Tips for my first batch

So you've got the 3-piece airlock, water goes in the outside cup.

StarSan kills almost everything when mixed in the right concentrations. But the residue left on your equipment, bottles, fermenters will be diluted so much with beer/wort that it won't kill anything.

wyzazz said:

So you've got the 3-piece airlock, water goes in the outside cup.

StarSan kills almost everything when mixed in the right concentrations. But the residue left on your equipment, bottles, fermenters will be diluted so much with beer/wort that it won't kill anything.

Click to expand...

Perfect! That's what I wanted to know. I think I'm all set for this. Just need to keep telling myself that anything that touches the beer needs to be sanitized.

You'll be fine. StarSan is the best stuff. As long as you've been using it in the proper concentration then you won't have any issues with off flavors or any other harmful side effects to acid-based sanitizers

I second the motion for vodka in the airlock, any kind will do. I usually use whatever's lying around (unless it's the Grey Goose or the Ketel One!) Any suckback you get (which you probably will, depending on how you transport your beer) will just up your ABV a bit and won't taste any different.

Above all, enjoy yourself. RDWHAHB.

s2cmpugh said:

Perfect! That's what I wanted to know. I think I'm all set for this. Just need to keep telling myself that anything that touches the beer needs to be sanitized.

Click to expand...

Correction, anything that touches the beer POST-BOIL needs to be sanitized. If it's going through the boil then that is enough to kill off all the nasties.

s2cmpugh said:

What I did was tighten it about 1/4 turn until it fully stopped leaking. Doing it that way, I hopefully avoided breaking it. And there is NO way you can hand tighten those things and expect it to seal up good, especially with 5 gallons of water pressure pushing on it.

My airlock doesn't look S-shaped, but is three peices. I'm sure my mind is making it more complicated than it needs to be.

To be clear...StarSan will NOT kill my beer, yeast, or produce off flavors if some is still inside the bottles, tubing, or buckets/fermenters?

Click to expand...

Leaving a little residue of StarSan will not affect your beer (other than keep it sanitary)

Also, sounds like you are using a bottling bucket for your fermenter. Do you have a second bottling bucket that you can transfer into at bottling time? My "ale pail" kit came with 2 buckets - one with a spigot and one without. I use the one without as my fermenter and the one with as my bottling bucket. You do not want to bottle directly out of your fermenter as all the trub will be in the bottom.

My kit came with the primary fermenter that is also a bottling bucket as well as a glass carboy. I was going to transfer to the secondary, and then siphon off from there back into my primary/bottling bucket. I was going to leave it in the secondary for a couple weeks.

I may run back down to the brew store and get another bucket without a hole for a valve.

Starsan is, IIRC, actually beneficial for beer.

Justibone said:

Starsan is, IIRC, actually beneficial for beer.

Click to expand...

So it doesn't kill off the yeast?

s2cmpugh said:

So it doesn't kill off the yeast?

Click to expand...

Supposedly not. They actually like it.

If you poured a vial of yeast in to straight starsan solution it would kill all the yeast, but at the dilute quantities that are left in the foam (after the wort/beer is poured in) it turns in to "yeast food".

wyzazz said:

If you poured a vial of yeast in to straight starsan solution it would kill all the yeast, but at the dilute quantities that are left in the foam (after the wort/beer is poured in) it turns in to "yeast food".

Click to expand...

Think about it in terms of concentration. starsan is an antimicrobial, so will kill yeast, but only works at a high enough concentration (like any antimicrobial). When you sanitize your equipment, the starsan is being used at its "kill" concentration, but when you add the yeast to the fermenter, the 5 gallons of wort has diluted the residual starsan to below its "kill" concentration, rendering it ineffective as an antimicrobial and the yeast are safe.

JLem said:

Think about it in terms of concentration. starsan is an antimicrobial, so will kill yeast, but only works at a high enough concentration (like any antimicrobial). When you sanitize your equipment, the starsan is being used at its "kill" concentration, but when you add the yeast to the fermenter, the 5 gallons of wort has diluted the residual starsan to below its "kill" concentration, rendering it ineffective as an antimicrobial and the yeast are safe.

Click to expand...

What he said...

Thanks for the help everyone! Took me five hours last night, but my first batch is fermenting as we speak.

