First time racking to secondary woes

[ILMSTMF]

Cleaned carboy with PBW, allowed auto siphon to soak in there. Let sit for an hour or so, ran the PBW solution through siphon. Rinsed.
Prepared 2.5 gallon Starsan mix in the carboy. Shook vigorously, let siphon soak for a few minutes. Ran solution through siphon and filled a spray bottle with it.

• First woe - excessive amount of Starsan foam. It took a while to clear most of it out. Finally succumbed to rinsing with hot water until there was a reasonable amount of foam left in the carboy. The issue was that, prior to rinsing, I would sniff the carboy and noticed a chlorine-like smell. That's why I kept trying to get the foam out.

Racking from primary went well. After plugging and inserting the airlock, I brought the carboy out to my FC. The FC is a converted mini fridge. It has a freezer chamber at the top of the unit. Below that is a drip tray to catch any water.

• Second woe - The airlock bumps into the drip tray which causes the FC door not to close. I removed the drip tray and pushed the airlock deep into the stopper. Is this a no-no?

• Third woe - The airlock barely clears into the space below the freezer chamber. My concern is that the condensation that build up on the freezer will no longer drip into the tray I removed and will, instead, drip onto the carboy. Airlock and stopper are fine, I suppose, but my worry is the potential for this water to somehow get through the stopper and into the carboy/beer. If this is something to be concerned about, I was going to drape a towel over the carboy in an effort to absorb any moisture. My concern would then be mold building up...

• Fourth woe - Not really a big deal. Cleaned the primary in PBW and let it soak overnight. I forgot to rinse it out this morning. Safe to leave that soaking for nearly 24 hours?

Thanks very much for any insight.

 

[JonM]

All is well. None of those things are problems. RDWHAHB.

 

[justenoughforme]

i use iodophore, but i know ... Dont fear the foam.

that smell, will off gas at any temperature and through even the beer, it's non reactive to liquid and that's exactly what makes it disinfecting. the smell will NOT remain if the liquid is allowed to sit at room temperature

a little iodophor in your beer won't be tasted ... it won't be there even chemically by the time you drink the beer

 

[Kent88]

1. Everything I've heard about star-san says "don't fear the foam", as long as you mixed it up correctly you should have been ok without a rinse.

2. Doubt that would be an issue

3. Shouldn't be an issue, but if it puts your mind at ease than put an unsealed ziplock bag around the airlock, one that can fit all the way over the stopper.

4. I think on the PBW instructions it says that you can let it sit overnight. Just rinse it out with warm water as best you can now and you should be fine.

 

[jtratcliff]

... Dont fear the foam.

This.

The main active ingredient in Star San is phosphoric acid... like in Coca-Cola...
The other main ingredient is a biodegradable surfactant often used in laundry detergents

Diluted to the proper concentration it won't kill you. The foam is actually a benefit in that it clings to the walls keeping them wet and thus sanitized.

I've read (but haven't confirmed) that the yeast can use the trace amounts of star san as nutrients.

 

[govner1]

All is well. None of those things are problems. RDWHAHB.

This^^^^and don't fear the foam.

 

[ILMSTMF]

I love this place. Thanks all for the tips!
I'm going to do the zip lock thing just for peace of mind. Great idea.

And thanks, as well, for not TL; dr'ing. ������

 

[CUrchin]

Embrace the foam. It is your friend. Gets into all those tight little places. Has zero effect on your beer. Rack right on top of it.... Go ahead... There is nothing to fear.

 

[Poobah58]

BTW no need to shake the Starsan. Doesn't make it work any better or faster and creates a ton of foam! You don't even need to put that much in the carboy. Just gently swirl it around and keep all parts wet for a couple of minutes (manufactures claims 20 seconds) and you're good to go...

 

[shortyz]

BTW no need to shake the Starsan. Doesn't make it work any better or faster and creates a ton of foam! You don't even need to put that much in the carboy. Just gently swirl it around and keep all parts wet for a couple of minutes (manufactures claims 20 seconds) and you're good to go...

this.