Struggling with a Fermenator

[Bradyevenson]

I recently got a Fermenator conical fermenter and I'm not sure if I'm using it incorrectly but the two times I've used it my beer seems off.

I brewed a Red IPA 11 days ago with an OG of 1.058. I have a blow off hose attached to the airlock at the top of the ferminator but never noticed any activity through the hose. I opened it up tonight to check on it and the top layer looks different (pictured) than when I ferment in a glass carboy. Also, it smells really sweet. The gravity reading tonight was 1.008 so it's fermented out. I'm just not sure what the smell is from. It doesn't smell like a finished beer.

What could be going on? I'm clueless.

 

[augiedoggy]

how did you clean and passivate it prior to use?

 

[flars]

Looks like a massive amount of yeast in the krausen. What temperature is the wort fermenting at? How much yeast did you pitch?

 

[Bradyevenson]

I made a 5gal solution of Star San and water and filled the fermenator with it, then drained it through both the bottling spigot and the dump valve at the bottom prior to pouring wort into it.

It's sitting at about 68 degrees right now. I pitched 2 packs of Omega Pacific NW ale yeast so ~300 billion cells.

 

[flars]

I've had a yeast krausen like that with WY 1056 and WY 1332. Thought I may have over pitched to create it. The beers turned out fine though. Krausen dropped like any other in the primary in the same amount of time.

 

[augiedoggy]

I made a 5gal solution of Star San and water and filled the fermenator with it, then drained it through both the bottling spigot and the dump valve at the bottom prior to pouring wort into it.

It's sitting at about 68 degrees right now. I pitched 2 packs of Omega Pacific NW ale yeast so ~300 billion cells.

Star san is not a cleaner its just for disinfecting. It wont do much of anything to remove manufacturing oils as far as I know... You need a cleaner like PBW or bar keepers friend or even dishsoap. It may have nothing to do with your krausen but everything to do with your off flavors.