Couple things though; I filled up the airlock above the little middle line, is that ok?

I did see some big bubbling going on this morning and when I pushed down on the lid more bubbles came out, good sign??

As of this morning, the stick on thermometer is saying 72F. If it strays a little above that, will anything be effected? I'm keeping it in a water bath with a floating frozen bottle of water, and some wet towels on top.

I also tried to take an OG reading...I think I got 1.040, but since the wort was around 70 when I took it, is it really 1.0416?

Thanks for all the help!!

s2cmpugh said:

Thanks for the help everyone! Took me five hours last night, but my first batch is fermenting as we speak.

Couple things though; I filled up the airlock above the little middle line, is that ok?

Click to expand...

It's not terrible.

I did see some big bubbling going on this morning and when I pushed down on the lid more bubbles came out, good sign??

Click to expand...

Even if the bucket has no fermentation going on, you will get air bubbles when you press the lid... if the lid has a good seal. I will sometimes press the lid to get a whiff of what's going on in there without opening the top, but it's not proof that fermentation is going on.

Spontaneous bubbles are one sign fermentation is going on, but not the most reliable sign.

As of this morning, the stick on thermometer is saying 72F. If it strays a little above that, will anything be effected? I'm keeping it in a water bath with a floating frozen bottle of water, and some wet towels on top.

Click to expand...

If you have another frozen water bottle, go ahead and add it. A couple degrees cooler would be slightly better if you are going for that "crisp" taste. If --like me -- you like very mild amounts of esters, then you're perfect.

I also tried to take an OG reading...I think I got 1.040, but since the wort was around 70 when I took it, is it really 1.0416?

Thanks for all the help!!

Click to expand...

Maybe. Plus or minus 1 or 2 thousandths is essentially a rounding error, though, so don't sweat it.

Congrats on your brew!! :fro:

Thanks! How can I tell fermentation is going on then? Or should I just relax and not worry about it.

I'll add another frozen water bottle tonight when I get home from work.

It'll be much easier for me to brew in the winter time as I keep the house in the low to mid 60's.

s2cmpugh said:

Thanks! How can I tell fermentation is going on then? Or should I just relax and not worry about it.

Click to expand...

The bubbles are a good indicator it began. Also, smells. After a week or two, separate hydrometer readings on separate days will tell you that fermentation is complete. Until then, RDWHAHB.

For a hefeweizen (depending on the yeast) you usually get more Bananna at or above 70F, if you like more clove phenols then lower the temps in to the mid to upper 60's. You're still making that Hefeweizen right?

Shine a bright flashlight on the outside of the bucket, and look for a ring of foam (krauesen). Or spritz everything with a spray bottle of StarSan and pop the lid off, you will probably be able to see the fermentation. I don't look anymore, I just let them sit for 3-4 weeks, take gravity readings over a 3 day period & if they are the same I'll bottle/keg.

The only real way to know if fermentation is underway is to take a gravity reading.

I'll see if I smell anything later on today.

Yep, fermenting the Hefe! I'll try the flashlight technique later on today.

For gravity readings...how long should I wait to until I take a reading? And should I just sanitize the hydro and then drop it in the batch and see what level it's at? OR should I use my sanitized "turkey baster" and fill up a graduated cyclinder and then drop the hydro in that?

Again, thanks for all the help and answering my questions!

Cris P.

Low 70's is where I like my Hefeweizens, but I like bananas.

Like I said, I wait for 3 weeks usually before I take one. If you're itching to take one I'd wait until the first week is over. Use the turkey baster, fill up the cylinder, take your reading, then drink the fruits of your labor! This way you have an idea of what fermenting beer tastes like.

Sorry to jump in here, haven't started my first brew but will soon. Just so I have this right, when taking gravity readings you need to pop the top off the fermenter I assume. Take the "sanitized" turkey baster and pull some beer in from somewhere near the middle? Should this be emptied into a glass for the gravity test followed by a tasting if one wishes?

DarkUncle said:

Sorry to jump in here, haven't started my first brew but will soon. Just so I have this right, when taking gravity readings you need to pop the top off the fermenter I assume. Take the "sanitized" turkey baster and pull some beer in from somewhere near the middle? Should this be emptied into a glass for the gravity test followed by a tasting if one wishes?

