What's been your worst brewing disaster?

shane_vor · Post by **shane_vor** » Thursday Aug 03, 2006 3:27 pm

My latest mistake? Buying liquid yeast, splitting it up and making some 'mini-starters'...

Well THAT wasn't the mistake BUT putting the starters in bottles and crown sealing them expecting that the fridge would stop fermentation completely THEN when making a brew today opening one up on the kitchen sink only to look like a lad who'd won a grand prix! Only difference was, in a split second the stubbie was empty and the ceiling was covered in yeasties!

The others have been opened VEEERY carefully and used today!

rwh · Post by **rwh** » Thursday Aug 03, 2006 3:46 pm

Hehe nice!

I reckon you could probably prevent that kind of thing by not letting in any oxygen. Use cooled boiled water to top up the stubbies and exclude as much air as possible.

What do ppl reckon, would this work?

da_damage_done · Post by **da_damage_done** » Thursday Aug 03, 2006 4:28 pm

i reckon you`d have to let the starter fermentation complete before you put the caps on - otherwise it`d be like bottling early

cheers

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Thursday Aug 03, 2006 4:51 pm

shane_vor wrote:My latest mistake? Buying liquid yeast, splitting it up and making some 'mini-starters'...

Well THAT wasn't the mistake BUT putting the starters in bottles and crown sealing them expecting that the fridge would stop fermentation completely THEN when making a brew today opening one up on the kitchen sink only to look like a lad who'd won a grand prix! Only difference was, in a split second the stubbie was empty and the ceiling was covered in yeasties!

The others have been opened VEEERY carefully and used today!

sounds to me like your fridge wasnt cold enough as low temps in the fridge should render the yeast dormant until bringing back to room temp.

shane_vor · Post by **shane_vor** » Thursday Aug 03, 2006 7:46 pm

Exactly what I thought, but it was in the beer fridge and I like me beer cold not frozen. I tried to open the bottles before raising the temp so I guess I'm pretty lucky I didn't have any detonations in the fridge! Next time I'll let the starters ferment out.

lethaldog wrote:
shane_vor wrote:My latest mistake? Buying liquid yeast, splitting it up and making some 'mini-starters'...

Well THAT wasn't the mistake BUT putting the starters in bottles and crown sealing them expecting that the fridge would stop fermentation completely THEN when making a brew today opening one up on the kitchen sink only to look like a lad who'd won a grand prix! Only difference was, in a split second the stubbie was empty and the ceiling was covered in yeasties!

The others have been opened VEEERY carefully and used today!
sounds to me like your fridge wasnt cold enough as low temps in the fridge should render the yeast dormant until bringing back to room temp.

ACTbrewer · Post by **ACTbrewer** » Thursday Aug 03, 2006 7:48 pm

If you can't get the bottles to near to 0 deg, then the action keeps happening. I use screw cap bottles, and open them every day for the first week. There is always a heap of 'hiss'. As Shrek says,
"better out than in!"

shane_vor · Post by **shane_vor** » Friday Aug 11, 2006 8:51 pm

Rightio! Here's the winner! I get two mentions in this thread for simply wandering about the house with my brain switched off!

My latest and greatest...

All and sundry know what I think of my glass fermenters, I love 'em!

so today I boil up some hops, dump in some liquid malt, then pitch that into the fermenter.

It's glass. It's winter time. FARKIN CRACK!!!!!!!

What the bloody hell was I thinking?!?!?!?!

Thank christ I was brewing in the shed! Had that mess happened in the house I'd be a dead man!

Now I'm the proud owner of a bottomless glass fermenter...I feel so stoopid!

Not to mention disappointed. I've had my glass since 1994 or so. Even remember the day I brought them home!

I'm off to have a beer.

pacman · Post by **pacman** » Friday Aug 11, 2006 11:13 pm

shane, that is gut wrenching.

You are probably the "winner", but I am guessing that will be small consolation.

Cortez The Killer · Monday Sep 18, 2006 2:46 pm

Yesterday i was putting a couple of longies in a bag to bring round to my mate's place. Anyway the bag broke and two bottles fell out and exploded at my feet.

I was only wearing shorts and thongs. One of the bottles must have been overcarbonated (and it was still warm). My legs got showered with glass. I have a large gash at the top of my shin and a plethora of small cuts over my legs and feet.

Not to mention the loss of two excellent bottles of brew, a huge mess and blood all over the place.

With long pants and shoes etc on today I can feel all the little larciratons.

Needless to say I had to have a few homebrews to compensate for the loss.

blandy · Post by **blandy** » Monday Sep 18, 2006 2:59 pm

I wish you a speedy recovery, Cortez

drtom · Post by **drtom** » Monday Sep 18, 2006 2:59 pm

I can hardly compete with that - I've yet to draw blood.

However, my 4yo son proved again that hydrometers don't bounce.

Rode my bike to Brewcraft in Heidleberg, only to find they cost $18 there instead of the $10 at Aust. Winemakers.

Just another reason not to go there I guess, not to mention the hill next to the Austin Hospital, which takes some serious pedalling to get up.

T.

Dogger Dan · Post by **Dogger Dan** » Tuesday Sep 19, 2006 2:34 am

drtom,

Buy a refractometer. I was going through hydrometers and said enough was enough.

Dogger

drtom · Post by **drtom** » Tuesday Sep 19, 2006 6:28 am

Actually, I was thinking of looking for a polycarbonate hydrometer rather than a glass one.

I was thinking about the physics of it, and there's no reason at all that a plastic hydrometer shouldn't be just as good as a glass one.

T.

Dogger Dan · Post by **Dogger Dan** » Tuesday Sep 19, 2006 7:33 am

I asked about that believe it or not.

Apparently the problem lies in the fact that you can't guarentee the desinity of the plastic the way they can glass.

Not that they may not be made, just you can't be sure of what you are getting. Mind you if you are just worried about alcohol concentration it doesn't matter as all is relative.

At least that was what the Oracle said to me.

If you are ever planning to step into All Grain, I recommend the refractometer, you need to take SG readings pretty quick and sometimes a lot. You then end up throwing a lot of wort out and dancing on your head doing temp conversions or fighting to cool it down. You have none of that with a refractometer

Dogger

rwh · Post by **rwh** » Tuesday Oct 24, 2006 11:03 pm

Hahaha came home tonight, and my cousin from NZ who is staying for a week says, "most of your beer is really good, but this one's a bit flat and tasteless."

I said what number was on the lid? He didn't know, so I fished the bottle cap out of the bin... the label on it is: WY 1056. One guess what that was!

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Wednesday Oct 25, 2006 5:45 pm

Ahhh APA maybe

rwh · Post by **rwh** » Wednesday Oct 25, 2006 5:47 pm

Nah, it was a yeast starter

lethaldog · Post by **lethaldog** » Wednesday Oct 25, 2006 5:55 pm

rwh wrote:Nah, it was a yeast starter

hahahahahahaha, was thinking actual beer but i see now how that could happen, i have mine in the bar fridge, but only mark with one letter and everyone knows that any beer in my house that is marked ( i dont mark the lids on my brews) is not beer at all, Bugger there is one yeast that wont get used to full potential

damonpeyo · Post by **damonpeyo** » Thursday Oct 26, 2006 11:45 am

Worst one, is while you are drunk, and you want more beers, and you just realised you just drank all of your favourite brew.

mark68 · Post by **mark68** » Tuesday Oct 31, 2006 7:00 pm

I had a blocked tap on one of my brews and had to put my whole arm into the farking thing to unblockit.Don't know what infections i'll get from this.

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