Stalled Fermentation

[Sneddy]

Hey all,

Just have a bit of a problem.

I've put on my 2 first brews on on the 30/09/10 and they're still in the fermenter waiting to hit 1.010 or below. I don't know how to get them started up again.

Details are:

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Tooheys Lager Kit
500g Maltodextrin
Morgans Ale Yeast (sprinkled on top)
A fairly stable temp of 20-24C

Forgot to check the the OG before I pitched the yeast (30/09/10) - but on the
01/10/10 - 1.036
05/10/10 - 1.024
11/10/10 - 1.022 ----- Sat on this for 2 days and then it just started up again after I let some gush out of the tap by accident... Don't know what happened to kick it off again.
12/10/10 - 1.016 ----- And it's been sitting on this every day since.

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Tooheys Draught Kit
1kg Coopers Brew Enhancer
Morgans Ale Yeast (sprinkled on top)
Temp - 20-24C

Same deal with the OG.
01/10/10 - 1.046
05/10/10 - 1.030
11/10/10 - 1.022 ----- Has been on this ever since.

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So what can I do to kick these bastards back into action? Really appreciate any advice you can give - I'm suffering from noob panic!

Thanks heaps!

Marc

 

[zebba]

Pick up the fermenter and swirl it around, trying not to splash. This will stir the yeast up from the bottom.

Mind you, I can't believe that the fermentation has stopped given those ingredients and gravity readings. Something else is up, and I'm thinking that just swirling the fermenter won't be enough. Are you sure it has stayed at those temps?

 

[beerdrinkingbob]

how many litres are you fermenting in each one ?

I have used champangne yeast to finish beers off and it dropped them 5 points.

There will be lots of good ideas from senior members, so hang in there you should have a few options soon :drinks:

 

[Sneddy]

Both brews were about 22ish litres.

As for temps, may have deviated +/- 2. But as far as I know they should have been fairly stable. Have a heater pad to warm them if the night is really cold - but I haven't really had to use it.

 

[zebba]

Maybe dodgy hydro? Float the hydrometer in plain water. It should read 1.000.

 

[Sneddy]

Do that every time I rinse it.

Definitely floats at 1.000.

 

[Sneddy]

I think I read somewhere that Maltodextrin doesn't fully ferment - if this is the case, could it just be that this is my final gravity?

Might be a stupid question, but thought I'd ask anyway - it's 2 weeks since I put them in and I thought Ales would have been ready to bottle by now...

 

[zebba]

I think I read somewhere that Maltodextrin doesn't fully ferment - if this is the case, could it just be that this is my final gravity?

Might be a stupid question, but thought I'd ask anyway - it's 2 weeks since I put them in and I thought Ales would have been ready to bottle by now...

As the only fermentables you listed in that one are the tin and the maltodextrin, I would think it should go lower. You are right though when you say that maltodextrin is not very fermentable.

 

[Bubba]

I think I read somewhere that Maltodextrin doesn't fully ferment - if this is the case, could it just be that this is my final gravity?

Might be a stupid question, but thought I'd ask anyway - it's 2 weeks since I put them in and I thought Ales would have been ready to bottle by now...

Maldodextrin doesn't ferment, and 500g will give you a higher FG. Doesnt explain what happened with your BE1 though, it is way too high...1022 for your draught kit is not safe to bottle.
There are lots of options, more than I can probably recommend but afew are as follows.

1) Repitch new yeast and see if it kicks off fermentation again.
2) Swirl fermenter to reagitate yeast, don't splash it.
3) Take a test sample in a bottle covered in glad wrap, take the gravity reading, agitate it (swirl it regularly) over a period of 3 days and then check the gravity again and see if it has moved. This will determine if it is indeed stuck or finished.

There will be heaps more suggestions.

One thing I always do when pitching initial yeast that is sprinkled on top, it to stir it in and really agitate the wort before covering the fermenter to aerate the yeast, fermentation always starts quickly within 12-24 hours and never had stalled brews.

 

[Sneddy]

^So pitching new yeast is possible then?

I have another/spare 6g bag of Morgans Ale yeast which I was thinking of splitting between the Lager and Draught to kick start it again. I was going to rehydrate it this time though before pitching to get some faster activation... Or should I just sprinkle it again.

Blast! Just my luck that my first 2 brews after 12 years and they both friggen stall on me!

 

[Sneddy]

I forgot to mention - and I don't know if it makes a difference - but both kit's were out of date by a fair shot when I made them up. I went and bought new yeast to work with them and the bloke at the brew shop said they should be perfect as long as the inside of the cans looks in good nick - which they did.

Would using aged extract increase the final gravity at all?

 

[drtomc]

Not usually. Kits often darken somewhat with age, and the can acquire a more pronounced "kit twang" with age. The latter will tend to dissipate with time in the bottle. When I was doing kits, I tended to let them condition in the bottle for a good month or two, but which time the kit twang is much less.

T.

 

[felten]

If you are repitching, definitely hydrate it first.

 

[JunkzOr]

My Muntons Highland Heavy stalled at 1020 despite temps being good which gave me the irates, finally gave it a good swirl and yesterday it read 1016 after almost 3 weeks in the fermenter.. If things go well it will drop to 1014 and I can finally bottle it and put it away for at least 3 months and work on some megaswill.

 

[Sneddy]

Okay, so I repitched it today with my spare yeast. Rehydrated first then poured in slowly and delicately so I don't make it bubble. Gave it a quick swizzle and locked it up again.

Lets hope it starts bloody working now.

 

[cdbrown]

Did you try picking it up and giving a swirl yesterday and then tested the grav today or just went straight into repitch?

 

[Sneddy]

Gave it a swirl first thing as soon as it was mentioned... Gravity hadn't budged at all.

I suspected that the bump I gave the lager when the tap wouldn't turn off was what brought it back to life so the swirl made sense to me. But it didn't work that time.

If it doesn't move now I'm going to assume that all the fermentables have been consumed.

 

[colonel]

I tend to think that if it's stopped bubbling, it's ready.
I'm no expert, I've only bottled 308 batches (admittedly, all kits), and gave up using the hydrometer at about batch no.10
Keep it simple

Cheers.

Gave it a swirl first thing as soon as it was mentioned... Gravity hadn't budged at all.

I suspected that the bump I gave the lager when the tap wouldn't turn off was what brought it back to life so the swirl made sense to me. But it didn't work that time.

If it doesn't move now I'm going to assume that all the fermentables have been consumed.

 

[Sneddy]

Well if it doesn't budge off it's gravity for a few days then I'm going to assume they're bottle ready too - no harm in trying though.

 

[brett mccluskey]

I tend to think that if it's stopped bubbling, it's ready.
I'm no expert, I've only bottled 308 batches (admittedly, all kits), and gave up using the hydrometer at about batch no.10
Keep it simple

Cheers.

Sorry colonel .but i can't agree with that at all. A hydrometer is a vital scientific instrument that can alert you to problems while they are still able to be remediedAs shown by the current thread.If you catch a fermentation problem early,you can remedy it.You can't do that without a hydrometer.It IS simple,a sample jar and a measurement with the hydro The degree of attenuation you achieve depends upon the size and health of your yeast population and the composition of your wort ,different extracts will have different fermentability.Don't know about this one,but it seems bloody high to me for any kit.At this stage of attenuation i'd pitch fresh yeast (NO aeration),gently rouse the sediment,make sure it's at temp. and pray for a drop. If it doesn't fire up then consider bottling it with 1/2 the priming sugar,and in PET bottles,just in case things start up again in the bottle. :icon_cheers: If it turns out ok ,but sweet and a bit flat,you can always mix another beer in the glass 50/50 or whatever :super: