StillSmart

Does anyone aerate their wash when then pitch the yeast ? other than thrashing it about

Was thinking about moving upto 200 litre drums if I get my shed up and had a cunning plan involving an air pump and a piece of silicon tube with holes in ... however concerned about increasing infection.

Would soaking a piece of felt used as the filter in an aquarium with star san cut the chances down ?

Iain

Iain,

When I fill the fermenter I use a hose, I set the nozzle to a powerful spray and place the nozzle a couple of inches away from the surface of the wash and give it a good blast. It gets the wash nice and foamy, I do not think I could get much more air in it if I tried. Once the yeasts start to do their stuff Oxygen is not needed, yeasts breath in sugar and breath out C02.

Are you worried about infection from the air pump or from it being in the shed?

I use a towel over the fermenter to stop the creepy crawlies getting in. In a vigourous ferment there is a layer of C02 at the top of the fermenter which isolates the wash from the atmosphere, in the years I made beer I never had an one infection using this method. I think that once the alchohol level in the wash rises it acts as its own disinfectant.

Perhaps I am being a bit laid back about the subject, I can afford to be as I only use a 22 litre fermenter, I would be devistated is I ever lost a 200 litre wash to an infection.

I usually use a stick blender just breaking the surface - works a treat.

Sometimes I use an aquarium airstone if I have to leave the wash to cool down. With the airstone I let it run for about 1 hour.

Infections are the pits I had one recently in a corn wash - 40lt down the drain, very, very disappointing so +1 what YHB said about losing a 200lt

Anyway, if you have an effective sterilisation routine I wouldn't worry about anything in the air you pump in as the wash has already been exposed to the air when you prepare your wash and between mixing, cooling, checking pH, taking gravity reading, pitching, etc., if there's anything in the air it's already in there.

Your risk of infections really only comes from dirty equipment.

200lt? - I'm very nosey what size still are you running and what are you making or intending to make?

AM

lol - at the minute I am using an air still but I am looking at converting a swan 26 litre tea urn to both a pot still for stripping then something that can reflux.

What i am finding is that there are so many things to try that its taking up most of my weekends trying to get wash brewed, cleared and stripped so I can play!

So my cunning plan is a shed (free from a mate!) and a couple of two hundred litre barrels .. one for fermenting, one for clearing. The reasoning is that I can dedicate one weekend to distilling then its pretty much it for a while apart from tinkering with flavours, etc.

So its not so much about making huge volumes as trying to save my time while still experimenting which is what really interests me about this hobby

Iain

Wow,you'll be a busy chap

I think you may just be upgrading your lack of time problem.

20 liter wash in an airstill at 4 liters per batch = 5 batches.

200 litre wash in a 26 litre tea urn = 10 batches( leaving a bit of space for foaming)

Even with a 50 litre keg boiler you will be looking at 5 batches, that is a lot to get through in a weekend.

true ... but looking on a month by month basis i can dedicate a whole weekend per month with no issue .. (no smart comments about feb lol) .. but as it is I always seem to be doing a stage at every weekend ... even doing the stripper run on a timer !

It's that or my logic is completely screwed up ... according to the missus that happens 9/10 times

Iain

Once upon a time I had 3 X 33lt fermenters and my Airstill and the going was rough. I used to run the strip for a whole weekend then one spirit run each night during the week good thing I'm not bothered with the telly

Upgraded to a 50lt keg being fed from two 60lt fermenters and each strip is now a doddle. However, the Spirit Run is a full day's work with no real breaks, you can't leave the still unless properly relieved.

The problem, as YHB alluded to, is upgrading the time problem.

For me, 2 X 60lt ferments means 110lt cleared beer + 10lt of Feints = 3 X 40lt stripping runs (10lt head room required in keg) then storage for the Low Wines is a problem and each Spirit Run is, as I said before, a full day's work.

I know too well the illusion that Bigger Ferments + Bigger Still = less working time = more play time - but it is an illusion. Having said that you won't see me getting rid of my 50lt Pot.

Distilling used to be just a hobby now the wife says it's my Jobby 'cause I'm always working at it

Keep us posted how you get on

AM

Just to echo what has been said above - 200l is too large for a 26l still.
Its never happened to me, but I would imagine continually opening a wash, and racking a small portion of it, would be a bigger risk to introducing an infection than air blasting the wash at the start IMO.

You would be better with 2x 50l drums to do 40L ferments in.
Each fermenter can do 2 x 20l strips, and if you have enough watts, you can do both strips (one fermenter full) in an evening, or successive days.
Stagger the ferments if you like, so you can strip them week about.

If you shoot for 10-12% ABV on your wash, by the time you strip the 80L you'll have enough low wines for a spirit run.

good advice (as usual !!) from you all - thank you

Place I am looking to get barrels from do 60 litre food grade barrels too so maybe that would be a better option ...

Mind you they also do a food grade barrel (if that's the right word) that holds over 1500 litres ..woo hoo !!!!!!!!!!!


Iain

Iain wrote:good advice (as usual !!) from you all - thank you

Place I am looking to get barrels from do 60 litre food grade barrels too so maybe that would be a better option ...

Mind you they also do a food grade barrel (if that's the right word) that holds over 1500 litres ..woo hoo !!!!!!!!!!!


Iain

LOL, I couldnt afford to do a wash that size

I once did a 25L ferment in a heatwave so I know how bad fusels can feel the morning after. Would be worse with a larger fermenter unless it was cooled somehow.

Good luck to anyone doing large ferments but I'm buying HBS fermenters until I've got enough.