[flbrewer]

I'm planning on starting a yeast starter today for a Tuesday 5 gallon brew day. I've read varying instructions online about the amount of water to DME ratio used in the starter. Some people even listed started with a smaller starter and building up to a bigger one.

Any clarification would be helpful. I should mention the yeast is a Yeast Bay vial.

[klickitat jim]

Stir plate or old school?

[riceral]

For yeast starters, I use 150g DME in 1500ml water. Boil. Cool. Then into a 2 liter Erlenmeyer flask. After 18-24 hours, put in refrigerator, then decant, pour yeast into fermenter.

I don't step up my starters.

[Wort-H.O.G.]

I'm planning on starting a yeast starter today for a Tuesday 5 gallon brew day. I've read varying instructions online about the amount of water to DME ratio used in the starter. Some people even listed started with a smaller starter and building up to a bigger one.

Any clarification would be helpful. I should mention the yeast is a Yeast Bay vial.

use a starter calc-mr. malty, brewersfriend, etc. plug in your OG and yeast date etc. i prefer starter wort to be about 1.030-1.032 max. depending on your OG, one step may be fine or two step (higher gravity and lagers).

[flbrewer]

No stir plate.

[klickitat jim]

For a first starter, easy peasy

Bring two quarts water to a boiler, add 5 oz  DME (light is best but any will work) 

After hot break shut it down, chill it to 70ish. Pour it in a sanitized gallon jug. Shake the snot out of it. Add your yeast and put some tin foil over the top.

All you are looking for is growth, so she's done in about 18-24 hrs. Pop it in the fridge to drop the yeast out of suspension. Decant the clear stuff and pitch the rest on brew day.

[Wort-H.O.G.]

For a first starter, easy peasy

Bring two quarts water to a boiler, add 5 oz  DME (light is best but any will work) 

After hot break shut it down, chill it to 70ish. Pour it in a sanitized gallon jug. Shake the snot out of it. Add your yeast and put some tin foil over the top.

All you are looking for is growth, so she's done in about 18-24 hrs. Pop it in the fridge to drop the yeast out of suspension. Decant the clear stuff and pitch the rest on brew day.

ok the only thing i will say is 5oz is arbitrary considering we dont know OG, est startinng yeast count and target pitch rate. i'd run the calc and follow it for best results IMO.

[klickitat jim]

5oz in 2 qts will end up about 1500-1600ml after boiling. So about 1.030-1.035. Unless we do a viable cell count on his specific tube of yeast, it's all arbitrary. I agree with your point. My suggestion is just a simplified way to get started with starters. I have a hunch it just might work.

[Wort-H.O.G.]

5oz in 2 its will end up about 1500-1600ml after boiling. So about 1.030-1.035. Unless we do a viable cell count on his specific tube of yeast, it's all arbitrary. I agree with your point. My suggestion is just a simplified way to get started with starters. I have a hunch it just might work.

understood. i guess we have no info here-ale,lager,OG,est yeast starting cell count, etc.

[flbrewer]

I'll check Mr Malty and the OG. Jim, it's out of the fridge for a day or two, then into the fridge until brew day?

[klickitat jim]

Ya, you really don't gain much by letting it ferment out like making beer. You just want a bunch of healthy new babies. And it doesn't have to sit in the fridge more than 6 or 8 hrs to settle out. Depends on the strain I suppose. But a few days in the fridge won't hurt it.

[flbrewer]

Thanks for the replies!

[flbrewer]

How important is maintaining the starter temp? It's sitting around 70 now, didn't want to bother keeping the flask in a water bath or anything over the 24 hours.

[Wort-H.O.G.]

How important is maintaining the starter temp? It's sitting around 70 now, didn't want to bother keeping the flask in a water bath or anything over the 24 hours.

thats fine. i make all my starters at room temp so about 70-72F and they rise a few degrees during activity. warm environment is good for yeast growth, regardless of the yeast ideal fermentation temp-thats intended for making beer and you're making a starter.

id focus on OG-like i said earlier 1.030.1.032 is a nice low stress environment for growth IMO.

[Henielma]

How important is maintaining the starter temp? It's sitting around 70 now, didn't want to bother keeping the flask in a water bath or anything over the 24 hours.

The needed time for a starter is also depending of the room temperature. It is not needed to control the temperature for a starter.

Last time I made a starter I used my CO₂ production sensor system. In the following screenshot you can see the temperature rise of the starter during its time on the stir plate.



The light yellow curve is the ambient temperature and the red curve is the temperature of the 1 liter starter. You can see the rising of the temperature from 22 degrees C to 25 degrees C. (In the beginning this sensor was on the ground)

The purple curve is the CO2 production in time. When the production of the CO2 of the starter decreases I placed the starter into the fridge. A few days later I used the starter and the yeast was in very good condition because the CO2 production of that badge started in 4 hours.