Fermentation temps

[YeastFeast]

Hi,

Background:
I'm using a Windsor British style beer yeast that states 64º - 70º for fermentation temps. I clearly had rapid fermentation/krausen in the first 24 hours. It's now day 6 and there are still faint signs of activity in the airlock.
I have my carboy sitting on the concrete floor of my basement along with my digital thermometer which is reading 63º (so it's on the low end or slightly out of range according to the yeast package).

1.) Should I get it up off the floor to try to raise the temperature a bit?

2.) In general, is it a good idea to start the fermentation at a lower temp and raise it over the first week or so (I thought I may have read that somewhere along the way)?

Thanks for any input!

 

[InLimbo]

What style of beer are you brewing? Fermenting at different temperatures will often yield different characteristics in a beer, even when using the same strain of yeast. I don't have experience with the windsor british specifically.

In general, yes it can be a good idea to pitch colder than usual and let it rise. Of course there are exceptions to this, and english ales can be an exception to this rule. The reason I personally would let the temperature rise towards the end is to do a diacetyl rest, which will help clean up that buttery/butterscotch flavor. However, if you want that flavor in your beer (as you do with certain british styles) you're going to want to avoid a) fermenting too warm and b) raising the temperature towards the end.

It sounds like you have had a healthy fermentation so far, so I'd just let it ride until you see next to zero activity in the airlock, and then proceed to kegging / bottling whatever you do next. Others with experience with this strain will hopefully chime in though.

 

[YeastFeast]

What style of beer are you brewing?

The beer is an Oatmeal Stout (Brewer's Best kit) [OG 1.056 - 1.064] [FG 1.016 - 1.020]