Need help, 6 (7) bad batches in a row (Long)

[srm775]

I have come down to either my tap water (which was used in all the good batches prior to this problem), or the plastic fermentors. So my current batch is in a glass carboy which I have never used before. If it turns out bad, then it is the water or a bio agent sent in by the Russians to ruin my beer!!

One other thing, if you don't use raking canes ... how did you get the beer out of the pot? Spigot? Make sure you flush boiling water through that spigot before you begin to brew. I usually heat up a little extra sparge water in my boiling pot then just flush it through the spigot.

I think the chances of your beer being infected with outer space Botulism, E. Coli, Antibiotic-resistant Staph, Hanta virus, Ebola or whatever else everyone is saying is EXTREMELY unlikely and you either have a normal, run-of-the-mill infection or, what I suspect is the problem, you're doing something improperly, extra or not at all.

 

[rohanski]

I'm still leaning to something the air because I have varied every variable with the same result. I will make my next batch in the garage apartment room and see how that turns out.
I need a friggin homebrew!

 

[JnJ]

One other thing, if you don't use raking canes ... how did you get the beer out of the pot? Spigot? Make sure you flush boiling water through that spigot before you begin to brew. I usually heat up a little extra sparge water in my boiling pot then just flush it through the spigot.

I think the chances of your beer being infected with outer space Botulism, E. Coli, Antibiotic-resistant Staph, Hanta virus, Ebola or whatever else everyone is saying is EXTREMELY unlikely and you either have a normal, run-of-the-mill infection or, what I suspect is the problem, you're doing something improperly, extra or not at all.

I always broke down the spigots and sanitized them like everything else. I agree it's probably a common brewing bug but I'm about positive it is not in the process considering I had so many good batches and the process is rather simple/hard to screw up.

 

[gwood]

Just subscribing to the thread...very interesting. Looking forward to hearing results (fingers crossed).

 

[JnJ]

Well four days in and the fermentation is almost done. I'll leave it in the primary then go to secondary this weekend. I don't use secondary much but this is a little more than a blonde or APA. This is about the time in previous batch that the bad smell would start showing up. So far, so good.

 

[rohanski]

I want to try mine but it's kinda like not wanting to go to the doctor because your afraid of what you might find out. It doesn't smell great. What about Eastside Brewer?

 

[JnJ]

I want to try mine but it's kinda like not wanting to go to the doctor because your afraid of what you might find out. It doesn't smell great. What about Eastside Brewer?

Still smelling good here. but, I do know what you mean. I get nervous every time I open the freezer to take a wiff. I will transfer on sunday and will taste it then.

 

[par383]

Okay, I took a quick skim thorough all 7 pages, and noticed that nobody touched on this...

I've been brewing for, oh, about a year and a half or so. My first batch was in a 5-gallon bucket that came with my first "homebrew kit." Afterwards, I noticed that the bucket stunk...like vinegar or something like that. I figured it was just the smell of fermentation. I scrubbed and scrubbed, but the smell never went away. The first batch turned out great, but when it came time to brew again, the bucket still stunk. So, I bought a glass carboy...and haven't looked back. I didn't want to take the chance of making another batch in the bucket, and it tasting like that smell. It still stinks to this day, so I use it strictly for storage of all my homebrew stuff.

I have a feeling your problem will go away now that you've switched to the glass carboy. I'm curious to hear how it goes.

 

[JnJ]

Ok, it's the afternoon of day five and it is still smelling good. I think we might have a keeper! Sunday it goes to the secondary.

 

[JnJ]

Okay, I took a quick skim thorough all 7 pages, and noticed that nobody touched on this...

I've been brewing for, oh, about a year and a half or so. My first batch was in a 5-gallon bucket that came with my first "homebrew kit." Afterwards, I noticed that the bucket stunk...like vinegar or something like that. I figured it was just the smell of fermentation. I scrubbed and scrubbed, but the smell never went away. The first batch turned out great, but when it came time to brew again, the bucket still stunk. So, I bought a glass carboy...and haven't looked back. I didn't want to take the chance of making another batch in the bucket, and it tasting like that smell. It still stinks to this day, so I use it strictly for storage of all my homebrew stuff.

