Erlenmeyer flask on elec stove?

passedpawn · Feb 2, 2016

unviewtiful said:
For everyone with a glass cook top who has boiled over, I can't recommend this cleaner enough. When used dry with one of the scrubbing pads, you can get just about anything off the stove.

First time I made a starter in the flask on my stove, of course I boiled over. I tried scrubbing like crazy, and even used the above cleaner with a wet sponge. No luck. Then a couple months later I used it with a dry sponge, and holy crap it got every little stain off of the stove. Even stuff that had been caked on there for months, gone within a minute or so.

Just use a paint scraper like this one here. I've been doing this for years, on two different models, no problem. No effort either. No matter what it is, it comes right off.

hopsandhops said:
Also, these: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014ZRDCZS?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00

Haha, I've got a pair of those. I use them when grilling though. I like them because I can wash them in the dishwasher.

biertourist · Feb 2, 2016

I make starters directly in the erlenmeyers on my GAS stove, but even with quite a bit of antifoam I still almost always get boil over...

I'm really curious how people add the DME in a way that doesn't spill and make a mess. If I try to just carefully pour the DME from the bag even into my GIANT 5L erlenmeyer, it still ends up spilling, if I use a funnel with anything other than cold water the funnel almost instantly clogs.

If I add DME to cold water it doesn't dissolve and just sits there and then when I turn on the heat the DME on the bottom burns.

If I add DME to hot water the steam starts hardening the stuff in the bag, on the funnel, on the sides of the erlenmeyer and it just never fully dissolves from the sides of the top of the erlenmeyer.

How the hell do you do this "right"??!?

Adam

Brettomomyces · Feb 2, 2016

biertourist said:
I make starters directly in the erlenmeyers on my GAS stove, but even with quite a bit of antifoam I still almost always get boil over...

I'm really curious how people add the DME in a way that doesn't spill and make a mess. If I try to just carefully pour the DME from the bag even into my GIANT 5L erlenmeyer, it still ends up spilling, if I use a funnel with anything other than cold water the funnel almost instantly clogs.

If I add DME to cold water it doesn't dissolve and just sits there and then when I turn on the heat the DME on the bottom burns.

If I add DME to hot water the steam starts hardening the stuff in the bag, on the funnel, on the sides of the erlenmeyer and it just never fully dissolves from the sides of the top of the erlenmeyer.

How the hell do you do this "right"??!?

Adam

Premix in a different container and then pour in.

I had flasks years ago, broke an expensive one and decided against them going forward. I now boil in a regular sauce pot, just about 5 minutes, and then pour into one of my round cambro containers and allow it to cool in there using running cold water/ice bath in the sink. No chance of plastic or metal shattering.

Gavin C · Feb 2, 2016

biertourist said:
I make starters directly in the erlenmeyers on my GAS stove, but even with quite a bit of antifoam I still almost always get boil over...

I'm really curious how people add the DME in a way that doesn't spill and make a mess. If I try to just carefully pour the DME from the bag even into my GIANT 5L erlenmeyer, it still ends up spilling, if I use a funnel with anything other than cold water the funnel almost instantly clogs.

If I add DME to cold water it doesn't dissolve and just sits there and then when I turn on the heat the DME on the bottom burns.

If I add DME to hot water the steam starts hardening the stuff in the bag, on the funnel, on the sides of the erlenmeyer and it just never fully dissolves from the sides of the top of the erlenmeyer.

How the hell do you do this "right"??!?

Adam

Add DME to flask to desired weight through funnel. NO WATER. I use a chopstick to ecourage it in, simple.
Add water to desired volume
Add stir bar, yeast nutrient (pinch if desired) and 1 drop of fermcap S.
Swirl it all together. (To test how well Fermcap works swirl first and then add 1 drop. Foam defoams rapidly in seconds)
On to the heat and swirl ocasionally to mix
Bring to a boil
Boil for 1 minute
Off the heat into the cold sink of water.
Do other things
When cool, pitch yeast.

Unrelated to the OP's question. Making a starter in a flask is hassle free task using a gas stove. It requires minimal oversight. I have no experience making one on an electric stove.

Making one when I get home today for the weekend's brew using this simple method.

doug293cz · Feb 2, 2016

biertourist said:
I make starters directly in the erlenmeyers on my GAS stove, but even with quite a bit of antifoam I still almost always get boil over...

I'm really curious how people add the DME in a way that doesn't spill and make a mess. If I try to just carefully pour the DME from the bag even into my GIANT 5L erlenmeyer, it still ends up spilling, if I use a funnel with anything other than cold water the funnel almost instantly clogs.

If I add DME to cold water it doesn't dissolve and just sits there and then when I turn on the heat the DME on the bottom burns.

If I add DME to hot water the steam starts hardening the stuff in the bag, on the funnel, on the sides of the erlenmeyer and it just never fully dissolves from the sides of the top of the erlenmeyer.

How the hell do you do this "right"??!?

Adam

I pour the DME into a dry flask, thru a dry funnel. Still need something long and narrow to regularly unplug the funnel. I then add hot water to the flask, and swirl like crazy to dissolve the DME as much as possible. Then I'll put it on the stir plate for 1/2 hr +/-.

Edit: I see Gavin beat me to it.

Brew on :mug:

AF1HomeBrew · Feb 2, 2016

passedpawn said:
Just make SURE the DME is in solution and not caked on the bottom of the flask or you might have a disaster. In the following photo, the large one is a 4000ml, the smaller one 2000ml, and they both broke (small one let loose about 10 seconds after this pic - note diagonal crack on back of it). Youch.

BTW, I'm certain the large one is borosilicate, not sure about the smaller one. Large one has been on that stove 100 times, small one 10ish. Bad night.

Ouch! With my luck the wife would walk in 10 seconds after the disaster happened or while I was trying to clean it up... We upgraded our kitchen to an Induction stove top last year, so to boil in a flask I have to put the flask in a induction ready pot. It works though.

D-Train · Feb 2, 2016

Agreed that fermcap is a must. I remove the metal rack from inside the stove and put it on top of the electric burner. Then the flask goes on top of the rack to give it a little airgap. I was going to buy one of those fancy metal pieces made for this purpose but the rack does just fine. I still get slightly paranoid especially when putting the hot flask in a cold water bath in the sink to cool.