Well that was fun... First yeast starter

[lcbjr77]

Went to my not so LHBS (it was about an hour away) but man did they have everything, were knowledgeable and I will definitely go back. Had to get some stuff for the yeast starter and some other goodies.

So I sanitize everything, smack the yeast pack....yada yada yada get the LME boiling turn my back for a half second. BOILOVER!!! Oh my lord... I could just see the guy (I think his name is Mike...the guy in all the instructional videos)from Nothern Brewers chringing. Thank god my fiance was upstairs taking care of the baby and didnt wintess the mess from hell. Cleaned up, finished the task at hand and now I have yeast starter in a 2000ml just waiting for that perodic swirl. Ill keep you guys posted on my starter.

 

[nthammer]

I started making starters early on and never went back, you will notice the benefits on your first brew.

I still use dry yeast from time to time though

 

[d3track]

Fermcap is your friend

 

[bobeer]

I use starters if I"m brewing a big beer. Otherwise I'm lazy and just toss in some dry yeast.

Washing yeast is fun too if you have time for it. I used to but I'm in the same boat with having a baby. It's hard enough to find time to brew, clean up, and then keg.

 

[lcbjr77]

I started making starters early on and never went back, you will notice the benefits on your first brew.

I still use dry yeast from time to time though

Is there a certain time you use dry yeast? Like when using a beer with a low OG?

Thanks
Larry

 

[FirstAidBrewing]

Dry yeast is engineered to be pretty viable without making a starter. It just needs to be rehydrated. With the smack packs you need to check the date on the package to figure out how many live cells are still kickin' around inside. Being kind of a beer geek I love making the starters and seeing the yeast start to come to life before I pitch.

But to answer your question, dry yeast is faster and usually cheaper

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

Boil overs are especially fun with my cooktop stove. I'm just glad it's black so all of the baked on boilovers don't show.

One tip that may make starters easier. You might want to try just keeping some DME on hand for starters instead of LME. DME keeps longer and is easier to measure out for starters. LME is just a bit messier and less convenient to deal with. You might also check out Stir Starter. It's a very reasonably priced stir plate that makes doing starters much more convenient and efficient.

 

[Upthewazzu]

Fermcap is your friend

This x 1000000

A small little droplet of fermcap solves all the world's problems.

 

[lcbjr77]

So it's day 3 of the yeast starter.

Location: Yeast starter is in upstairs bathroom nobody uses and temperatures are steady around 68-70 degrees.

I must have missed the krausen but there is a ring around the inside of the flask about 3/4" above the fluid level. Without a stir plate I have been swirling the flask as much as possible.

There is a lot of activity, things shooting up and down and it looks like I have a alot of yeast gathering at the bottom, plan to pop this in the refrigerator tonight so I can brew on Friday

 

[nthammer]

Is there a certain time you use dry yeast? Like when using a beer with a low OG?

Thanks
Larry

Basically when it's more convenient for me, I would rather use liquid+starter everytime I think.

I also agree with the other guy about using the DME. I keep a bag of DME in a gallon zippy along with the piece of paper that says how many cups of each I need (I kept forgetting the ratios of water/dme)