Yeast starter went crazy

[duffbeer71]

So last night I made a 1 liter yeast starter, in a 2 liter flask, for a Bavarian Hefeweizen recipe using WYEAST #3068 WEIHENSTEPHAN WEIZEN. I use a stir plate and have done probably 5 or 6 starters since getting the stir plate as a gift this past Christmas with no problems. The temperature in the house was 66 degrees This is the first time using a foam stopper as opposed to tin foil during the fermentation. So I got up this morning and the fermentation seemed to have been vigorous enough to build up the suds and soak the foam stopper also pushing it up from the mouth of the flask. I've not had this problem before, but was always using tin foil on the mouth of the flask.So my questions are:

Do you think the foam stopper was the reason it foamed over? Why?

Was I not supposed to put the foam stopper in until the fermentation process was over?

Will the starter be OK since this happened?

I felt like the foam stopper would be better than tim foil because it would still allow air in and do a better job of keeping any foreign particles out.

Your input would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[dbhokie]

There are others with more experience, but I have been going crazy with starters lately. A few things, first, don't worry about an airlock with a stopper, the yeast want oxygen, and you don't care if it gets oxygenated...it's a starter. Make it an optimal environment for the yeast, not for beer. Use foil. When you put an airlock in, pressure is going to build, normally with a stir plate that C02 rapidly goes out, and never even fills the chamber because you are continually with the stirring pulling air in as well. Would it have happened without it? I would postulate that it would have been much less likely. Sometimes such things are vigorous. It's like night life, sometimes she's a tiger, and sometimes a dead log. Again, this is just with my experience, I did my first dozen or so with an airlock..I got very high krausen, and a lot of pressure buildup. The last so many, I have used sanitized foil, and haven't had an issue since. Of course, now I probably will with my next one.

 

[rjsnau]

I would say it is that yeast strain. I used it for the first time a month ago and got a crazy fermentation. I am talking about a strong blowoff for several days. And I was fermenting at 62. Make sure you have a good blowoff when you pitch your starter. I didn't and had a huge mess to clean