oops, rookie mistake - starters

[BigFloppy]

YEAH, I've been brewing for more than a month and a rookie mistake happened tonight!

Filled the 2L Erlenmeyer flask to 1L, added a cup of DME and stuck it on the heat to boil everything in readiness for a "Stella" starter

I let the thing boil just a fraction too long... can you say... GUSHER - hot wort everywhere! LUCKILY, didn't hit the ceiling but it was awfully close!!

Luckily, glass cooktop so cleanup was a breeze BUT an event that even a seasoned brewer managed to screw up

Moral of the story - if you have "Fermcap" (which I do) ... USE IT!! even in your starter

 

[Kent88]

or use a saucepan and transfer it to the sanitized flask after it cools.

 

[Sir-Hops-A-Lot]

X2

 

[RM-MN]

Got a microwave? Use a quart Mason jar and boil your starter in that. Much less chance of a gusher.

Erlenmeyer flasks are designed especially to create gushers.

 

[catdaddy66]

Just watched a video from Northern Brewer yesterday about making starters. It made the point that you can boil the starter in the appropriate flask but NOT on an electric stove. Only on a gas stove. Oh, and they also said it was recommended to boil the wort in a saucepan and transfer to the flask, specifically to eliminate the volcano eruption you described.

 

[ericbw]

Two other things not to do: don't add yeast nutrient when it is hot. That will cause a gusher because it creates nucleation points for bubbles to form.

Last week, I stuck the handle of a wooden spoon in the flask to stir it. That caused a gusher - I think the heat expanded the wood, letting air out (fast).

Did you say you've been brewing for a month?