HELP!! Was this the perfect mess up

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kmjloki

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So i finally went to the LHBS amd got the stuff i needed to brew a batch of beer with my knock off Brooklyn brew shop 1 gal AG kit. I say knock off cause i got it for $20 and its by a no name company.... not even by a home brew shop at that!

Now heres where the horror story starts!

It was a IPA kit and did the BIAB method. Other then that i added the grain at the suggested 160f i kept the pot as best i could between 148-152f per directions. I had to turn it off after 30min for 10min while the stove was used by someone else.but i got ot back up to the 150f range and basically restarted the 1hr mash.

After the mash i pulled the bag out placed it on a strainer rinsed the grain and bag while the liquid got up to boil. And added the hopps per terible directions of 0.1oz@60min, 0.1oz@20min, 0.1oz@2min and the remaining 0.2oz at flame out. The only issue is the hopps were in one bag so i had to eyeball everything.

I let chill and filled carboy added yeast and topped off


Its been going for 12hrs and the top layer in the carboy is showing no formations or bubbles that shows it's active! And the airlock does not have any movement(it came with a 3 peice).


So my issue(s)

I dont think i got conversion on the grain, i think the thermometer that came was a bit off. It wasn't very good it was as thin as a bic pen. I also don't think that i got good conversion cause while the wort was at a boil the hopps never affected it. Maybe the grain was old or not good.

The other is i think the yeast was not healthy or good. It was a mystery yeast with no expiration date. It did have some sugar cause the wort in the kettle was a little sweet.

Another think that could have contributed is i opted to get a 5gal kettle from the LHBS so i could make something dark and or big also for later on down the road... i dont think it had anything to do with the issues but figured i should note this incase.

Please help! Any thoughts or questions ask!

I would like to put this behind me so i can move on.
 
even if your steep was much higher than you thought you have conversion, I bet it's just not enough healthy yeast, it can take 2-3 days before you see activity sometimes. If you still see nothing after 5 days then your yeast was really dead, so go buy a pack of dry US-05 from your LHBS and toss it in.
 
Patience. 12 hours is not enough time to start freaking out. I'm sure it's fine.

For your next batch, you might want to consider picking up a hydrometer and cylinder so you can measure your gravity. This will help with knowing what kind of conversion you got from your mash as well as knowing when it is ready to bottle.

Check your thermometer in a glass of ice water and some boiling water to see how accurate it is too.
 
Your process sounds good. Make sure to put sanitized water in the airlock. Also get ready to replace airlock with a larger blowoff tube going into a jar with sanitized water. Once it gets going you will get krausen bubbling with no place to go and you don't have a lot of headspace in those 1 gal juge. Other than that, your process sounds good, just give it time.

If it goes 48 hours without starting, grab a good yeast like US-05 and repitch.
 
Patience. 12 hours is not enough time to start freaking out. I'm sure it's fine.

For your next batch, you might want to consider picking up a hydrometer and cylinder so you can measure your gravity. This will help with knowing what kind of conversion you got from your mash as well as knowing when it is ready to bottle.

Check your thermometer in a glass of ice water and some boiling water to see how accurate it is too.

I got a hydrometer and cylinder.

I did not test.... i now see that it was stupid! I was rushing along trying to get it rapped up. Having people leering over your sholder asking are your done yet or how much longer made me frustrated.

How do i test the thermometer?
 
I got a hydrometer and cylinder.

I did not test.... i now see that it was stupid! I was rushing along trying to get it rapped up. Having people leering over your sholder asking are your done yet or how much longer made me frustrated.

How do i test the thermometer?

You can fill a glass with ice, then fill the rest of the way with water. Let it sit for about 5 minutes so the water acclimates to the ice. Then stick the thermometer in the liquid water/ice and let it sit until the temp is stable. The thermometer should read right at 32F.

Or you can boil water and check that the thermometer is reading 212F
 
Your process sounds good. Make sure to put sanitized water in the airlock. Also get ready to replace airlock with a larger blowoff tube going into a jar with sanitized water. Once it gets going you will get krausen bubbling with no place to go and you don't have a lot of headspace in those 1 gal juge. Other than that, your process sounds good, just give it time.

If it goes 48 hours without starting, grab a good yeast like US-05 and repitch.

I left a little space but did plan on what would happen incase

I got star san and a 5gal food grade bucket so the air lock has star san inside.

When i get home i am going to put a rectangular tub under the carboy with a little water and i get a spare beer bottle clean and ready to use for the blow off in a worst case scenario.
 
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