whats the best way...

[Longrasser]

....to get the trub out of the bottom of a fermenter for re-use without getting it infected?

[shamus2]

start the new batch straight away and just chuck everything on top of the trub....

[Longrasser]

What about the icky ring left by the krausen?

[rwh]

Well if you want to clean the fermenter: sanitise a jar, scoop up some trub (a cupfull is about right), put the lid on, clean the fermenter, add your new wort and then pitch your jar of trub.

[Longrasser]

thats wot i was getting at rwh

Just tip up the tub and scoop out a cupful?

[rwh]

Yep. If you want to be thorough, after you put the lid on, wash and sanitise the outside of the jar too.

[the_fuzz]

sorry a little off topic - what are the benifits of using an existing trub as your starter?

Do you still need to add some yeast?

[rwh]

The benefit is that you have a massive population of viable yeast, which leads to a shorter lag time and less chance of infection or stuck ferment.

Disadvantages include an increased risk of autolysis and a chance of left-over flavours from the previous brew.

You don't need to any any additional yeast, in fact they'd be completely outnumbered by the existing yeast population.

[Rysa]

What is too old to do this? 2 weeks?

[chris.]

Disadvantages include an increased risk of autolysis and a chance of left-over flavours from the previous brew.

I'm surprised to hear that there would be an increased risk of autolysis. If your reusing a jar of trub (rather than the whole cake) I would assume that there would be minimal chance of this happening once the ferment takes hold?

For me the major disadvantage would be an increased risk of contracting an infection or the risk of passing one on.

[SpillsMostOfIt]

We speak of infection a lot in this place and whenever you do something to the beer you increase the risk of infection. No argument.

But (there is always a but)...

You need to get your sanitation processes right. If you do not, then do not pass Go. It's not too hard and there are lots of multi-nationals that can help you in your quest. Be anal. Do it more than you know you have to. Don't be wasteful, but make sure you nuke the buggers. If you are unsure, ask about *that* before you play.

Then, you can approach such experiments with confidence.

No offence to anyone, but we tend to use the risk of infection to scare ourselves away from doing stuff. Don't. Get sanitary and start playing!

Experiment! Don't expect that you will always get it right - if you did, there would be no road accidents, divorce, corporate collapse, Victoria Bitter...

It worked for me. It will work for you too.


This has been an unpaid announcement on behalf of the sanitation chemical companies of Australia.

[chris.]

This has been an unpaid announcement on behalf of the sanitation chemical companies of Australia.

Have you got any words to say on behalf of the rising damp, dry rot, wild yeast, general kitchen bacteria populations of Australia?

Not having a go at any one here, but sometimes infection is a very real possibility no matter how much chemicals you use. Especially, if like myself, the conditions you brew in are less than ideal.

[Tourist]

Not having a go at any one here

...for a change

[SpillsMostOfIt]

This has been an unpaid announcement on behalf of the sanitation chemical companies of Australia.

Have you got any words to say on behalf of the rising damp, dry rot, wild yeast, general kitchen bacteria populations of Australia?

Not having a go at any one here, but sometimes infection is a very real possibility no matter how much chemicals you use. Especially, if like myself, the conditions you brew in are less than ideal.

I certainly understand the concept of 'less than ideal'. If you saw how/where I brew...

I reckon that protection against infection is - for me - the most compelling reason to go to some of these fully-plumbed brewing sculptures (apart from the sheer gear freakiness of the things). However, for most of us, there are a number of things that preclude such things and we just have to devise methods to ameliorate the risks. It's difficult to completely remove some risks, but I reckon you can come pretty close in many cases.

[ryan]

that`s what I reckon too. As long as we can ameliorate, we will be right.

[ryan]

won`t we?

[rwh]

Most of the time. Statistically.

[chris.]

However, for most of us, there are a number of things that preclude such things and we just have to devise methods to ameliorate the risks. It's difficult to completely remove some risks, but I reckon you can come pretty close in many cases.

Yes I agree.

But IMO it's worth weighing up the risks versus the benefits. Ie. is it really worth risking a full 20+ litres of wort to save yourself $3.90 on a packet of Safale by re-pitching?

[chris.]

Not having a go at any one here

...for a change

you funny.

Back off... I had one of those rare moments where I wasn't drunk or hungover.

[SpillsMostOfIt]

Ie. is it really worth risking a full 20+ litres of wort to save yourself $3.90 on a packet of Safale by re-pitching?

Agreed. I'm thinking of repitching onto some Fermentis US-56 after Easter, just to speed things up (and deprive Brewcraft of some income ), but there is bugger all economic reason to do it unless you're really in a bind.

But, if you've got the liquid yeast habit, you're probably going to try to find a way to leverage that investment.

And (to continue my new-found habit of poorly forming sentences), there is an element of "I can, therefore, I do." which is valid for the sake of the craft.

Further, if we don't buy lots of sanitisers, how can the poor chemical companies develop new products?