StarSan and the health of yeast

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Scott Butler

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Going to harvest yeast off my next brew. It may only be $8.99 for the yeast, but if I can reuse it six or ten times....well that just paid for a few grain bills.

So, that said....

Sanitizing....how does StarSan not effect the health of my yeastie friends?
Or does it, and just by the huge numbers harvested that they survive?

How long can my harvested friends be kept before another brew is made?
And finally, is anyone using the scientific speality flask(sort of looks like a conical fermenter, but it's 1000ml and made out of glass)?



Thanks
Scott
 
What do you mean about starsan? What are you planning to use it for?

I do lots of yeast harvesting and I starsan the vessel before using it.

I have reused yeast that was 6 months old without issue, I generally do a starter though and harvest from the starter for the next batch so I recharge the yeast.

Do you mean an Erlenmeyer flask? If so get at least a 2000ml one, a 1000ml one won't be big enough.
 
I have always heard that the acid in SS acts as something of a yeast nutrient .. I honestly don't know the source for that .. except my friend Butch
 
Star-san is essentially phosphoric acid and a surfactant - the foaming part. It's used at a fairly low concentration - 1 ounce to 5 gallons, or 1:640 concentration, so the mixed sanitizer you're using is mostly water. So there's a very tiny quantity of its ingredients left behind. If you're concerned and have a pH meter, try measuring the pH of water you're adding to a carboy. Sanitize it as usual, then add the water back and mix. Measure the pH again and see what change you have. There won't be much, if any at all. That's the effect on your yeast.
 
soccerdad said:
I have always heard that the acid in SS acts as something of a yeast nutrient .. I honestly don't know the source for that .. except my friend Butch
Click to expand...

I don't know if that's homebrewing folklore or true, but I've heard the same. I do know I've never feared the foam when it comes to harvesting and saving yeast and sanitizing with Star San.
 
It provides a bit of phosphate and all living things need it. But that's not a primary function and there's enough phosphate in the wort to satisfy the yeast, as long as you're reasonable with adjuncts.
 
So when I use StarSan, I will not kill one single cell of yeast that is harvested in the container that I sprayed with the solution?

Then how does that explain this?


I currently just boil the containers(mason jars) for ten minutes, harvest yeast into the jars and wash as necessary(using more of the boil mason jars). I spray the StarSan onto the lids and 'rings' and generally my hands are dripping with the stuff too.... I haven't been needing the same yeast yet(collected three different types), but I am hoping it'll still be good.



HAWKBOX, thanks for the head's up on the 2000ml size....that'll save me some future headaches.



Thanks again
Scott
 
SDB777 said:
So when I use StarSan, I will not kill one single cell of yeast that is harvested in the container that I sprayed with the solution?

Then how does that explain this?


I currently just boil the containers(mason jars) for ten minutes, harvest yeast into the jars and wash as necessary(using more of the boil mason jars). I spray the StarSan onto the lids and 'rings' and generally my hands are dripping with the stuff too.... I haven't been needing the same yeast yet(collected three different types), but I am hoping it'll still be good.



HAWKBOX, thanks for the head's up on the 2000ml size....that'll save me some future headaches.



Thanks again
Scott
Click to expand...
Hang around the Internet long enough and you'll find someone that insists the earth is flat. And will provide scientificly sounding evidence to prove it. If you're interested in the death of one single cell, you're concentrating on the wrong thing. I don't see anything wrong with your process but be aware: Screwing the mason jar lids on will likely kill thousands, if not millions of yeast cells by crushing them.... ;-)

It should last a week or two, after that, you'll need a starter.
 
If you are using star san or any other liquid sanitizer as long as you drain the container before putting the yeast into it there won't be enough sanitizer left to kill many yeast cells. By the time all the yeast slurry is in there it will dilute the sanitizer so much it will be ineffective.
 
You'll probably kill a bunch of cells, that's why you fill the jar with way more than you need.

This is all eyeballing unless you buy some really fancy gear. I also like my 5000ML Erlenmeyer but I've started doing 10 gallon batches and it makes things easier.
 
I've also heard of brewers acid washing their saved yeast with phosphoric acid I've not tried this myself but I see the thinking behind it meaning the acid will/should kill foreign microbes but wont harm the brewers yeast. Just to throw another 2c in the fermenter :rolleyes:
 
Stories like these keep making the rounds, despite plenty of evidence to the contrary.

Maybe there's a Brew-Anon group out there starting these theories. ;)
 
BREW ANON... oh that's rich! There's a brewery in Georgetown where the brewers eat baby yeast cells so they can perform mind control on the Bud drinking populace of the east coast...
I mean it's gotta be true...I read it on the internet!

I think we gotta bot on our hands. Hey Galokz.....show me the picture that's not a door!
 
Whichever way, I'm glad with the thread coming back up, as I am about to harvest yeast for the first time (not just keeping it in the fermenter to re-use) :)
 
Zambezi Special said:
Whichever way, I'm glad with the thread coming back up, as I am about to harvest yeast for the first time (not just keeping it in the fermenter to re-use) :)
Click to expand...
It’s easy, I do it without StarSan. Using a clean mason jar, or similar, pour boiling water to fill the jar to overflow, and drown the lid parts, too. Pour thoroughly shaken yeast slurry directly from fermenter into sanitized, empty mason jar, put in fridge. Use it straight outa the jar a week or two after collection (or longer), otherwise make a vitality starter.
The real beauty is the small space it takes in your fridge, and the space it opens in your cool box. You get to brew more, with captured yeast.
 
You got it Herm!
It was all easy without temperature control as I had all the space I wanted ;)
Now it's at a premium.

So I can keep the slurry in the standard fridge?
Should I let it come to pitch temperature before pouring into the wort?
 
Kveik works REALLY good with this method...Herms is on point with that protocol; I'd only add to not screw down too much with the jar. I keep my jars in a tray with a high lip just in case. Again...I've never had a problem but it's easier than cleaning up the mess if I did!
 
Did I get this wrong, or were people calling Sui Generis a conspiracy theorist? He's certainly someone I'd trust over 99% of sources I've seen. Acids kill yeast, but with the amount of yeast cells we're playing with at pitching and capture the ones killed by StarSan are just a rounding error.
 
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