Primary Fermentation Temp Help.

[Salukibrew]

Hello,

I am currently about 48 hrs into the primary fermentation of my second homebrew. I have done alot of reading about various topics and issues within the process. One that particularly interests me because I want to make the highest quality brew possible is the issue of fermentation temperature. Currently my 5 gal carboy and beer are in a controlled environment within a closet designated for fermentation. The ambient air temp within the room is somewhere around 71 F. I am guessing (and by looking at carboy thermom) that the reaction of fermentation has raised the temp of the beer about 10-15 degrees. Putting it just over 80F which I have read can lead to pronounced esters and other off flavoring in the beer. Therefore in order to rectify my problem I have poured about 6inches of water into the bottom of the trash can, wrapped a wet towel around carboy and placed a fan in the room to encourage air circulation and evaporation. This has brought the temp down to around 70-72F. My question to you all is: is this still a safe temperature for the yeast? How cool is to cool for the yeast which in this case is Whitelabs Hefe 300? At what temperature am I going to be in danger of my yeast becoming dormant and creating a stuck fermentation? And finally in about 3-5 days I am going to rack to secondary can I slack off on temp control around then because a majority of vigorous fermentation has been completed?

Let me know if you all have any advice for a newbee.....I appreciate it.

Cheers,

Big Cypress Brewing

 

[shanecb]

70-72 is great for that yeast. That's what I fermented at the last time I used it and it turned out great. I think I even started it off at 77 degrees or so for the first couple of days, and it was still fine.

 

[JoeBronco]

1) And more important than temp, i see that your only going to ferment your beer for 5-7 days? Try keeping it fermenting for 7 days THAN check the gravity every 3 days until it stays the same. Plan on two to three weeks.

2) You dont need to rack to secondary. Just keep it on primary


3) Try to keep your temps for a Hefe a few degrees BELOW 70. The recommended temp to ferment at is 68*. Although it really depends on what your looking for. Higher temps give more of a Banana flavor.


http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/strains_wlp300.html

 

[redde2brew]

Relax, pour a cool one. Don't worry so much what your temp inside the carboy after fermentation starts just maintain the temperature outside. Your yeast you are using has a range of 68-72 degrees and you can go a few degrees either from that range. Most likely the drop in temperature is the natural progression of the yeast slowing down. Since the yeast you are using is designed to give wheat beer a cloudy color I would leave in primary since you are not trying to clear the beer.