Best way to aerate Wort?

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IwanaBrich

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What is the best way aerate the wort before fermenting? I've heard of stirring it up, using a air pump and I even saw a guy on the web use bottled oxygen or air. Is the bottled air safe? Seems like it could introduce bacteria or something?
 
There's no "best way" it's brewer's preference. I us an O2 bottle with an airstone on a wand, and give it a 2 minute blast of air..it's a hellova lot easier than shaking or stirring...
 
its just oxygen. I think aerating is important if you are doing full boil as the o2 is boiled out from what I read. For a partial boil I try to make as much splash as I can with the top off water or if you have a carboy and the wort is cool enogh you can just plug the opening and shake it roll it or pat it whatever you prefer.
 
I remember reading somewhere that if you aren't using pure O2 and an airstone, then just shaking the crap out if it is just as good as pumping in regular air. I've pumped air through an aquarium pump with an aeration stone, and it seemed to me that shaking it worked just as well.
 
Isn't pouring from the brewpot to the fermentor aerate well enough? Or perhaps we are talking about some other means of getting the wort from the brewpot to the fermentor?
 
Isn't pouring from the brewpot to the fermentor aerate well enough? Or perhaps we are talking about some other means of getting the wort from the brewpot to the fermentor?

Generally, it is. But if you're using a brewpot or keggle with a spigot and tubing, you don't get nearly enough aeration.
 
There's no "best way" it's brewer's preference. I us an O2 bottle with an airstone on a wand, and give it a 2 minute blast of air..it's a hellova lot easier than shaking or stirring...

+1 You want the O2 in there and the bottle has more than the atmosphere and I am lazy.
 
I do partial boils, and fill my fermentor with 2 gallons of clean (boiled and cooled) water, then when I pour my wort in, I dump the break out and pour some back and forth as splashingly as possible. Hasn't let me down yet. If you pitch the proper amount of yeast at the start, aeriation is less important since the oxygen is mostly needed for yeast reproduction. At least, this is the way I understand it, but I am still a newbie myself.
 
I have been using a large bakers wisk to do the job. Its great and doesnt take much effort/cleanup.
 
I have been using one of these:
Aeration Wand
I attach it to my drill motor and go to town (after spraying starsan all over everything). That's right. I sterilize the drill.
 
Local brew shop guy is a science and chemistry type dude ... his take is all the shaking - pouring - etc will gain you at most an increase of 8ppm oxygen as most of our atmosphere is nitrogen. Only way to really increase oxygen is with a pure oxygen and a stone.

To each his own .....:rockin:
 
The yeast manufacturers have run tests on this to show that the two methods that homebrewers should use are shaking the carboy violently or injecting pure O2 using a diffusion stone.

For recipes up to about 1.060, you can easily get by with shaking your carboy for a couple mins. That gets atmospheric concentrations of O2 into your wort (8 ppm).

For higher gravity brews, you need more O2. The only way to accomplish this is to inject pure oxygen. For that you need an O2 tank and a diffusion stone (they aren't that expensive and they are VERY easy to use).

So the 'best' method depends on your recipe, IMO.
 
The yeast manufacturers have run tests on this to show that the two methods that homebrewers should use are shaking the carboy violently or injecting pure O2 using a diffusion stone.

For recipes up to about 1.060, you can easily get by with shaking your carboy for a couple mins. That gets atmospheric concentrations of O2 into your wort (8 ppm).

For higher gravity brews, you need more O2. The only way to accomplish this is to inject pure oxygen. For that you need an O2 tank and a diffusion stone (they aren't that expensive and they are VERY easy to use).

So the 'best' method depends on your recipe, IMO.

Just for the sake of argument, what about pitching all the yeast you need initially, so that oxygen is less of a necessity to begin with? Two days ago I pitched a double starter, from two liquid yeast packs mind you, to a wort with an OG of 1.073 and within 3 hours the airlock was bubbling and within 18 hours the lid of my bucket was soaring across the room, ejected because the krausen clogged my inadequate blowoff apparatus. I had almost zero lag time, even though all I did was pour the wort and water back and forth several times to mix together.
So I guess my question is, is there a purpose or benefit to oxygenating your wort beyond growing enough yeast for the job?
 
Just for the sake of argument, what about pitching all the yeast you need initially, so that oxygen is less of a necessity to begin with?
This can also be done and will lead to a very clean fermentation. However, recall that many of the characteristic flavours of many styles of beer (e.g., hefewezeins or most Belgains) comes from the yeast. These flavours (e.g., esters or phenolics) are produced during the growth phase of fermentation. If you pitch a high quantity of yeast, but don't provide them the oxygen required for replication and growth, then they can't reproduce and these characteristic flavours will be lost.

