Proper Aeration

[Spyderturbo]

I have read about the need to properly aerate your beer and decided to pour the wort through a strainer and into the primary. I do, however, have a quesiton about the proper way to do this. If I understand correctly, when you rack to the secondary, it is important to do it "quietly". Apparently this is to prevent unnecessary airborn "nasties" from getting into the beer.

When I aerate, I have been pouring the cooled wort through the strainer. Is that OK or do I risk contamination of the wort? Do you guys do it with the wort when it is hot?

I have been cooling the brewpot in an ice water / salt bath mostly because it is stainless steel and will transfer heat away from the wort faster than plastic will. Should I adjust my method, or is what I'm doing acceptable?

My second question is in reference to the Hefe that is sitting in my secondary. Some of you may recall that after the initial fermentation ended, I waited about 4 more days and then racked. That is when it started fermenting again. I am going to assume that was caused by me not stirring the wort after pitching the yeast. It has been in the secondary for about 7 days now and is still bubbling about 1 time every 2 or 3 seconds.

Should I let it go until there is no more activity? I was planning on bottling today or tomorrow, but I can let it sit if necessary. I just don't want anything exploding.

One last question......I forgot to take a OG reading on my Hefe and was wondering if anyone could tell me what the ballpark FG should be on this recipe:

Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse (from Beer Captured)

4 oz Belgian Aromatic Malt
2 oz Acid Malt

6 lb. 5 oz. Muntons Wheat Dry Malt Extract
2¼ oz. Malto Dextrin

1 oz. American Hallertauer @ 3.5% (bittering hop)

¼ oz. Spalt (flavor hop)
¼ oz. Perle (flavor hop)

White Labs #WLP300 Hefeweizen Ale Yeast

1½ cup Muntons Wheat Dry Malt Extract

OG: 1.052

I guess I'm going to have to assume that my OG was correct. IIRC, my SG when I racked was about 1.022.

Thanks!!!

 

[cweston]

Pouring through a strainer (sanitized, of course) is fine. You want to aerate before pitching (to provide oxyygen for the yeast), but you don't want to aerate during active fermentation (like when you rack).

If you are topping off with unboiled tap water, that should supply the oxygen you need. If you are doing full boils, then straining and splashing may not be enough aeration.

About your hefeweizen: Definitely do not bottle if it is still bubbling once every 2 or 3 seconds! It's definitely not done fermenting.

I would expect you final gravity for that recipe should be somewhere around 1.010 - 1.011.

 

[Sephro]

I aerate by vigorously stirring the wort in the bucket. (cooled first with the wort chiller) I just have to make sure that I don't do this were it is dusty and I make sure not to breath into the wort. I've never had any real issues and always see activity within a few hours.
You can buy an aeration kit. It's pretty much a stone that you connect to an O2 tank that will release very fine O2 bubbles into your wort. I have yet to go this route...

 

[david_42]

Oxygen is added to the cool wort to help the yeast grow. Oxygen in hot wort or during racking causes oxidation.

Your wort cooling method is fine.

Never bottle an actively fermenting ale.

 

[Spyderturbo]

Excellent! Thanks to everyone for your help. I guess I'll keep doing what I'm doing and also let the Hefe sit for awhile longer.

How do you know when the fermentation is complete? My first batch was sitting in the primary for 7 days and was still bubbling about once every 5 minutes or so. Is that normal activity for bottling?

Thanks again!

 

[Beer Snob]

I bought this for my last brew. Worked great! Attaches to your drill and does a real good job at getting air in there. There is a cheaper version but it is entirely plastic. With this on the part that attaches to the drill is metal.



This is what it looked like after about 2 minutes of 20 second bursts.

 

[Bernie Brewer]

I bought this for my last brew. Worked great! Attaches to your drill and does a real good job at getting air in there. There is a cheaper version but it is entirely plastic. With this on the part that attaches to the drill is metal.

Neat-o! How much was it? And where'd you get it? Looks kind of like what drywallers use to mix their mud. I'm sure it works the same way too.

 

[EvilTOJ]

hmmmm.... I do have a mud mixer around here somewhere. Maybe I should use that next time I need to aerate....

Do you think I should try to crack some of the mud/mixing compounds off of it first?

 

[Spyk'd]

Snob, you da gadget mo' fo'!


