[Phil_M]

About how long after I've put the beer in the fermentor can I wait to pitch my yeast?

Forgot to make a starter last night, but still need to get the brew done today.

[majorvices]

while I don't recommend it you can let it sit for a couple of days at 40 degrees with no detectable problems. I have had to do this before and have left beer sit cold over a long weekend to come back in Monday to aerate and pitch yeast.

[The Professor]

About how long after I've put the beer in the fermentor can I wait to pitch my yeast?

Forgot to make a starter last night, but still need to get the brew done today.

Sooner is definitely better, but a few times (due to either bad planning or an impulsive need to brew)  I've waited as long as 18 hours, with no ill effects whatsoever.  Good sanitation is always key...but especially so in instances like this.

[Phil_M]

I don't have a space to keep it chilled. I think I'm going to let the starter get to krausen and pitch it. It really should be stepped up, but I'd rather not let the wort sit for that long.

I didn't realize till today just how old this yeast packet was, if all else fails I fall back and use US-05.

[Wort-H.O.G.]

as others said, sooner is better because risk for bacteria growth increases. there's no good solid answer for time-really a factor of your sanitation practices also. 24-48hours would be all the time i'd ever press, and i'd be concerned until i tasted the finished product.

[dkfick]

also when your talking about storing it for days there is the risk of botulism... The alcohol in the beer normally stops the botulism spores from reproducing.

[Phil_M]

Ended up pitching the yeast late that night. When I chilled the beer I managed to get it down to about 45 degrees, just let it sit at that temp until I pitched the yeast. Once that was done I setup my heater/temp control, and it's now fermenting happily at 92 degrees. (This beer used Wyeast 3724.)

[majorvices]

also when your talking about storing it for days there is the risk of botulism... The alcohol in the beer normally stops the botulism spores from reproducing.

I do not believe it is a problem cold for 72 hours. Room temp might be another story.

[dkfick]

It's slowed but I think the 3-4 day period is the bottom end of possibility at the cold temps.  I'm not really sure.

[majorvices]

It's slowed but I think the 3-4 day period is the bottom end of possibility at the cold temps.  I'm not really sure.

Seems like if I could eat off a batch of chili for 3 days wort would be safe enough. That said, I am not advocating waiting 72 hours unless an emergency happens. And I probably wouldn't harvest yeast from that batch either.

[dkfick]

I agree.  Most likely it would be fine.  Odds are probably you could go even longer. I'm just saying it's perhaps possible.

[kylekohlmorgen]

In the summer, or when making lagers, I almost always delay pitching for 24 hours.

If you delay pitching, you might as well take advantage of the trub settling time. Before pitching, rack into another fermentor. This has helped my quick lagers clear up much faster!

[majorvices]

I used to remove trub, but never found it made a difference and was an extra PITA step. I don't bother with it any more, rarely even on my conicals.

[coolman26]

I used to remove trub, but never found it made a difference and was an extra PITA step. I don't bother with it any more, rarely even on my conicals.

Wow, I figured the pro brewers always dumped their trub.  How do you re-pitch your yeast?  I always just swirled and pitched.  I've never worried about washing and trying to clear my yeast.  YHB brews are fantastic by the way.  Glad I have a friend that travels on business there!   

[majorvices]

I harvest yeast via racking arm so I am pulling the middle slurry of yeast. If I have to go from bottom port I do dump dead yeast and trub before collection. That said, I still homebrew and reuse yeast and jump harvest the yeast in mason jar and go with what I have, no rinsing, no separation. Doesn't seem to make any difference in beer clarity.

That said, on both homebrew and commercial set up I leave most of the hops and trub behind in BK, which I do personally advocate. I whirlpool and have a plate in front of my exit port to hold back most of the hops and trub.