Aeration

[badmajon]

So I hear that this is really important, but I have never had a stuck fermentation or had any problems and all I do is pour the wort into the carboy through a funnel and shake it a bit (30 seconds) once I pitch the yeast. It always ferments pretty well, and in my cooler my beers usually go from 1.040ish to 1.010 ish in about 7 days, with most of that being in the first three days.

The reason why I'm asking is people talk about airstones, shaking the crap out of it, doing a lot more than I am... am I hurting the quality of my beer somehow?

 

[jds]

So I hear that this is really important, but I have never had a stuck fermentation or had any problems and all I do is pour the wort into the carboy through a funnel and shake it a bit (30 seconds) once I pitch the yeast. It always ferments pretty well, and in my cooler my beers usually go from 1.040ish to 1.010 ish in about 7 days, with most of that being in the first three days.

The reason why I'm asking is people talk about airstones, shaking the crap out of it, doing a lot more than I am... am I hurting the quality of my beer somehow?

If you're getting good, clean ferments, then you're doing it right. Yes, you can probably do more, but you're at least doing enough for 1.040 beers.

 

[doulovebeef]

for aerating i use an autosiphon with a T in line so as the wort flows to the carboy, the venturi effect pulls in air and suddenly i have aerated (and frothy) wort. cheap aerating solution, cost me a buck i think.

 

[MacGruber]

I have heard that aeration can cause off flavors in the beer though. I am so confused as when to aerate and when not to aerate. So far, I've been aerating when adding the yeast and stirring gently when I add priming sugar for bottling. Does this seem right? I have made 7 different homebrews now and just jumped to all grain for my last batch.

 

[rcrabb22]

I have heard that aeration can cause off flavors in the beer though. I am so confused as when to aerate and when not to aerate. So far, I've been aerating when adding the yeast and stirring gently when I add priming sugar for bottling. Does this seem right? I have made 7 different homebrews now and just jumped to all grain for my last batch.

The only time to perform aeration is just prior to primary fermentation.

 

[MacGruber]

That's what I thought. I was worried about stirring during the addition of priming sugar. I had always stirred slowly because I didn't want to aerate.

 

[doulovebeef]

i wouldnt be so worried about stirring, its splashing that will give u oxidation

 

[zymurgy101]

There was a good post on this the other day and someone posted findings by WYeast ( I think ). It seemed that the best method was to use O2 and a stone. The max oxygen was achieved in a much shorter period of time.

 

[neuron555]

I just recently got an aeration pump and a stone and have used it on my last two batches. I just use room air, but it foams up quite a bit. It's only an n of 2, but both batches finished at 1.010 very quickly.

 

[simmons]

Just remember only aerate when your wort has cooled. If you do it while the temp is to high you will get off flavors.

 

[Fluffhead]

I have been wondering the same thing. I've been brewing for a few years and have been using the "shake the fermentor" method. I've thought about trying a stone, but I'm unsure of the advantages since I've never had a problem with my method.

 

[Pilgarlic]

Lallemand (Danstar) says on the Notty and Windsor tech spec sheets that dry yeast doesn't benefit from aerated wort, though aeration won't harm it, either.

 

[kevmoron]

Lallemand (Danstar) says on the Notty and Windsor tech spec sheets that dry yeast doesn't benefit from aerated wort, though aeration won't harm it, either.

shenanigans.

 

[Bensiff]

Just remember only aerate when your wort has cooled. If you do it while the temp is to high you will get off flavors.

HSA is something you almost have to work at to have happen in homebrew. I wouldn't worry about it unless you are doing something like pumping pure O2 right after flame out.

 

[Bensiff]

I have been wondering the same thing. I've been brewing for a few years and have been using the "shake the fermentor" method. I've thought about trying a stone, but I'm unsure of the advantages since I've never had a problem with my method.

I find three advantages to pumping in O2...I don't have to exert energy or risk tweaking my back by shaking a carboy, it adds higher O2 levels much faster, and it seems to produce more consistent results as a known quantity of O2 is going into solution for a known period of time.

 

[Bensiff]

I just recently got an aeration pump and a stone and have used it on my last two batches. I just use room air, but it foams up quite a bit. It's only an n of 2, but both batches finished at 1.010 very quickly.

I've used all the methods, shaking, air pump, and O2. I progressed as follows...shaking sucked and O2 was more than I wanted to spend so I got an aquarium pump. The aquarium pump made a bunch of foam so it had to be watched, which didn't work for my ADD. So, I finally stomached the small cost and bought an O2 setup and its awesome. No foaming, no tweaked back, and fast...all I could possibly want.

 

[Whippy]

I have been considering pouring my cooled wort through a grease splatter screen when pouring into my primary bucket. In my mind, this would have the dual effect of aerating the wort and catching hops and particles left over from the boil. What do you think?

 

[bolts]

There was a good post on this the other day and someone posted findings by WYeast ( I think ). It seemed that the best method was to use O2 and a stone. The max oxygen was achieved in a much shorter period of time.

It's in the Wyeast FAQ, see items 29 - 33. The most interesting part of this FAQ is the 'O2 in the headspace' method. I'm going to try this next time since it's easy to get an O2 tank and I don't have to deal with a stone.

http://www.wyeastlab.com/faqs.cfm

What are optimal levels of O2 in wort?

10-15ppm

What is the max level of O2 you can get in a carboy using air?

8 ppm.

Approximately how long do you have to shake a 5 gallon carboy to get oxygen saturation (8ppm)?

45 seconds of vigorous shaking.