I have a feeling your problem will go away now that you've switched to the glass carboy. I'm curious to hear how it goes.

The buckets have been mentioned often in this thread. And, many people use buckets for years with no problems. I had some great batches in buckets. I think the problem comes if/when you do get an infection, it's very difficult to get it out of the plastic items, including buckets. I may use plastic in the future, but if I get an infection, I will throw away all the plastic THAT came in contact with that batch. Now, my last infected batch was in a Better Bottle. I plan to soak, clean, sanitize the piss out of them, I'd hate to throw them away $$$$$$!!!!!

 

[Eastside Brewer]

Rohanski, everything going great here, I am 6 days in the primary and I'm in the middle of high krausen in fermenter. I won't even go near it for another 4 or 5 days, and then I will pull a sample to check gravity. I do not go into a secondary. I have a converted keg, when active fermentation is complete I will cold crash for 2 days, bring temp back up to 68* and then dry hop for 5 days, cold crash and then transfer only 1 time to serving tank, all in closed lines pushed with co2.

I had a friend come over and help me through my cleaning and sanitizing routine and I realized that I was cleaning but forgetting to sanitize. I hope that refocusing on the cleaning routine will be the answer, I will not know for sure for another 4 or 5 days??

Eastside......

p.s. - I see you are in boerne, I was born and raised in Frederickberg, we played you every year in football.

 

[rohanski]

Breaking news! Just got up the strenght to taste my last batch.....so far so good.
The gravity has a little way to go but I think it's going to be good. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

 

[Ryanh1801]

Breaking news! Just got up the strenght to taste my last batch.....so far so good.
The gravity has a little way to go but I think it's going to be good. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Good to hear. Hope it turns out well.

 

[ksbrain]

I am eagerly awaiting the results of these tests. I use plastic for my fermentation, and don't use secondary any more. I have had some stinky beers my last few batches, and I am wondering if my buckets and/or tubing need to be replaced. I even had the American Wheat with the Belgian banana flavor to it, like someone above did (too many posts to recall if it was JnJ or what). I thought maybe I got some of my Duvel clone yeast in the Wheat somehow (I might have bottled them both on the same day). If glass solves it, then I might just go get a few big carboys. My last batch wasn't terrible, but it was a stout, so it has a bit more off-flvaor masking power than lighter colored beers.

 

[EdWort]

Breaking news! Just got up the strenght to taste my last batch.....so far so good.
The gravity has a little way to go but I think it's going to be good. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Congrats! Glad to hear it. I just tapped a fresh keg of Haus Pale Ale for tomorrow. Weather looks great too.

It's gonna be a great brew day!

 

[JnJ]

I hate to speak to early, but it looks like we might all have our bugs beat! If so we need to setup an SA get together and drink some beers. May be after the Holidays.
If I beat this infection, then I'm going AG after the new year. Asking for a March pump and $75. gift certificate at Northern Brewer (to get the pieces parts) for Christmas!

 

[JnJ]

Well transfer day wasn't so great. Remember, this is my first time with glass carboys. First I wanted to get an FG. I put the hydrometer in my wine thief. Will the wine thief would not go far enough into the carboy to get enough beer in it to read the hydro. So I put the hydro in the normal container I use, and use the thief to get enough (two fills) to measure it. I was disappointed with my FG, it was 1.018 but should have been closer to 1.013. I have had great success with SafeAle 04 previously, but not so great this time. Then I tasted the sample. It seems I might detect a slight hint of the previous off flavor. This was a little discouraging, but in the past it was very noticeable, so may be this is just green beer (it's been a long time since I tasted a green beer that was not contaminated). So next was time to transfer. In the past it was easy because I had buckets with spigots and better bottles with the valves, no siphoning. Well I have an auto siphon that came with my kit and decided to put it to work. It seemed to work ok when used to move sanitizer from a carboy. Well, it was not so good. It took forever, and I left a lot of beer in the primary. I’ve heard others complain how slow the better bottles drain, while this was as slow if not slower.
So, over all I was disappointed with the beer and the transfer. I’ll leave it in the secondary for a week or two, test it again, and then keg it if it tastes ok.