Click to expand...

Yep, usually you put it in a hydrometer test jar. It's long and skinny minimizing the amount of beer you have to use to test.

DarkUncle said:

Sorry to jump in here, haven't started my first brew but will soon. Just so I have this right, when taking gravity readings you need to pop the top off the fermenter I assume. Take the "sanitized" turkey baster and pull some beer in from somewhere near the middle? Should this be emptied into a glass for the gravity test followed by a tasting if one wishes?

Click to expand...

For most hydrometers available out there, a glass might not be tall enough, and it is almost definitely not narrow enough to take the minimum amount of beer out of the container.

You should use a testing jar (like a graduated cylinder, but without the graduated markings), or sometimes the plastic tube the hydrometer came in is waterproof and can be used as a test jar.

I sanitize the testing jar as well as the turkey baster and hydrometer, and I return the sample to the main batch. Other people prefer to avoid risk of contamination and drink the sample instead. The second is the smarter, probably.

As for taking it from the center of the batch, the yeast have pretty well stirred things so from almost any spot should be good. Sugar tends to settle out and cause gradients, but alcohol does not.

Perfect, so I am doing it right then.

s2cmpugh said:

...
For gravity readings...how long should I wait to until I take a reading?
...

Click to expand...

I know the first batch is exciting and anxious, but there is no need to mess with the hydrometer for at least a week or two (or more). Though airlock activity is not 100% reliable, if you are getting spontaneous bubbles, you can pretty much assume fermentation is happening. Leave it alone and let the yeast do their thing. The more you mess with it, the more likely you are to contaminate it.

After a week or two, go ahead and take a reading.

JLem said:

I know the first batch is exciting and anxious, but there is no need to mess with the hydrometer for at least a week or two (or more). Though airlock activity is not 100% reliable, if you are getting spontaneous bubbles, you can pretty much assume fermentation is happening. Leave it alone and let the yeast do their thing. The more you mess with it, the more likely you are to contaminate it.

After a week or two, go ahead and take a reading.

Click to expand...

Yes sir. I'm just confused b/c the ingredient kit instructions say to transfer it to the secondary after bubbling stops (3-4 days), then leave it in there for a week or so. I have to rack into secondary b/c my primary IS my bottling bucket.

s2cmpugh said:

Yes sir. I'm just confused b/c the ingredient kit instructions say to transfer it to the secondary after bubbling stops (3-4 days), then leave it in there for a week or so. I have to rack into secondary b/c my primary IS my bottling bucket.

Click to expand...

Kit instructions are notoriously poorly designed. This is what I would do:
1) Let it sit in primary for 2 weeks.
2) Take a hydrometer reading
3a) if you are at or close to your expected FG, transfer to the secondary vessel
3b) if not, keep it in primary a few more days and repeat steps 2-3
4) leave it in secondary for another 5-7 days
5) Take hydrometer readings on consecutive days
6) if the gravity is stable, bottle (though there is no problem leaving it longer if you have to - no need to rush)

Also I would get yourself a dedicated fermentation bucket (without the spigot) and for future brews just leave the beer alone in the primary for 2-3 weeks before bottling.

s2cmpugh said:

I have to rack into secondary b/c my primary IS my bottling bucket.

Click to expand...

You can rack it the day you bottle, if you want. There is no need to secondary if you don't want to.

If you want to rack to secondary so you can start another batch, you can do that, but somewhere in there you will have to buy a spare fermenter (or bottle from your secondary). Playing musical chairs with beer batches is fine so long as you have 1 more container than you have batches of beer.

CAVEAT: every time your beer moves it gets exposed to more microbes (potentially) and more oxygen (probably)... so it's not a good thing. Still, most of the time you'll be fine.

I'll just put this out there... ...pick up another primary, your life will be much easier.

I do plan on getting another primary next time I head to the store to pick up another ingredient kit.

When taking gravity readings, do I need to compare primary numbers to secondary or just primary to primary and secondary to secondary?

You'll want your OG (first gravity reading), and your FG (last gravity reading) to determine your ABV/ABW. The others are just to figure out where you're at in fermentation or if fermentation is finished. I suggest you pick up a notebook to record these brewing related things in.