Did I mess up my starter?

[drummerguy]

I made my first starter tonight and I'm hoping I didn't mess it up. According to Brewer's Friend, I needed 1 liter starter, while Mr. Malty said I needed a 1.8 liter starter. I decided to go somewhat in between and made a 1.5 liter starter. I used 1.5 liters of water and 158 grams of DME. This was for a hefeweizen at 1.056 OG. As I was boiling it, a bit boiled over onto the stove. After cleaning up my mess, I continued the boil and, after 10 minutes, poured it into the flask and it came up to the 1200 milliliter mark. After cooling it, I put in the yeast. I'm not entirely sure how much was lost during the boil over, but I did contemplate starting over before adding the yeast. It is now sitting on a stir plate, but will it still be okay to pitch on Saturday?

 

[flars]

I think it would have to have been a very large boil over to make a real dent in the number of yeasts cells propagated.
I put various numbers in the Brewers Friend calculator for your OG and a 5 gallon batch. You should have no problems fermenting your Hefe.

Starters on a stir plate typically finish within 12 to 24 hours. Your starter will definitely be finished in time.

 

[Braufessor]

I think you are fine - especially with what you are brewing. May not be "ideal" - but I don't see it impacting your beer in a negative way. If you have yeast in an aerated wort on a stirplate before you put them in your fermenter - you are ahead of the game.

Generally, when I make a starter I overshoot the water to account for evaporation, etc. I also use a big pot )2 gallon pot for 2-3L starters.

If I am making a 1.5L starter, I will start with about 1.8L of water. Worst case then is my wort is a bit dilute.

 

[surffisher2a]

you will be fine. Everyone who makes yeast starters eventually boils it over and makes a nice sticky mess.

 

[drummerguy]

I think it would have to have been a very large boil over to make a real dent in the number of yeasts cells propagated.
I put various numbers in the Brewers Friend calculator for your OG and a 5 gallon batch. You should have no problems fermenting your Hefe.

Starters on a stir plate typically finish within 12 to 24 hours. Your starter will definitely be finished in time.

This definitely makes me feel better. Now I'm thinking I may need to lower my batch size from 5.5 gallons to 5 gallons just to be safe. Brewer's Friend said my starter should be work, but I just don't want to mess up my beer by not pitching enough yeast. This is a stupid question, but how exactly will I know when it's finished?

I think you are fine - especially with what you are brewing. May not be "ideal" - but I don't see it impacting your beer in a negative way. If you have yeast in an aerated wort on a stirplate before you put them in your fermenter - you are ahead of the game.

Generally, when I make a starter I overshoot the water to account for evaporation, etc. I also use a big pot )2 gallon pot for 2-3L starters.

If I am making a 1.5L starter, I will start with about 1.8L of water. Worst case then is my wort is a bit dilute.

I'm thinking I will do this in the future, just to ensure I have enough. I also learned that I need to use a slightly larger pot when making my starter. Thanks for the information.

 

[kh54s10]

The difference between a 1.5 liter starter and a 1.2 liter one is not that big. Your final cell count may be a bit lower. Many feel mrmalty gives a higher count than needed and since you are between the two calculators you are good to go.

Let it go for 24 hours. It will turn from a translucent brown color to a milky creamy color. Put it in the fridge tonight and pitch late Saturday, decanting the cleared beer first. Or, if you brew in the morning you can just pitch the whole starter. Be sure not to pitch the stirbar into your fermenter.

If your recipe was designed for 5.5 gallons I would stick with that. The possible loss of some yeast will not make a difference in 5 gallons as opposed to 5.5 gallons.

 

[drummerguy]

you will be fine. Everyone who makes yeast starters eventually boils it over and makes a nice sticky mess.

I most certainly made a sticky mess on the stove. I'm just happy I have a stove with a glass top, which should make cleaning it off much easier. At least that's what I'm telling my fiancé.