Im INFECTED!

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GFHomebrew

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Yep there aint no doubting it there is some wild bugs aloof in my brewery:eek::( yep i threw caution into the wind letely and didnt believe me brewing taste buds and recent feed back on last brew comp!! My house ale strain it seems has turned against me and desicrated my once pure Sandiego wlp090 clean fermenting fast fermenting yeast strain! Maybe i went one generation to far but really i got complacent and took a rushed risk somewhere maybe skimping on cleaning me flask well but i know my ale strain is gone and to add extra pain im sure my BigBenBarleywine is shot too :oops: yep i tasted it the other day and i got spicey peppery hot medicinal plastic!!!

I know my other strains are ok because my pilsner has no off flavours coupled with comp notes noone spotted any off flavours as well as in my czech lager both my 34/70 strain. Tge saison strain seems good too. but the IPA got nailed down as phenolic but stupidly i still spun the same strain up tasted it and tasted something not right but still pitched it into my barleywine man o man im paying for it now!

So ive bought a new fermentor just in case but it seems to me that the sooner i pitch that wlp090 down the sink the better off my brewing world will be. Thinking about getting that american ale blend as my new house strain and cleaning up my propogation act. Anywho thought id put this out there just incase anyone mighta needed a kick up the arse like me in the cleaning sanitation side of things.

Onwards and upwards!
 

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Trialben said:
Yep there aint no doubting it there is some wild bugs aloof in my brewery:eek::( yep i threw caution into the wind letely and didnt believe me brewing taste buds and recent feed back on last brew comp!! My house ale strain it seems has turned against me and desicrated my once pure Sandiego wlp090 clean fermenting fast fermenting yeast strain! Maybe i went one generation to far but really i got complacent and took a rushed risk somewhere maybe skimping on cleaning me flask well but i know my ale strain is gone and to add extra pain im sure my BigBenBarleywine is shot too :oops: yep i tasted it the other day and i got spicey peppery hot medicinal plastic!!!

I know my other strains are ok because my pilsner has no off flavours coupled with comp notes noone spotted any off flavours as well as in my czech lager both my 34/70 strain. Tge saison strain seems good too. but the IPA got nailed down as phenolic but stupidly i still spun the same strain up tasted it and tasted something not right but still pitched it into my barleywine man o man im paying for it now!

So ive bought a new fermentor just in case but it seems to me that the sooner i pitch that wlp090 down the sink the better off my brewing world will be. Thinking about getting that american ale blend as my new house strain and cleaning up my propogation act. Anywho thought id put this out there just incase anyone mighta needed a kick up the arse like me in the cleaning sanitation side of things.

Onwards and upwards!
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Well that sucks, sounds like you are sure of what s going on but remember there could be lots of fusel alcohols and such in that big beer that give a flavor you are not familiar with.
 
Sorry to hear that. Looks like you found it before it spread through your whole brewery. I'd do a good bleach cleaning/sanitization on everything you suspect may have come in contact with the infection, rinse, and then sanitize everything with iodophor.

I got the feeling that I'd been too lucky in that respect a couple of months ago so got some iodophor to use a few times as a precaution. Haven't stored any yeast since I went back to using dry, but may in the future. Hopefully, Head First is right about your BigBen. That would be a big hit in ingredient cost.
 
Yeah you are right first time doing a big beer like this so will be giving it some time for sure. Time will tell but im not risking another batch with that ale yeast!
 
I got surprised by an infection 2 years ago, by the time I figured it out I had ruined 2 beers and a cider. For me it was an aeration hose that I had cleaned and sanitized with Starsan. Since then I did a lot of research and came the conclusion that Starsan sometimes lets bugs live.

So now when I brew I clean everything that is not stainless steel with acidified chlorine. It's basically bleach/white vinegar mixed in equal parts (mixed separately in water) to get the cleaning solution to a pH of 7. When the pH is lower more chlorine is released and it has more killing power, same idea of pH in a swimming pool. After that, everything is rinsed with clean water and then sanitized with Starsan. I do this to the fermenter and all plastic/vinyl parts, don't do this to stainless steel since it is corrosive to it. Infections suck and the more experienced I get, the less I take for granted that everything is as clean as it should be.

Bleach has gotten a bad rap in homebrewing circles mostly because it's not handled correctly, but when properly mixed and used, it is more effective than Starsan. Starsan sanitizes, bleach can be mixed to strong enough to disinfect. Sometimes it may be the only way to get rid of an infection in a brewery.
 
And you can get bleach at the grocery store.
 
I don't bother keeping yeast beyond just a few generations. It's too cheap and easy to get a new pitch. Even if using liquid, getting 3 batches makes the cost per keg less than $2.50, depending on strain. And I pitch dry yeast a lot so it's even cheaper.
 
Ill give the FV a good soak bleach then. I bought a new bucket fermentor. Im sure the infection is in the yeast but it might also be in the FV. Both my last two lager batches have come through pretty clean just not my ales which gets me thinking the starter is contaminated.

Cheers for your help. Whats a good bleach to water ratio for soaking please?
 
Trialben said:
Whats a good bleach to water ratio for soaking please?
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I think I saw sanitizing discussed on Clorox.com. I just put a splash in with about 3-4 gallons in my laundry tub. It doesn’t take much.
 
Cheers jeff i splash some in that "old" fermentor give her a soak rinse it and give it a good dry out in the air. I recon its been on continuous fermentation duty for months now so will give her a rest.:)
 
I put 8 ounces of bleach and 8 ounces of white vinegar per 5 gallons, I believe this is close to a disinfectant. Lower doses have a lower rate of kill, closer to a sanitizing solution. The vinegar will boost the killing power of the bleach by lowering the pH of the solution. Don't mix the two directly, mix it into the water separately.
 
Ok will try that .

Took another sample from my BigBenBarleywine today and it tastes better i may have over reacted and had an OMG moment ill let this one ride another week or two then rack into keg in toasted rum soaked oak chips. I dont wanna bottle at this stage and i can taste from keg on progress and thwn bottle once im happy with oak flavour or not.


So ill still go crazy on the cleaning. Ill still toss the Sandiego super yeast and cross my fingers that im not drinking drain cleaner in ayears time with this barley wine. It just tastes hot today a little sweet with a subtle hop aroma gravity is 1.026 73% attenuation but fermentation looks slow.

Oh my second runnings batch is sitting at 1.008 so its nearly done two i used a dry pack of morgans american ale and hopped with galaxy its got a cirtusy/lemony thing going on.
 
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I told you to be patient and not rush a beer that size:p.
There is a lot going on when fermenting high gravity beer. Lots of yeast farts need cleaned up. Give the fermenter a gentle rock to give it a little slosh once or twice a day to make the yeast suspend and finish up.
 
What do you mean mix it separately? Like mix one in and then the other? Or mix them in two separate buckets with water and then pour the buckets in together? I'm probably due to clean the shit out of my gear.
 
The guys over at Basic Brewing Radio had Charlie Talley inventor of Star San on their podcast... he used to work for Proctor & Gamble and recommends 1 Tablespoon of Clorox (not store brand) and 1 Tablespoon of Vinegar per 1 gallon of water... DO NOT mix the bleach and vinegar together pour them separately into the water..

Linky >> March 29, 2007 - Sanitizing with Bleach and Star San
 
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