I have a new toy I'll be using tomorrow, yeast willing, and I'll snap a picture...

 

[D*Bo]

I picked up an airation kit for $23. It has a stainless steel airation stone with tubing and the valve assembly you screw on top of the small disposable oxygen cylinders.
Fermentation picks up pretty quick and finishes pretty fast.

 

[Beer Snob]

Neat-o! How much was it? And where'd you get it? Looks kind of like what drywallers use to mix their mud. I'm sure it works the same way too.

I got it at Adventures in Homebrewing (http://www.homebrewing.org/index.html) and it was like $17. They had something like it for half the price but it was entirely plastic. I was inicially going to get a filter and stone for the air pump I have and was talking to him about the diffeerences. In his opinion, all the air pump talk is from large breweries who have no choice as intead of 5 gal carboys they are dealing with things much larger that you cant shake. It had just so happened that as we were talking, another customer came up and said that, "that thing kicks A$$" (the stir rod I bought). The bottom part of moves so you can fit it through the neck of a carboy opening.

 

[Levers101]

Has anyone used a "Siphon Sprayer?" I see that Northern Brewer sells them. Northern Brewer Aeration

 

[Spyk'd]

Has anyone used a "Siphon Sprayer?" I see that Northern Brewer sells them. Northern Brewer Aeration

That is my new toy, however, I didn't get to brew today as my yeast isn't cooperating. I just read the mfg date on the package and it says march 06; great. I read somewhere that it might take an extra day for each month the yeast is old. I don't know if that's necessarily true, but this one sure is slow. I may start a starter before this night is over to brew tomorrow night...


I'll do a review of my siphon sprayer once I use it. I don't think I actually need it as my fermentations are always quick and complete, but it was like $2.00 and a new toy, so I got one.:cross:

 

[chask31]

Thats what my LHBS told me last week. 1 day extra per month. Thats for the WYEAST smack packs. Patience is a virtue. I ordered some from the LHBS...he is getting it in this week and im hoping that it was mfg'd this month so I can brew asap because I have a month off in August and I need at least 100 brews stocked for that month before I start work! (not all for me...though I dont mind drinking alone I like to share what I make)

That is my new toy, however, I didn't get to brew today as my yeast isn't cooperating. I just read the mfg date on the package and it says march 06; great. I read somewhere that it might take an extra day for each month the yeast is old. I don't know if that's necessarily true, but this one sure is slow. I may start a starter before this night is over to brew tomorrow night...


I'll do a review of my siphon sprayer once I use it. I don't think I actually need it as my fermentations are always quick and complete, but it was like $2.00 and a new toy, so I got one.:cross:

 

[casebrew]

hmmmm.... I do have a mud mixer around here somewhere. Maybe I should use that next time I need to aerate....

Do you think I should try to crack some of the mud/mixing compounds off of it first?

Nah, mud is just Gypsum...

I aeriate during the transfer of wort to fermenter. I siphon out of my kettle with a racking can. I just stick a straightened paper clip under the hose, so it sucks air as it goes by. Not enough of a leak to lose it's syphon though...

 

[kaptain_karma]

I use a siphon sprayer and have been happy with it. I started using it at the same time I began using starters, so it's hard to say how much difference it makes. It's probably useful for medium gravity beers, but I imagine a high gravity beer would benefit from someting a little more heavy duty. The sprayer is cheap as dirt and easy to use, so I'd say it's a worthwhile investment.

 

[Celtic Ceilidh]

I use a whisk to aerate. It's pretty cheap and pretty easy.

 

[Walker]

I bought this for my last brew. Worked great! Attaches to your drill and does a real good job at getting air in there. There is a cheaper version but it is entirely plastic. With this on the part that attaches to the drill is metal.

I have one of these, too. It was bought for degassing the wine I have aging right now, but while I was using it on the wine I thought, "This thing could whip some serious air into wort."

I haven't actually used it to aerate a batch yet (because it's just one more thing to sanitize), but I can assure you it would do a hell of a job.

-walker

 

[Levers101]

Interesting physics/chemistry side note. The best way to increase gas transfer into a liquid is to increase the number of bubbles (up flow rate), increase their surface area/unit mass of gas (make smaller bubbles), or increase the gas concentration in the bubbles (use pure O2).