Wort contamination help

[gache435]

Hello!

I need some help with a IPA that I´m brewing.

I am currently on the 2nd day of fermentation, and something appeared in my wort that I have not seen before. I am worried it might be contaminated.

It has a weird and unpleasent smell. Could someone tell me if this is contaminated or it is something normal?

 

[sampling6391]

Could you describe the smell more? Is it sour? Or sulfur eggy? Or does it smell mouldy or musty? I have been extremely fortunate not to have an infected batch but I’m still very new to brewing and it probably happens to everyone eventually. Hopefully someone with more experience than I can chime in soon

 

[gache435]

The smell is not extremely bad, just not what I am used to smell. It is not sour or sulfury, it is kind of malty/sweet smell but I do not smell the hops. Maybe I am just being paranoid and these are just yeast clumps.

 

[gache435]

I also just checked the pH and it is at 5.02.

 

[hotbeer]

2nd day of fermentation! Might just be the trub getting churned up. Sometimes trub and yeast will float in rafts on the top for a time. Sometimes there'll be big blobs and globs of strange looking stuff.

If it is infection, you are not going to change anything now. So just keep the lid on and go drink some other beer for a while and relax. Come back on day 10 and check your SG. Then wait 3 more days or more and check again. If it's the same SG, then bottle or keg it. If it's real cloudy and murky still you can wait longer till it clears up.

I almost never bottle at 2 weeks. 3 weeks or more seems to make better beer overall since I don't like to go through any of the cold crash and gelatin routines.

 

[sampling6391]

The smell is not extremely bad, just not what I am used to smell. It is not sour or sulfury, it is kind of malty/sweet smell but I do not smell the hops. Maybe I am just being paranoid and these are just yeast clumps.

In my experience hops isn’t super forward during fermentation as it is during the boil or during a dry hop addition malty sweet is okay. To me, it doesn’t look bad as when ale yeast is very active you will have krausen bubbling up on the top of the wort which looks worrying if you haven’t seen it before. I remember my first extract kit I made fermenting in a Fermzilla all rounder had a good sized krausen layer and I got worried but it did turn out well.

IMO I would let that guy do his thing and not mess with it too much. The more open the vessel is, the higher chance of complications or even an infection if something accidentally drops in the bucket while the lid is off.

 

[hotbeer]

Oh, keep that bucket in the dark too. That white plastic will let a lot of light through. I don't know for certain if it's the same beer destroying light a clear glass or clear plastic FV or bottle will pass through it.

But why take chances? Dark places just seem right for fermenting home brew beer and remove any question about light damage.

 

[Bobby_M]

The only major problem is that the lid is off, even for the picture. Stop that.

 

[gache435]

In my experience hops isn’t super forward during fermentation as it is during the boil or during a dry hop addition malty sweet is okay. To me, it doesn’t look bad as when ale yeast is very active you will have krausen bubbling up on the top of the wort which looks worrying if you haven’t seen it before. I remember my first extract kit I made fermenting in a Fermzilla all rounder had a good sized krausen layer and I got worried but it did turn out well.

IMO I would let that guy do his thing and not mess with it too much. The more open the vessel is, the higher chance of complications or even an infection if something accidentally drops in the bucket while the lid is off.

Thanks! I followed this instructions and it turned out great. I guess you were right about the yeast rafts.

Thank you very much! Have a good one!