You actually hear about this happening every now and then with homebrewers, whether they realize it or not. A good example is that once in a while someone makes a hefeweizen by pitching their wort on top of the yeast cake from a previous batch. Then they report that it didn't turn out as good as the previous batch because it is missing the characteristic banana and clove aroma.
 
I have an o2 bottle and stone, but sometimes I just shake the carboy, the stone/tubing and bottle are just one other piece of equipment I need to get out, clean and put away.

I think I will probably only use the O2 when I have a high gravity beer and I'm pitching a starter instead of onto a yeast cake/Partial cake
 
I've been pouring the wort from brew pot to fermenting pail several times. Is this incorrect?
 
Hugh Jass, From what it sounds like that's some good Airation and from what I understand as long as the Wort is cooled that should be good enough airation.

I don't think I airated enough in my first batch.

Would lack of airation cause a reduction in Efficiency and ability to get down to the desired FG?

Cheers and thanks in advance.
 
I've been pouring the wort from brew pot to fermenting pail several times. Is this incorrect?

While it isn't the most effective way to get O2 into your wort, it is certainly better than not aerating. It works just fine for lower gravity beers (say 1.045 and under).

Would lack of airation cause a reduction in Efficiency and ability to get down to the desired FG?
O2 levels in your wort will definitely affect the degree of attenuation down to your FG. If your yeast don't have enough O2 to reproduce, then there won't be enough of them to finish the job. The situation gets worse with the higher the gravity of the brew.
 
Doesn't the replication and growth phase also include adaptation to the new environment? If that is true, then proper oxygenation allows for yeast to not only replicate, but also become better adapted to your wort.
 
I use a paint stirrer attached to a power drill.

DSCN1223.jpg


There's almost 5 gallons in there, though it doesn't look like it from the foam.

I run it in reverse and turn the stirrer on it's side so a little bit is sticking out of the top of the wort. Seems to work just fine for me.

39006_PS.jpg
 
I've been pouring the wort from brew pot to fermenting pail several times. Is this incorrect?

This works for me. I generally pitch the yeast in one bucket and pour the wort back and forth a few times. Plenty of foam means plenty of O2.

Tom
 
I use a paint stirrer attached to a power drill.

DSCN1223.jpg


There's almost 5 gallons in there, though it doesn't look like it from the foam.

I run it in reverse and turn the stirrer on it's side so a little bit is sticking out of the top of the wort. Seems to work just fine for me.

39006_PS.jpg

seems like this creates a big risk of scratching up your fermentor?
 
If doing a partial boil, I will put the pre-boiled topping off water in sanitized containers half way, and shake awhile, then pour into fermentor. On top of that, I let the cooled wort splish-splash into the water.

Pitch yeast, stir-in and shake for a min or so.

Happy yeast
 
Isn't pouring from the brewpot to the fermentor aerate well enough? Or perhaps we are talking about some other means of getting the wort from the brewpot to the fermentor?

thats what i did worked fine for my situation:ban:
 
Parting thought from a science point of view --- seem to recall doing several labs in college measuring dissolved oxygen in water --- at high temperatures a liquids ability to absorb and hold oxygen is reduced quite a bit. So if you're going to do any shaking or sloshing its best to do it after its cooled to near room temps. Just a thought
 
I just hold up the kettle at shoulder height and violently dump it into the fermenter, then put on the lid (with a plug in the airlock hole). I sit down, lay it sideways on my thigh and rock it back and forth for about 5-7 minutes at about 1 cycle per second.

I am only making 5 gallon partial mash batches, but this method has not failed me for that purpose. I always get raging fermentation with 18 hours.

I suppose I will do the pure oxygen thing if and when I do larger boils or really big beers, but this seems to work fine for everything I've done so far, including a couple stouts.
 
I just hold up the kettle at shoulder height and violently dump it into the fermenter, then put on the lid (with a plug in the airlock hole). I sit down, lay it sideways on my thigh and rock it back and forth for about 5-7 minutes at about 1 cycle per second.

I am only making 5 gallon partial mash batches, but this method has not failed me for that purpose. I always get raging fermentation with 18 hours.

I suppose I will do the pure oxygen thing if and when I do larger boils or really big beers, but this seems to work fine for everything I've done so far, including a couple stouts.

I agree, that seems like a good way to aerate to me. Also if you are using a start with liquid yeast it will help with the lag times.
 
Has anyone ever tried to aerate wort with a regular air compressor?

I know it isn't pure oxygen but I wonder if it would work or contaminate the beer?
 
What about pouring from standing height through a strainer (to catch the boil sediment as well)? I did this last time with my 5 gal boil and ended up with about 2 inches of foam. Do you think that would be an adequate amount of aeration?
 
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