How long do you have to run a stone with an aquarium pump to achieve O2 saturation (8ppm) in 5 gallons of wort?

5 minutes.

How do you achieve higher than 8 ppm O2 levels in your wort? .

By injecting pure oxygen into your wort through a stone (1 min for 12 ppm). Or, by flowing pure oxygen into the carboy's head space and shaking for 20 seconds, twice.

 

[impur]

I put a small piece of hard tubing at the end of my siphon hose. It has a bunch of holes drilled in it. Then i just make sure to clip it at the top of the carboy to get the maximum height i can for the wort to drop. Makes a nice thick foam.

Just did this over the weekend and had airlock activity in a few hours using Safale 05 on an Autumn Amber Ale.

 

[Bensiff]

The cheap O2 kits most LHS sell are cheap and the small O2 bottles you get from Home Depot and the like last a long time. I'm amazed how long I went without it...it makes life easy and gives consistent results, well worth the small amount of money.

 

[macabra11]

I have been considering pouring my cooled wort through a grease splatter screen when pouring into my primary bucket. In my mind, this would have the dual effect of aerating the wort and catching hops and particles left over from the boil. What do you think?

I do this every time I brew, and I have had awesome luck with it. Good fermentations and really clear beers.

 

[bigliver]

I sorta do the same thing. I use a conical food strainer along with a large funnel and pour the whole mess through this. The wort comes out in multiple, individual streams and bubbles up nicely. My blow off tubes start blurping 1-2hours later.

 

[curnes]

Hi,
My friends and I brew all grain beer in 15 gallon batches. We have been making ales that have original gravity usually around 1.060 and ferment down to a final gravity of between 1.020 and 1.025. We usually pitch about 1/2gallon of yeast starter. Our results have been pretty consistent and the beer is good but we would like to do better. By that I mean we would like to ferment down to about 1.010 to 1.012 . Any suggestions on the best way to aerate? We are fermenting in a 15 gallon stainless keg. We have a stone and have considered buying oxygen to pump into the beer when we first rack it to the fermenter. Is it necessary to pump oxygen or should we just be thinking of just pumping air from a fish tank pump? Is shaking enough? Any other thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Cameron

 

[Hsmithmathews]

you should hook up an O2 bottle, you can get the regulator/air filter combo on morebeer and the O2 bottle at home depot in the welding section. its a very cheap setup and it does wonders. in-line aeration is the best way to do it. basically aerate in line right after you chill your wort to pitching temperature on the way to your fermentor. you can always drop the stone down in the fermentor and bubble it up there. but I find the in-line aeration works best...plus you can never have too many stainless toys

 

[MacGruber]

I brewed with a couple of guys a few weeks ago and they had an awesome toy. Basically it was long food grade plastic paddle that attached to a power drill. The end of the paddle that went into the beer had three basic parts - the main shaft of the paddle and two mini-paddles that spun attached to it. When they aerated the wort it whirlpooled and foamed like nothing I'd ever seen. Their beers were outstanding as well.

 

[rodd]

I brewed with a couple of guys a few weeks ago and they had an awesome toy. Basically it was long food grade plastic paddle that attached to a power drill. The end of the paddle that went into the beer had three basic parts - the main shaft of the paddle and two mini-paddles that spun attached to it. When they aerated the wort it whirlpooled and foamed like nothing I'd ever seen. Their beers were outstanding as well.

Sounds like a wine whisk, or de-gasser.

 

[completegeek]

I just cut of the end of the cheap plastic paddle that came with my kit and stick in the end of my drill. It whips the crap out of the beer and I always have nice thick frothy wort. Have never had a problem getting to FG.

 

[MacGruber]

That's exactly it Rodd! Thanks for the link. I'm going to have to get one of those. I'm tired of using my bottling bucket as a primary when I have two perfectly good carboys to use. I think that all glass ferm is way better. My beers have been great, but I'm worried about the plastic eventually causing infections.

 

[Fletch78]

Correct me if I'm wrong... I've read that the purpose of getting O2 in the wort is so the yeast can reproduce. Once they begin fermenting, they don't benefit from O2. If you pitch dry yeast with a 300 billion cell count, there's no need to aerate it. If you make a well-aerated starter from liquid yeast, you also don't need to aerate your wort. With wine and mead, or a really high gravity beer, you certainly can benefit from aerating your wort.

 

[Frodo]

I use one of these, works pretty good for me. http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewi...enting-equipment/aeration/siphon-sprayer.html

 

[LaurieGator]

+1 on the Wine Wisk. I use it all of the time in my meads and beers.

I am a firm believer in the use of Power Tools on brew day

 

[curnes]

We have a stone and O2 tank and a 15 gallon stainless barrel we use for a fermentation tank. We generally make pretty high gravity beers like IPA, imperial IPA, imperial stout, usually in the OG area of 1.065-1.080. Does any one know what the best method of oxygenation might be. How long, how much pressure on the O2 gauge?
Thanks in advance,
Cameron

 

[badmajon]

Oh BTW, ignore this thread please, I was totally wrong when I said shaking the carboy was enough. I stuck three beers in a row at 1.020 and now I am pretty sure my yeast was not getting enough air amongst other things. So I bought an aeration kit.

 

[Waunabeer]

I feel this is an area where my beers have been getting off flavors. Once I have cooled my wort, using a plate chiller, how much time do I have to aerate safely without picking up other nasties? How do you prevent other things from entering your beer at this stage? Do you stir after the yeast is pitched or do you put the lid & airlock on and let it go?