Krausen trouble?!

[oguss0311]

The last two batches that I made (an extract kit and a brn ale PM) have left me with these pieces of floating debris that never truly settle out of the beer to the bottom. The first time, I asked around here and it was suggested that with so much honey (it was a honey wheat) that perhaps it was wax, etc. or maybe since honey can take Soo long to finish fully fermenting out- that there was enough CO2 still being made to "Float" some of the sediment.
Except it happened this time too.
This time, I had a Really heavy flow of krausen out of the blow tube- but quite a lot of the crap was so thick and heavy, that it stuck to the top of the carboy and never left. I had to scrape the stuff loose with a sanitized spoon handle so that I could fit the auto-siphon in when I racked it today. That was easy enough- but I still had this floating debris that LOVES to get sucked into the secondary, and stay floating rather than fall to the bottom.
So today, I make a point of isolating a lot of this floating crud to examine it. It was soft, spongy and grayish. I squished it further- and low and behold- It looks Just like the thick krausen that never got pushed out of the airlock.
I now think that CO2 has created holes in this thick crud, and then the gas leaves the airlock, and I'm left with a dried out piece of krausen that's been "Molded" in a manner than makes it buoyant.
Anyone else ever have this happen?
Are there procedures that perhaps I'm not taking that will decrease the amount of this floating crud?
Am I way off- and its really something else?
Why is this happening Now, when the last 8 batches did not? It's not the same yeast, ingredients, etc. Even the temp is slightly different.
Anyone know of a good trick to avoid the stuff? I put a nylon steeping bag over the auto-siphon when racking to the secondary- and I started to get tiny air bubbles in the tubbing- (Perhaps the bag created enough activity to create bubbles?)- anyway- I cut that out real quick.
I drank my sample for the EG and it is I think my favorite brown ale to date- but this stuff is So un-cosmetic.....
I'd love to hear if this is do to the method of my brewing, or how I can better avoid these floating ugly f@*kers.
Thanks!

 

[Revvy]

I wish you had a pic of the gunk, I'd like to see it.... A couple batches back I had floaties that looked like faded grayish looking loose tobacco crumbs floating on top of my stout in secondary. I thought maybe it was Irish moss that got transfered and kicked up by the co2...I did like you, only used a piece of hopsack at the bottom of my autosiphon when I transfered to my bottling bucket.

So now I'm curious about odd floaties on people's beers...

The stout was fine...I'm drinking it now...Although it took longer to carbonate than other beers of mine. I wonderd if too much yeast got kept away by the improvised filter.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

What is your recipe?
What yeast are you using?
What was the fermentation temperature?

I personally have never had this happen.

 

[oguss0311]

I did attempt to take a photo- but our camera does not want to focus in that well- it was frustrating. The detail I got gave one nothing to go on, other than the fact that they were looking at gray matter.
My beer tastes great too- so I'm not ever close to thinking that this is anything other than floating yeast/proteins that hate me. I hope that there is some good way to avoid it!

 

[Beerthoven]

I had floaters like what you describe in my recent ordinary bitter. I moved the primary into the house from the garage a few hours before bottling time. When it came time to bottle I noticed that they had sunk to the bottom. I think the agitation caused by carrying the carboy the 50' between the garage and house was enough to break the surface tension and get them to settle.

 

[oguss0311]

The most recent recipe was
1lb. brn mlt.
3lbs pale malt
1 can (3.3lbs) Light Extract (Muntons)
1lb. DME
1oz willmilette (SP- that does not look right) 60min
.50z " " 2min.
1tbs Irish Moss 15min.
Wyeast London ale
& the other was Midwest's Honey wheat ale kit-
which brings to mind the only constant- other than Maybe a few lbs of DME- Wyeast- though not the same strand-
& temps where 62-68 degrees

 

[Nurmey]

How long are you keeping it in the primary?

 

[oguss0311]

today made 12 days- fermentation was done, I was waiting to see if the floating sediment stuff would drop.

 

[Revvy]

today made 12 days- fermentation was done, I was waiting to see if the floating sediment stuff would drop.

Oh, I thought it was in secondary where you had the floaties...If fermentation is done rack it over to secondary....if push comes to shove, and they haven't left in secondary you can try cold crashing it....I've never done it, but a lot of people here have (so you can search for info on it...)I believe though that at bottling time you'll have to repitch a little yeast.

 

[oguss0311]

You read about right- I have got some degree of the floating debris into the secondary too- but the problem of course starts in the primary (where the floating stuff coats a lot of the surface). I am able to avoid Most of the debris when racking- and I did just hear about cold crashing- (A clerk from Midwest mentioned it)- I will search around here to read about it- thanks for the idea

 

[brett]

If you can, put the carboy in a very cool place a few hours before racking/bottling.

In my most recent batch I had the same floaties. Just tasted a bottle today: my best batch of beer to date. So they are probably not harming anything.

Here's what I did:

1. I RDWHAHB.
2. I racked the beer into my bottling bucket. Because of the tip on the racking cane, almost none of the floaties made it through (though a few renegades did).
3. Because the floaties float, I didn't have to worry about them until the last bottle or two, which is no big deal.
4. Let a week pass, then drank a bottle and marveled at my creation.

In my view, floaties are a sign of good luck!