 

[rohanski]

JNJ don't worry about the higher gravity, it will be fine. I also thought I had a bad batch because it was kinda sour like yours. I took some to the Brew With a Friend day and Ed and a couple of other guys tasted it and the said it tasted fine. I hadn't tasted it in maybe 3 to 5 days but now it wasn't bad at all. The kolsh out of the primary tasted great.

 

[cheezydemon]

Coming in late, but I noticed in your original post Jnj that you use water from the hose. Garden hoses are not safe to drink out of and definitely deposit crap in your water that is not only toxic, it probably tastes bad!

 

[JnJ]

JNJ don't worry about the higher gravity, it will be fine. I also thought I had a bad batch because it was kinda sour like yours. I took some to the Brew With a Friend day and Ed and a couple of other guys tasted it and the said it tasted fine. I hadn't tasted it in maybe 3 to 5 days but now it wasn't bad at all. The kolsh out of the primary tasted great.

Heard it was a good time. Sorry I missed it but the daughter came down from school for the weekend and changed our plans. Like I said, I'll let it go a week or so in the secondary and try it out again.

 

[JnJ]

Coming in late, but I noticed in your original post Jnj that you use water from the hose. Garden hoses are not safe to drink out of and definitely deposit crap in your water that is not only toxic, it probably tastes bad!

Hmmm... Several batches with same hose turned out great. I grewup as a kid playing out side and drinking from a hose...... What reference are you basing this on?

 

[Beerthoven]

Hmmm... Several batches with same hose turned out great. I grewup as a kid playing out side and drinking from a hose...... What reference are you basing this on?

I was looking at garden hoses in Home Depot the other day and several had warnings not to drink out of them because they contain lead.

 

[JnJ]

Ok, so that can be an issue for your health, but it still wont affect the beer's flavor. Put it this way, I have drank out of my hose and it tasted like my tap water which is fine, so I don't think it somehow caused off flavors suddenly in my beer. Besides, the last bad batch did not even use hose water. The hose has been ruled out.......

 

[Nyxator]

Yeah, I used to live in San Antonio, and I can say we had some really nice water (comes from a naturally filtered aquifer). I doubt very much if there are any dangerous contaminants in it, but I would probably pull the water from the tap inside the house.

I moved to Phoenix, and man what a difference! Our water here is rediculously hard. I miss SA water...

EDIT: I just noticed you're not in SA. Hehe, I think I got you mixed up with rohanski, who's darn close.

 

[JnJ]

Yeah, I used to live in San Antonio, and I can say we had some really nice water (comes from a naturally filtered aquifer). I doubt very much if there are any dangerous contaminants in it, but I would probably pull the water from the tap inside the house.

I moved to Phoenix, and man what a difference! Our water here is rediculously hard. I miss SA water...

EDIT: I just noticed you're not in SA. Hehe, I think I got you mixed up with rohanski, who's darn close.

No you are right, I am in SA. The water is good.

 

[JnJ]

Well I went ahead and began crash cooling yesterday. I figure I'll keg (and sample again) on Sunday. Still seems to be smelling alright. I went ahead and bought the ingredients for my next batch. I'm going to do a 4 gal AG, limited by my MLT and lack of an HLT.

 

[rohanski]

Great! Got your confidence back? I've gone all out and did three more. They are finally smelling like they did before the scourge.

 

[JnJ]

Great! Got your confidence back? I've gone all out and did three more. They are finally smelling like they did before the scourge.

Not completely, but if it taste ok Sunday, then I'll be more confident.

 

[AGBrewer]

Bump, how did it come out?

 

[mendlodc]

anxiously awaiting an update...