Infection?

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

WaltG

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 1, 2013
Messages
489
Reaction score
44
Location
Redding
So this is after 24 hrs cold crashed at 38F. Usually everything drops out. Am I being paranoid?

Recipe
8.25 2 row
8oz carapils
8oz flaked barley
US-05
20190613_091951.jpeg
 
It's really hard to tell from a photo. It looks kind of waxy? If it's waxy/shiny, that's not a good sign. The shape of the rafts look like yeast rafts (normal) though - disc shaped, dome shaped or long stringy strands are a bad sign. Some yeasts will hang around on the surface after cold crashing.
 
Better look. I pulled a bit from spigot and put in a sanitized container to see what it does.

 
That's obviously a pellicle and indicates you have a wild yeast and/or bacterial contamination.
 
I pulled a sample from spigot, spun on stir plate for a few and here is 48hrs later. Buddy of mine said it could be from starsan. Some did get sucked in.
20190615_232755.jpeg
 
Buddy of mine said it could be from starsan.
Unlikely. Star San kills yeast and bacteria.
Edit: Oh I see, you're wondering if the film could be from Star San directly? No, definitely not.

What are we supposed to be seeing in that photo?
 
Last edited:
From the original picture, the bubbles on the top left don't look right. Escaping co2 will produce more foam/tiny bubbles than big bubbles. If those bubbles look a bit "slimy" to you (hard to tell from the pic) it's the start of a pellicle. The whitish "skin" also speaks of an infection to me. How long was it in primary and at what temperature?
 
Unlikely. Star San kills yeast and bacteria.
Edit: Oh I see, you're wondering if the film could be from Star San directly? No, definitely not.

What are we supposed to be seeing in that photo?
I had pulled a sample and let it sit at room temp. I had cold crashed and was unlikely to see rapid growth in fermenter.
 
IMG_1184.JPG
IMG_1183.JPG

I brewed a Northern Brewer Pumpkin Ale kit on Wednesday. On Friday morning 36 hours later it looked like this. Worried it is infected.
 
View attachment 647712View attachment 647715
I brewed a Northern Brewer Pumpkin Ale kit on Wednesday. On Friday morning 36 hours later it looked like this. Worried it is infected.

It looks like the activity is just starting. Ale yeasts usually start faster than that but if it is cooler you will get a slow start. Looks pretty normal to me.

A bacterial infection usually takes much longer to show and the surface will be covered with a thin layer of "slime" with bigger bubbles. It would also be quite rare to see one in the primary fermenter.
 
That doesn't look infected--agree it looks like fermentation starting up. If this is your first time brewing in a clear vessel (rather than a bucket or keg) you will be surprised to see what fermentation looks like at every step.
 
Thanks for the feedback. This is only my fifth brew and first in a few years since I moved. The fermentation started taking off this morning
 
Back
Top