Stir bar question

[Clanchief]

So my wonderful new wife, when cleaning the basement last week, decided to (completely on accident I'm told) toss the stir bar for my stir plate in the trash. I'm hoping to brew this weekend for the first time this year (been kind of busy with getting married) and am looking to get a new one. However, as the one I had came with the stir plate, I want to make sure I don't flub it up and waste my money on something that won't work. I know it's unlikely, but still, better safe than sorry.

To break the situation down, here's what I have: a 2L Erlenmeyer flask for starters, and a stir plate. I have never made a starter larger than 2L and I doubt that I would in all honesty. If I need more yeast than that, I can make a 2L starter and pitch an extra packet of yeast on top of it. For the stir bar, is a 1 inch sufficient length? What should the diameter be? The one I was looking at has a pivot ring; does that matter?

Thanks.

 

[jwalker1140]

I'll let someone more knowledgeable give the final word on your starter + extra packet question, but I assume it would be fine, at least if they're the same strain. Personally, my preference is to do a step starter in my 2L when I need something bigger than a 2L starter. www.yeastcalc.com helps with this. Just try to keep the innoculation rate between 50-100 million/ml when determining the size of each step.

I can confirm that a 1 inch stir bar works great in a 2L flask. That's what I use. My bar has the pivot ring, which I like, and I'm pretty sure the diameter is 5/16 of an inch.