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What's with the huge Krausen?


YannickB

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Started a Real Ale kit yesterday with 1.3 kg LDME. It's about my 20th brew but this one is special. The biggest krausen I've seen so far. I brew with a bucket/garbage bag (new every brew). Temp is around 21 degres. I have to blow off some CO2 every 15 minutes coz the garbage bag is blown like crazy and about to get off the bucket coz of the pressure. Can anyone tell me if I'll have to stay awake all night to watch it or if it will slow down in a couple of hours? And by the way, I read that it does that sometime (crazy krausen) but what are the usual reasons? Why this time, this brew? I guess the Coopers dry yeast were pretty in shape this time!!

 

ps. No lid with airlock so the "blow off tube" is out of the question. Anyway, it never does that normaly... just this time.

 

pps. My wife is pissed coz of the mess it made when the garbage bag blew the first time. My house has a lovely brewing smell right now... just don't know why my wife doesn't agree with the "lovely" smell.

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Started a Real Ale kit yesterday with 1.3 kg LDME. It's about my 20th brew but this one is special. The biggest krausen I've seen so far. I brew with a bucket/garbage bag (new every brew). Temp is around 21 degres. I have to blow off some CO2 every 15 minutes coz the garbage bag is blown like crazy and about to get off the bucket coz of the pressure. Can anyone tell me if I'll have to stay awake all night to watch it or if it will slow down in a couple of hours? And by the way, I read that it does that sometime (crazy krausen) but what are the usual reasons? Why this time, this brew? I guess the Coopers dry yeast were pretty in shape this time!!

 

ps. No lid with airlock so the "blow off tube" is out of the question. Anyway, it never does that normaly... just this time.

 

pps. My wife is pissed coz of the mess it made when the garbage bag blew the first time. My house has a lovely brewing smell right now... just don't know why my wife doesn't agree with the "lovely" smell.

 

He he...run a tape measure up the wall and see how far that rubbish bag will fly up the wall when it "launches" [biggrin]

 

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I've seen at those U Brew It places that they place a plastic bag in the FV and away they go. I asked why and the "dude" said "soo I doont hav 2 kleen up 2 much...derrrr.(just me doing bad 18yr old slang). Either way I guess it works because they still screwed a lid on and put an air lock in place.

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Yannick,

Pierce a small hole into the end of the bag so the C02 can escape as the bag fully inflates.

 

I use to make Alcoholic Ginger Beer (from a ginger plant) in 5 Litre jugs sealed with balloons. If the balloon began to over-inflate, a tiny pin-prick was all that was needed to allow enough gas to escape to prevent the balloon bursting or blowing off the bottle neck.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thanks about the little hole to let the pressure go. I guess (next time it happens) I'll have to change the bag as soon as the krausen has dropped so no oxygen will affect the brew.

 

@ Yob: People often use a pail with a plastic wrap held with a undies strap to hold it. My version of it: A clean (new every time) garbage bag with an elastic (strong enough) that hold it. Normally (but not this time), there's a normal krausen and the plastic bag blow a little, the excess CO2 going out between the elastic and the pail. So... no oxygen going inside coz of the positive pressure.

 

By the way, nobody really answered the question: Why this crazy krausen this time, this brew? My brewing conditions were the same, no special yeast, no special ingredients and already did this brew in the past...

 

Thanks guys!

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@ Weggl: Why piss the bag off? My version is pretty much the same as the gladwrap (am french but I assume the gladwrap is like "cleanwrap" or any of those transparent elastic wrap for food). The main difference being that I don't see my brew through a garbage bag.

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there doesnt really have to be a 'reason' for it mate, could be just that you have a lively batch of yeasties... same brews Ive noticed huge variations in Krausen behaviour... each one can vary and is nothing to worry about but just something to be vigilant about in case of mess.

 

I would think about top cropping the excess yeast to use again if they prove to finish in the way you want.

 

Yob

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Well,I've found when I make a small starter,or add 2tsp dextrose to my re-hydrating water,I need to take off the airlock & run a blow off tube into a jug of water. Temps & yeast pitched at high krausen account for this. The temps don't have to be that high, either.

Initial fermentation will go faster too. But in warm weather,that's a good thing. Less time to make off flavors. And more time to let the yeast clean up what they did make.

I had to laugh the 1st time I heard the blow off tube in that jug of water. It sounded like someone ripped a big one in the bath tub...At least when yeasties rip one,it smells better...[roll]

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