HomeBrew: Starter and Stirplates

[MX]

So, I think the stir plate is finished, I m pretty proud of myself....used a USB cable to power a 12v 120mm CPU fan.
Starts up slow enough to not throw the stir bar, and has been pulling a vortex for about 30 min now in about 3/4 gallon of water.
So I think it is a success.

Now, the questions:

1. With a 1 gallon jar, i can make a 1/2 gallon starter, will that be enough for a 5 gallon batch of beer....I don't brew big, nothing over about 8%
2. Do I just let the vortex run, for 24-72 hours util I am ready to use it? Or do i need to let it settle for a day or so?

that's all for now...

Tim

 

[beyond the band]

I usually grasp the neck of the bottle firmly with my right hand then take the edge of my pocket knife and rock it over my right index knuckle and POP the cap comes right off!
Drink, enjoy, repeat!

What you are talking about here goes beyond my knowledge base. Funny I'm in the beer forum reading a thread about home brewing. Damn this place is dangerous!!!!

 

[robbiex0r]

A half gallon starter (1.8L) will be more than sufficient, unless you're doing super high gravity. I will sometimes take a vial of yeast, build a 500mL starter using 10:1 ratio of water:dme. 500ml water, 50g of DME. This comes out to something like 1.050 or so. 24hours on the stirplate, chill, decant the clear liquid, then step the thing up to one liter. If you're using a smack pack, you could probably go right for the one liter starter.

See here for pitching rates: http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html They tend to calculate on the high and ideal side, so keep that in mind.

 

[BitterRat]

I use 1 qt starter for ales of normal strength ie 1.050 or lower and 2 qts for higher OG and 2 qts for lagers. You will find your yeast will be healthier and have much more by using a stir plate. I ran my stir plate for long periods, but now I let it run for only a few hrs and get as good or better activity from my yeast. I suggest trying different lengths of time running it to see what works best for you!

 

[Mr Peat]

I've pitched it straight in without a starter and it worked every single time. My biggest starter I made was 2 cups worth and it did the job perfectly. Like it was already said if you are doing high alcohol beers, the starter should work pretty damn well. Since you are not brewing over 8%, the 1/2 gallon starter is really overkill.

Once you are ready to pitch in, toss the starter straight in. If you wait 48 to 72 hours, your starter should be good to go. Just remember to not use so much "sugar" for it to feed on that all you do is pitch something already high in alcohol. The yeast still needs to be hungry when pitched.