10
Most Ales do well at 68°F primary, to limit phenols and undesirable esters made by yeast during growth phase.
Secondary can go up to the higher end of recommended temp of a strain since there isn't much left for yeast to feed on and it's at this time the yeast consume those byproducts made in primary. So the higher temp encourages yeast metabolism.
There ...
9
I advise looking at HotHead from Omega Labs: http://www.omegayeast.com/portfolio/14158-2/
Flocculation: Medium-High
Attenuation: 75-85%
Temperature Range: 62-98° F (16-37° C)
Alcohol Tolerance: 11% ABV
8
In terms of controlling esters/fusels/flavors, my understanding is that temperature control is most important in the first 48-72 hours of fermentation. But in terms of yeast happiness, temp control can be more important for a longer stretch.
If the temperature of the beer will rise after you turn off temp control, then you don't have a big problem. But if ...
8
I would get hold of another sachet of yeast as a backup. If you have a local homebrew store, almost any type of yeast will work for this kit, but I'd recommend Safale US-05 if you can get that, since that will give you a cleaner profile. If they have liquid yeasts, then Wyeast 1056 or White Labs WLP001 will produce equivalent results. Once you've got hold of ...
8
Short answer - it's not that bad, per se.
Long answer:
The biggest 'problem' is consistency/isolation of variables.
Particularly when all-grain brewing there are a lot of things to keep track of throughout the process. As you keep brewing, you'll want to aim to improve parts of your process, and you'll probably develop a few favorite recipes. In a ...
8
After 9 days, primary is pretty close to done if not already complete. Yeast activity is starting to slow anyways. The 10° drop to 59° May have caused the yeast to floculate and settle down (cold crash) prematurely. Warm it back up 2° an hour and give the fermentor a gentle swirl to get yeast back into suspension.
All in all, you didn't hurt anything. ...
7
Relax. It sounds like fermentation is proceeding normally. The 3-inch scum ring is the krausen and is a sign of a healthy fermentation - a foam head wouldn't last 3 days. Your airlock is probably not air-tight so you don't see any activity. It's quite common - I've had this on a couple of brews.
Take a hydrometer reading in a couple of days, and you should ...
7
I would suggest that for each recipe you put together, to do some googling to find out what temp ranges for a given yeast are going to work best for the flavor you are trying to get. Starting off in the middle of the yeast manufacturer's range is good, I know of several strains where the recommended range doesn't match what real home-brewers are reporting. ...
7
I'd leave it alone. After 6 days at 66F fermentation should be done or nearly done. Even if it isn't, most yeast will continue to metabolize sugars at 55 F. Once the heat comes back on, if the yeast haven't finished their work already, they'll become active again and finish the job.
7
You may want to check out brewpi - it's a fermentation monitor, but isn't limited to just fermentation. The temperature devices used are DS18B20 temperature probes. You can get these pre-made in waterproof housing from sellers on ebay - the project also has a shop that sells them. The manufacturers claim they are accurate to +/- 0.5 C, although my tests ...
7
Get yourself a decent homebrewing book. John Palmer's book "How to Brew" is a great starting place.
Watch some youtube videos on homebrewing. This one has a million views. (You guys are lucky, when I started we didn't have youtube.)
Join a homebrew club and watch someone brew some beer. The American Homebrewers Association (AHA) has a ton of information ...
6
My guess is that it's functioning as it should - most home thermometers that aren't calibrated are usually off by anywhere from 2-5 degrees F or more. Assuming your Johnson controller is the most accurate of the 3, then getting 45F and 52F can be considered within tolerance if the actual temperature is 50F.
One other thing that may be a surprise is that ...
6
NEVER use bubbling as a measure of anything important. You MUST take actual gravity readings to know where your fermentation is.
As a general rule, you should do a diacytl rest when you are about 70-80% done with fermentation. So for a "normal" strength lager (1.050-1.060 OG) I'll start the diacytl rest when the beer hits about the 1.020-1.022 range (...
6
During the start of the fermentation the Yeast reproduces quickly using the oxygen present in the beer and produces diacetyl which imparts a buttery flavor.
Which is why it is usually recommended to start the fermentation at a lower temperature to slow down the diacetyl production (and the reproduction rate, I suppose).
The beer fermentation is then '...
6
Don't worry have a homebrew.
It is very unlikely that a temperature change from 80-72 would shock the yeast. People like to ferment at lower temperatures because it produces less byproducts that add off flavors to beer. Additionally, 6 hours for the temperature change is definitely not a quick temperature change in the time scale of yeast.
Agreed only a ...
6
A "brew fridge" might be one suggestion to brew beer at a cooler than ambient temperature. It is basically a converted old fridge that has no shelves and has been converted to hold the fermenting vessel (eg a carboy or demijohn) at lower temp. I have seen a home brewer just use a recycled "normal" fridge with its internal thermostat set "high" to brew lager ...
6
You want to keep the temp lower for the first 4-5 days. That's when the majority of esters are formed. After that, it's not only OK but preferable, to let the temp rise. If you need to keep it cooler, you can put the fermenter in a tub of water and add ice or ice packs.
6
Son of a Fermentation Chiller
Look up "son of a fermentation chiller". This is a two-chamber box made out of styrofoam insulation. It has a temperature controller and a fan. You load one chamber up with bottles of frozen water, and the temperature controller determines when to pump cold air into the brew chamber.
I made mine in an afternoon*, and it has no ...
5
It depends somewhat on what flavors you are looking for and how long you want to wait, post-fermentation, to drink it.
Warmer fermentation is going to produce more fruity esters from the yeast, but they also produce more complex (hot) alcohols. Primary fermentation will finish relatively quickly, but the mead is going to have to sit in secondary for ...
5
I had something similar with an Oatmeal Stout I used S-04 with. I fermented it a bit warm (room and pitch temp), but the yeast went totally nuts during the first three days. Overall, it didn't seem to have much bad effect. There was a minor note of fruity/floral-ness that was introduced, which wasn't present in subsequent iterations of the beer, but it was ...
5
Well first of all, you can't really turn around a 1.090 Lager in two months time (7/19 - 9/29). Its going to need 3 months of lagering minimum AFTER fermentation is totally done. So if you really want beer that's "more than good" for your wedding, then you need to brew a backup Ale right now that has a short maturation period. (I suggest a wheat beer, like a ...
5
Cold water alone will not drop your temperatures eight degrees. You will need ice packs. A more readily available option is to go out and buy a case of water bottles from the store, freeze a couple of bottles, and just rotate them out every 6-8 hours by placing them in the water of the swamp cooler. Take an old cotton t-shirt and pull it over the top of ...
5
Yes, there is a potential risk of bottle bombs, as with any incomplete ferment. The residual fermentables can be fermented by the remaining yeast in the bottle along with the priming sugar and produce more CO2 than intended. Ideally you should cold crash only after you are sure primary is complete. Many brewers simply leave the beer in primary for at least 2 ...
5
40 degrees is quite a bit lower than the bottom range for your yeast. I'd expect that they've gone pretty much inactive. But don't worry! All you need to do to reactivate them is to warm your brew back up to the optimal temperature and provide some gentle agitation. Be careful not to splash! As fermentation has already stated, you don't want to add any ...
5
Firstly, stop opening it, you looking at it isn't going to make anything good happen and could potentially lead to an infection.
Try to get it somewhere warmer, assuming it's an ale yeast (you didn't say what type of yeast you were using) try to get it to 65-70F. Swirl it very gently a few times when it's in the warmer area to try to get the yeast active ...
5
There isn't an ideal temp for any of this. There is a recommended range offered by the manufacturer to help guide the end user towards a higher degree of success that something will ferment. As for US-05 yeast, I've heard of people using it at weird temps outside the "recommended" range and having success. But success for them may be different than ...
5
I don't live in a tropical climate, but summers here get quite hot (chicago IL)
during the summer I use a Large rubbermade Tote, and fill it with water and put my fermentation buckets into it.
it keeps my temperature stable around 70F, and if I need to get it to a lower temp, I add Ice, or frozen water bottles to it.
5
They must be referring to the temperature of the yeasties themselves, which would be the fermenter temperature. Nothing else makes sense.
4
You've basically got it right, you usually want to raise the temperature towards the end of fermentation so that the yeast stay active long enough to clean up diacetyl and acetaldehyde.
Typically you'll start raising the temperature after 48-72 hours of fermentation. You don't want to do it sooner, because the yeast will throw off more fusel alcohol due to ...
4
You are doing the right thing. Ambient temperature (aka the air temperature inside the chest) can go low like this, but since the probe is taped to the fermentation vessel, and the controller is calling for chilling, then chilling is what is needed. The thermal mass of the chest walls, cooling tubes, freon, and the air in the chest all might be below your ...
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