3rd all grain what's gone wrong.

[matt.]

Stove top boil.
10 litres. Pale malt 1200 gm + 6 gm black malt.
Mashed 1 HR. Then boiled 1 HR.
Fuggles 10 GM at start, then 10 GM after 45 mins . Protafloc half a tablet at 50 mins ( for the last 10 mins of boil )
I started the mash with 11 liters.
At boil I had 10 litres.
I sparged with 1 liter so boiled with 11.
At end of boil I had 10 litres.

Protafloc had done it's job but after cooling with ice in the sink down to 26° I could only transfer 7 litres of clear liquid into FV.
3 liters were thick slush. I had to throw them away.

What did I do wrong?

Yeast added at 26+°
SAFale S04.
SG 1030
This was half an hour ago so still to take.

So the question is; why did I have to leave 3 litres behind?

 

[Clint]

Too much protofloc?

 

[matt.]

Too much protofloc?

Sorry, I should have mentioned, just half a tablet.

 

[Clint]

You did. That's why I suggested it but I might be wrong!

 

[matt.]

Just noticed the label; half tablet for 25 liters.
So for my 10 litres it should have been a quarter!

 

[borischarlton]

Sorry, I should have mentioned, just half a tablet.

That's too much. It is very approximate but for a 23l batch I suggest 1/4 of a tablet. For smaller batches you maybe better off crushing a tablet and just using the tip of a teaspoon as a measure. About 1/8 of a tablet for 10 litres.

 

[Rodcx500z]

Clint beat me to it, i only use 0.5g in 21L

 

[matt.]

That's too much. It is very approximate but for a 23l batch I suggest 1/4 of a tablet. For smaller batches you maybe better off crushing a tablet and just using the tip of a teaspoon as a measure. About 1/8 of a tablet for 10 litres.

Thanks. Much appreciated.
The last time this happened, as the yeast fermented it threw up the trub. A constant circulation of muck!
Hopefully this brew isn't so bad.
When the fermentation has finished I hope it will clear to some degree.
Again, many thanks.
I'm getting there, slowly!
Matt

 

[Caramel Ox]

Having some trub transferred isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it will generally be fine and end up just as clear. The other thing you can do is put that 3L in a clean container in the fridge for a few hours, you will get a further separation of clear wort you can add to the fermenter.

 

[Sadfield]

What did I do wrong?

Nothing really.

Most of that trub will be separated from wort at some point, if you use less protofloc it'll get carried over to the FV and drop out with the yeast. Any that doesn't will drop out in the bottle.

The likelyhood is you'll now get less of a loss after fermentation. All these losses need recording and accommodating for in future batches.

 

[Clint]

As for the fermentation throwing up the trub that's supposed to happen..or usually does.

 

[Sadfield]

What @Clint said. A bit of trub in the FV acts as a nucleation point for Co2 and can help remove Co2, improving yeast performance.

 

[foxy]

Stove top boil.
10 litres. Pale malt 1200 gm + 6 gm black malt.
Mashed 1 HR. Then boiled 1 HR.
Fuggles 10 GM at start, then 10 GM after 45 mins . Protafloc half a tablet at 50 mins ( for the last 10 mins of boil )
I started the mash with 11 liters.
At boil I had 10 litres.
I sparged with 1 liter so boiled with 11.
At end of boil I had 10 litres.

Protafloc had done it's job but after cooling with ice in the sink down to 26° I could only transfer 7 litres of clear liquid into FV.
3 liters were thick slush. I had to throw them away.

What did I do wrong?

Yeast added at 26+°
SAFale S04.
SG 1030
This was half an hour ago so still to take.

So the question is; why did I have to leave 3 litres behind?

As has been suggested pour the kettle trub into a jug and refrigerate the trub will drop down to the bottom then pour into a saucepan and take up to 80C to sterilise and add to fermenter after cooling. A good clean hydrometer sample but.

 

[Frisp]

I remember my second AG brew. 23L of "cant remember" . I decided that as the 1st AG brew wasnt clear enough using 1 Protofloc Id throw two in the boil and I ended up with what I can only descrivbe as a tub of floating Cauliflower at the cold break. brew turned out nice enough after fermentation but boy was there a lot of sludge left in the kettle

 

[Rodcx500z]

I started this on Monday as you can see it is done and starting to drop, I used 0.5 gr of protofloc in the kettle

 

[jof]

I tend to save protofloc for 25l brews & use Irish moss on smaller batches.
I just find it easier to put a bit on a spoon rather than trying to cut up protofloc tabs

 

[Rwilts]

I have used a whole tablet in every batch irrespective of size (19-25) know it's over pitching but never caused me an issue.

 

[Frisp]

A Question for the wise ones. Im curious. . Does it make any great difference whether we over pitch whirlyfloc and lose trub in teh boiler, or correctly pitch and have some dropped in the boiler and someprotein dropping in the fermenter.

 

[Rodcx500z]

Sometimes i forget to put it in at all, and i can honestly say i have not noticed a difference

 

[Sadfield]

It's finding a balance between the two.

Too much protofloc can have a negative affect on head retention by removing desirable proteins.

Too much trub in the FV can carry more lipids (fats) into the beer, which can also reduce foam stability, plus cause haze and accelerate beer staling.