New brewer, new equipment, 2 bad batches, help?

[Kenneth Harvey]

Hi.

I have just recently started with homebrew (I did have previous experience but so little it is irrelevant)

I brought a Northern Brewer kit and the bucket has seen 2 batches of beer through it so far, the one that came with it, and the second is just a simple ginger beer and yet both batches of beer have turned sour.

Both batches I had trouble pitching the yeast in both. I started the yeast off in water boiled then left to cool to just above blood temperature and pitched the yeast into it, waited for it to reactivate then pitched that into the wort.

But as said, both batches brewed in this bucket have soured. Is it possible there is a problem with the bucket despite it being brand new?

Last month I started 3 gallons of ginger beer in a wilko bucket I brought about 10 years ago and it turned out amazing and I have perry bubbling away nicely in another bucket.

Little confused. I have an AG recipe measured out and I don't want to start it just yet as I don't want to waste more money.

Currently I am using a home made MDF brew cupboard heated to a constant 20 dungarees metric.

 

[Clint]

You may have an infection in that bucket...either stop using it or bleach it! Then bleach everything else...overnight,rinse to death then sanitiser.

 

[terrym]

Do wot Clint said and sprinkle the yeast next time.
Presumably you kept the FV lid on whenever practicable.

 

[ElvisIsBeer]

Isn't blood temp quite hot?

 

[Llamaman]

Isn't blood temp quite hot?

36.5 to 37.2 degrees.
So yes, way too hot for kit yeast. Probably ok for a kveik though!

 

[Clint]

Don't use dungarees ....

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi!
I agree with @ElvisIsBeer and @terrym
You are rehydrating your yeast too warm. Sprinkle it on the surface of the wort next time . . . and clean the Bejesus out of that FV.

 

[Kenneth Harvey]

Ok, thanks for all your help.

If that is the problem I think I will be tempted into replacing my FV's with Carboys. I have a bunch of 1 gallon demijohns I inherited but I find them more.. interesting? to clean.

 

[Llamaman]

Nothing wrong with plain buckets - easy to clean and nigh on impossible to break.

Just don’t kill your yeast by boiling it to death!

 

[matt76]

I started with a Northern Brewer Block Party kit - I used the plastic FV a couple of times so nothing fundamentally wrong with it, so give it a good clean as per the suggestions above (including the lid, airlock and rubber grommet too)

If you've got the same or similar kit then there's lots of other handy bits and pieces in there too.

As a newbie myself I strongly recommend you invest in a thermometer and a hydrometer (which didn't come with my kit at least) - loads of the, I got these:

Home Brew Thermometer 52mm Dial... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B071KRV7DT/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Home Brew Online Hydrometer,... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00UTKZWVS/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Best of luck, stick with it, it'll be with it