Woodfordes kit - slow starter?

[WhatsYerPoison]

Set my first woodfordes kit (wherrry) going on Monday night, it's now Thursday morning with little sign of action.

I'm wondering if I didn't stir the mixture enough. The order I did things was:

- Sterilize FV
- Empty cans into the kit (now wish I'd poured in hot water first)
- Poured in 6 pints of hot water
- Stirred for a couple of minutes
- Topped up with cold water
- Stirred again for a couple of minutes
- Added yeast
- Stuck the lid on and left at a fairly stable 20degrees

I'm starting to think I didn't stir it enough. I was a bit worried about leaving it open to the air too long in case it got contaminated, but maybe I haven't got it all mixed up and aerated enough. I did my best to stir the gunk from the bottom of the fv but maybe not enough?

The only action so far is a brown stain forming on the lid, no bubbles.


Appreciate the help, and cheers for a great forum, it's helped me fill the cupboards with decent wine and cider so far! :

 

[klaus]

"Little sign of action" ....

So you have some activity - the best bits are yet to come!

Check it again in a couple of days and see the difference.
Don't worry this is a natural process - you have done everything by the book.

 

[Essex_Lad]

Sounds ok to me, just all about sitting on your hands now :thumb:

 

[carl_saint]

If your temps are a bit cool it will be slow to start. Give it time!

 

[WhatsYerPoison]

Great stuff. Cheers for the quick replies! Much appreciated.
Good to know I haven't just wasted £20 and a bit of effort.

The temperature might be dipping a bit overnight, but no less than 18degrees I'd imagine.
I was considering moving the FV to a different part of the house (the mrs isn't too happy about the space being taken up in the kitchen) but to do this I'll need to keep it heated. The most viable option is suspending an aquarium heater in the brew to maintain a constant temp, but is it a bit late at this stage to do that? I could probably wait until this brew is done if it's too risky.

 

[artiums_enteri]

I didn't see any mention of boiling for 60 minutes in there. Is there no boiling, chilling, or yeast starters with these kits?

 

[adrianmole72]

I didn't see any mention of boiling for 60 minutes in there. Is there no boiling, chilling, or yeast starters with these kits?

Nope. Nothing like that, just add water, yeast, and wait !

 

[Bluebottle]

Re the aquarium heater; stick the FV in a plastic storage box and fill the bottom 3-4 inches with water and stick the heater in there, like sitting the FV in a water bath. Its much easier to adjust the temp that way without having to go into your brew to do it, and less to sterilise. I do this with a plastic under-bed storage box and a £10 aquarium heater and it works brill.

I didn't see any mention of boiling for 60 minutes in there. Is there no boiling, chilling, or yeast starters with these kits?

Nope, none.

:

 

[adrianmole72]

Re the aquarium heater; stick the FV in a plastic storage box and fill the bottom 3-4 inches with water and stick the heater in there, like sitting the FV in a water bath. Its much easier to adjust the temp that way without having to go into your brew to do it, and less to sterilise. I do this with a plastic under-bed storage box and a £10 aquarium heater and it works brill.

+1

 

[WhatsYerPoison]

Re the aquarium heater; stick the FV in a plastic storage box and fill the bottom 3-4 inches with water and stick the heater in there, like sitting the FV in a water bath. Its much easier to adjust the temp that way without having to go into your brew to do it, and less to sterilise. I do this with a plastic under-bed storage box and a £10 aquarium heater and it works brill.

I definitely prefer the idea of a water bath, but space is a bit of an issue which was why I was considering submerging the heater.:cry:

 

[WhatsYerPoison]

Checked it this morning and still no bubbles. Had a peek inside and the surface was fairly flat, like a (huge) pint of ale that's not been touched for half an hour. Saw a couple of bubbles but not sure whether it's due to me bumping the FV or not.

I've wrapped the fv in a blanket and sat it on a couple of newspapers to insulate it from the work surface. I'll leave her alone now.

Four and a half days with no activity, hopefully a bit of insulation will get her going. :thumb:

 

[Shrek]

You can always try putting some more yeast in like a sachet of Safael so4 from your LHBS. It won't hurt it and will get it going if you are stuck.

 

[Essex_Lad]

I kicked a Wherry brew off myself last night. 32 pint with a SG of 1052, no movement this morning but I normally find its around 24 hours before things start moving :drink: