Did I kill my starter?

[JayPowHound]

I'm about to embark on my first attempt at a lager, and the guys at my LHS suggested I make a starter. It is my first attempt at that too, and I have to admit that I changed things a little from what I was told. I'm afraid this may be my problem...

Rather than use DME, which I thought I had and then didn't, so I used LME instead. I didn't really measure it so much since it's so damn messy, but I put in a good sized dollop I'd say. I boiled for 5 or 10 minutes, cooled it down, and threw in my Wyeast 2206 Bavarian. I had popped the pack an hour or two beforehand, but it didn't really swell all that much.

It's now two days later and not much is happening. There are a couple of small bubbles on top, and a visible yeast cake on the bottom but no big signs of any fermentation.

So did I screw something up? Was the yeast bad? (evidenced by the packet not swelling in the hour or two after it was broken) Should I have waited until I got DME so I could measure it? Do I just need to wait another day? Should I scrap it and try again?

 

[ajf]

You can use LME instead of DME, but you need to use the right amount. That would be about 8.5 oz for a 2 liter starter, and anything less that 2 liters would not be big enough for most lagers (although 1 liter would be better than nothing).
I don't usually see any obvious signs of starters starting, except for the increase in the amount of yeast. Most of the smack packs I have used haven't swelled within an hour or two of smacking, so that isn't a problem. With a starter, it is a good idea to give it a good swirl every couple hours.

-a.

 

[JayPowHound]

You can use LME instead of DME, but you need to use the right amount. That would be about 8.5 oz for a 2 liter starter, and anything less that 2 liters would not be big enough for most lagers (although 1 liter would be better than nothing).
I don't usually see any obvious signs of starters starting, except for the increase in the amount of yeast. Most of the smack packs I have used haven't swelled within an hour or two of smacking, so that isn't a problem. With a starter, it is a good idea to give it a good swirl every couple hours.

-a.

Sorry I left out the size, it's 2 liters. I tried to estimate what I thought would be about 8 oz, but who knows what ended up happening!

You say you don't usually see any signs of starters starting... is that the normal experience?

 

[ReverseApacheMaster]

After a couple of days your starter should be complete. Is the liquid above the cake fairly light? That's a good sign fermentation is complete and it's time to pitch it and get some wort fermenting.

 

[ajf]

I do my starters on a stir plate. I sometimes see a few bubbles on top, but that's because of the continuous stirring rather than krausen. What I do see is that there is more solid matter (yeast) in the flask, but it doesn't really look like it is fermenting.

-a.