I Think Its Too Cold

[Aces High]

I brewed my first all grain on sunday, slightly missed my strike temp and end up with a pilsner of about 1060. I then did a no chill in a cube and threw it in the fementer yesterday afternoon with a saf US-05 which I had started yesterday morning. I just checked the beer and it hasn't started bubbling.

The cube had been in the cold shed all day yesterday before pitching and when i put it in the fementer it was probably around 15 degrees. I haven't actually tried the no chill method before, so is it possible that it was too cold to get the yeast started? Whats the best way to get it started as I dont really have any good way to heat it. I was hoping the shed would heat up a bit today, but it was pretty cold again. I just gave it a stir to get the yeast back into suspension, any other ideas?

 

[big78sam]

I brewed my first all grain on sunday, slightly missed my strike temp and end up with a pilsner of about 1060. I then did a no chill in a cube and threw it in the fementer yesterday afternoon with a saf US-05 which I had started yesterday morning. I just checked the beer and it hasn't started bubbling.

The cube had been in the cold shed all day yesterday before pitching and when i put it in the fementer it was probably around 15 degrees. I haven't actually tried the no chill method before, so is it possible that it was too cold to get the yeast started? Whats the best way to get it started as I dont really have any good way to heat it. I was hoping the shed would heat up a bit today, but it was pretty cold again. I just gave it a stir to get the yeast back into suspension, any other ideas?

You should be fine. At colder temperatures it might take a bit longer to kick off. You can ignore the airlock as this will not always bubble. Has the SG dropped? Did you take an OG at room temperature? I would do so if you hadn't so you'll know what you're starting with. You can always chuck a blanket over the fermentor and add a PET with hot water if you want to raise the temperature by a few degrees. 15 should be OK with US05 though so I wouldn't do this just yet.

Refer to the link below. 15 is at the bottom end of the temperature range.

http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=ca...TSRpwnyDxj8dlCg

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

Just leave it...

DO NOT PLAY WITH IT


The yeast will take a bit longer to fire up, but that is a good thing..

As long as it is above *15c you wont have a prob..


It is actually better sometimes to have an ale yeast ferment at a lower temp. It will take longer but the beer will be better

 

[fawnroux]

15 degrees is the bottom end of workability for this yeast. It may take a while to get going. One day isn't unheard of for a dry yeast to get started. Do you know how old the yeast was? Do you know how well it was looked after before you bought it ie: was it on a shelf, not in a fridge? If the yeast wasn't healthy before it got to you, thats obviously going to be an issue.

How warm is it in you house? Have you got a spare room? You could bring it inside if you are wanting to bring the temp up. It should work at 15 degrees though, just will take longer. I've heard of lads doing faux lagers with the US-05 at those temps. Give it another day at least before you start worrying.

BTW, your OP said you ended up with a pilsner of 1060, but you're using an Ale yeast. What style beer are you looking to brew?

Dave

Edit: Too slow!!

 

[Aces High]

15 degrees is the bottom end of workability for this yeast. It may take a while to get going. One day isn't unheard of for a dry yeast to get started. Do you know how old the yeast was? Do you know how well it was looked after before you bought it ie: was it on a shelf, not in a fridge? If the yeast wasn't healthy before it got to you, thats obviously going to be an issue.

How warm is it in you house? Have you got a spare room? You could bring it inside if you are wanting to bring the temp up. It should work at 15 degrees though, just will take longer. I've heard of lads doing faux lagers with the US-05 at those temps. Give it another day at least before you start worrying.

BTW, your OP said you ended up with a pilsner of 1060, but you're using an Ale yeast. What style beer are you looking to brew?

Dave

Yeast was in the fridge at the LHBS, they're usually pretty good with their quality. This was basically a faux pilsner. Ive done partial pilsners before & used US-05, not sure what Im really going for, but its usually a good quaffer around our house. So i thought i would try and all grain version while i still has some partial left in the keg and do a side by side comparison. I don't have a frementing fridge and I didn't think it would be cold enough to use a larger yeast...well maybe it will be.

The general concensus seems to be leave it the f... alone. I think i will take that advice and see what happens. cheers

 

[fawnroux]

not sure what Im really going for, but its usually a good quaffer around our house.

Thats as good as reason as any :chug:

I don't know how cold it gets in Perth over winters, but if you were wanting to try a different yeast around the 15/16 temp range, you could always try the Wyeast 2112 California Lager. It's range is 14-18 degrees. I haven't used it, but I hear good things.

 

[Bribie G]

How did you "start" the US-05? Dried yeasts come prepackaged with all the lipids etc that they need to kick of quickly but work best if they are rehydrated first in warm water per instructions, then the resulting frothy cream poured into the wort and given a good thrashing to oxygenate. By "starting" a dried yeast in advance and trying to grow it up a bit before pitching, you may actually be working against yourself.
I'm sure it will be off an running soon, I find that US-05 isn't the most lively yeast and can take a fair amount of time to stop bubbling at the best of times.

 

[jkmeldrum]

I brewed my first all grain on sunday, slightly missed my strike temp and end up with a pilsner of about 1060. I then did a no chill in a cube and threw it in the fementer yesterday afternoon with a saf US-05 which I had started yesterday morning. I just checked the beer and it hasn't started bubbling.

The cube had been in the cold shed all day yesterday before pitching and when i put it in the fementer it was probably around 15 degrees. I haven't actually tried the no chill method before, so is it possible that it was too cold to get the yeast started? Whats the best way to get it started as I dont really have any good way to heat it. I was hoping the shed would heat up a bit today, but it was pretty cold again. I just gave it a stir to get the yeast back into suspension, any other ideas?

Welcom aboard Aces High!

Just made my change to the dark side a little while ago.....got 8 AG's under my belt now, but I reckon I've stuffed something up on every single one so far, bar the very last one...from missing strike temp to forgetting to close the tap on the fermenter (and ending up with my precious wort all over the kitchen floor!!!) you name it, I've done it WRONG.......but I finally aced it with my last effort....lucky number 8!

I think it takes a while to get used to all your gear, your software, and the process, but even the stuff ups have been okay......hoping for the perfect brew into the bottle in a few weeks!!!

I've done quite a bit of extract brewing over the years and I have to concur with one of the previous replies that sometimes the slower/cooler ferments have been much better in the long run.

I also use US05 quite a bit...my latest went into the fermenter at about 18C and is now sitting about 20C after 2 days, but it took about 1.5 days to get going in this weather, firing along quite nicely now, krausen just forming tonight.....hopefully yours will kick into gear soon too!

Good luck