. I speak from direct experience as this plagued me for a time as well. No more though.

Thank you for the great suggestions. I am stirring constantly when the heat is on, however I am sure you are quite right that the liquid below the FB can get overheated even with stirring. I may try some manual recirculation next time although that sounds like it would require an extra set of hands.

I do not seem to lose much heat during the mash. I do a 60 minute sacc rest before starting to ramp up temps for mashout. I usually correct the heat once during this time, using the burner for 2-5 minutes with constant stirring. From now on I will only use the smaller burner. If I continue to have problems I may think about adding tun insulation in the future.

For the next mash, based on what has been suggested here I think I will try the following:

- Same liquid yeast and starter conditions.

- Protein rest infusion 1.2 qt/LB to reach 122 deg F for 20 min

- Sacc rest infusion bringing total water to 2.2 qt/Lb to reach 152 deg F for 60 min (single direct heat correction at 30 min. for 2-5 min on low burner)

- I don't have enough room in the tun to mash out using only infusion. Will infuse several quarts boiling water with constant stirring and low burner on to reach 168. If you guys are correct and I am overshooting the temp when I use the burner, even if I aim for 168 and get 178 this will still give me some mash out and be low enough that tanins aren't an issue, right? I guess the other possibility is I just assume I'm overshooting it and aim for 162 or 164 instead....

If I still have problems I will look to yeast issues like increasing wort oxygenation and using rehydrated dry yeast.

The reason I think this is the correct line of inquiry is because these problems started when I switched to three step mashes. I have successfully made dry beers in the past using only a single infusion, albeit with different yeasts. When I switched to protein mashes, I encountered an increase in efficiency (due to the mashout?), but also attenuation problems described here.
 
Now I think you are on the right track. The manual circulation is not that difficult and it helps distribute the heat better and faster. Set it up so you can drain the wort without standing there holding a pan or pitcher. You will still need to watch it to avoid overflows, but you can do that sitting down. Two quarts at a time works well and not too heavy to lift repeatedly. Recirculate more and stir less would be my advice. Don't get me wrong, I am very much pro-stirring, but when applying direct heat the circulation is more important.

So long as you don't go above 180* on the mash out you should be OK. You can aim lower if you are worried, but you will be ramping up with the burner and manually circulating. Just check the grain bed temp every few minutes. You should be able to hit your 168* without overshooting. Turn the burner way down or off as you approach the target. The temps may coast upward a bit as the burner and kettle bottom will remain hot for awhile. A mash out is not all that critical. I've sparged without doing a mash out and not much changed that I could tell except for a slight drop in efficiency.

I would suggest getting a pump if you want to do the step mashing with ease. A pump is amazingly useful around the brewery.
 
What type / brand / model of pump do you recommend?

Well heck, if you were willing to get a pump I would have said that long ago because it makes for the most consistent temps.

March 809 I believe is the common model with home brewers. That is the one you want.

The way you use it is to hook it up in circulation form where it draws form under the false bottom (out your valve) and back up to the top of the mash. when you turn the burner on to heat up the mash you simply turn on the pump and turn your burner on. Once your thermo reads what you want shut the burner and pump down. This way you never get temps higher than you want.

But hey, you probably figured that out already.

But as both Catt and I have said... do one thing at a time. Even if you have to find a partner to help you circulate the mash by hand do that first at about 152 temps. If that doesn't solve the problem do the dry yeast on the next batch.

If you do it the way I am saying you will learn whether you need a pump or whether you need an oxygen wand! But you gotta do it without changing your process from those batches that stopped at 1.020. If you even change one thing such as aerating the wort more or making a bigger starter you could lose the whole point of this.

I hate to say it but I have learned that this is the single most important thing a brewer can do to improve and perfect their skills. Only change on thing at a time. If you change more than one at a time you never learn.
 
Yeast form is not the issue. My house yeast is Wyeast 1099 Whitbread which is reported as a low attenuation yeast (<72%). I still manage 75%+ attenuation pretty consistently.

My tips are as follows.

- Mash lower (150-152 is good range)
- Mash longer (90mins instead of 60)
- Make a starter (adding yeast nutrients to the DME)
- Oxygenate your wort (I use simple shaking method with great results but others will tell you only pure O2 will do)

If you follow these simple tips, you will beat the 1.020 curse like clockwork.
 
I typically mash for either 75 or 90 minutes, then mash out for ~15 minutes before I sparge... So I would say at least 75 minutes is good (90 being better if you're having issues)...

As I posted earlier, I target 150-152F for my mash temps. Been getting solid results this way. Medium body is good for most of my brews. Not to rule out light or full, but medium seems to be happy. :D

I usually use nutrient in my starters, and often in batches with an OG over 1.070. Not sure how much it helps, but it won't hurt.

Pure O2 is the balls. Minimum effort to get high good/proper oxygen levels in the wort. :rockin: I'll have an actual flow meter for my O2 rig very soon (probably not for the next batch, but will for the one after that).

I did pretty much all of that and had a brew go from about 1.060 to 1.010 with ease. Getting that level of attenuation is not uncommon for me. I never really give it much thought.

Brew more, change one thing every few batches until you can hit your target/goal regularly. IMO, you need to do it for more than one batch, since things can shift around on you. IMO, it's better to get an average over a few batches.
 
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