Yeast Culture - How Much To Add When Pitching?

[JungMin]

I used some liquid yeast for the first time 2 batches ago. I collected all of the yeast on the bottom of the fermenter when it was done. On my next batch, I pitched all of the yeast that I collected from the fermenter, which was a fair amount. Fermentation started in about 2.5 hours!!!

That batch is ready to be racked to secondary. I'm expecting there to be a lot of yeast on the bottom of the fermenter!!

So my question is, on my next batch, how much of this yeast do I need to add. I plan on just leaving it in a liter of beer or so, but i'm not sure how much of it I need to pitch. Can you ever pitch too much, like my last batch?? Was that too much??

How many times can I keep reusing it?? How long will it keep in the fridge??

 

[BarleyWater]

http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html

click on the Repitching From Slurry tab to figure out exactly how many milliliters you need.

 

[JungMin]

Perfect. Thanks for that!! So when I pitched a liter or so of slurry last time, it was way too much.

Can pitching too much cause problems??? Or is it ok, but just a waste??

 

[BarleyWater]

It can cause the same problems as under pitching, it stresses out the yeast because they are now having to compete for food. Under pitching stresses them because it is too much food for them to handle. Either way, it can lead to fruity flavors from esters, that's just what yeast does under stress, but I don't think over pitching is as big of a problem.

 

[JungMin]

Great.....Thanks again for that link.