[bo_gator]

Everyone always tells posters to aerate enough. So how much O2 is enough without using too much :?:

Most of the time I use 1 minute of red bottle O2 through a Williams' SS wand set-up for ales, and 2 minutes for lagers/high gravity beers. Is this enough, or not enough, or too much :?:   

[denny]

I think you'd need to be able to measure dissolved O2 in your wort before you could answer that.

[lonnie mac]

I do exactly like you with the red bottle and the williams wand except I go 2 mins for ales and lagers, 10 gal batches...

Not sure really how much o2 we are getting into solution with this method though. Seems like most of it is quickly expelled in bubbles as waste. I have been looking at making a nice in-line aerator myself.

[denny]

Here's an interesting design for a CFC with built in aerator....

http://www.oregonbrewcrew.com/cfc/cfc.html

[tygo]

I use the "Shake the living hell out of it" method.

[lonnie mac]

I use the "Shake the living hell out of it" method.

Sometimes I think I long for those days... I honestly think that I used to get some good aeration that way.

[denny]

I get such good aeration out of my cheap'n'easy Mixstir that I've never considered a more expensive/complicated method.

[lonnie mac]

I get such good aeration out of my cheap'n'easy Mixstir that I've never considered a more expensive/complicated method.

Funny subject! Because I'll be using my 3" mix stir Friday! This is one method I have been wanting to try...

[denny]

Cool!  You may never go back to the bottle, if ya know what I mean! 

[bluesman]

Cool!  You may never go back to the bottle, if ya know what I mean! 

+1

I use the same thing...high speed for 30 seconds. Really foams up the wort.

[bonjour]

I use my immersion chiller to aerate ALL my beers.  Works great and helps get the temp down to pitching temps.

Fred

[lonnie mac]

Cool!  You may never go back to the bottle, if ya know what I mean! 

You are probably right... Although, I will do this in my kettle after chilling and then transfer to the fermentor in the fridge. I don't have the room to get in there to really do it... I'll give it a shot!

I am simply sick of buying the red bottles anyway. For the longest time, I used my Porter Cable air compressor, sterile filter and my wand... It too worked great but again I just didn't feel like I could get the saturation level that we need with that method either. Like Bo_gator was saying, how much is enough on our level... I have no idea, and I have misplaced my o2 level meter!

[denny]

how much is enough on our level... I have no idea, and I have misplaced my o2 level meter!

Why not judge that by beer quality?  After all, what else matters? 

[mtbrewer]

I use my immersion chiller to aerate ALL my beers.  Works great and helps get the temp down to pitching temps.

Fred

Could you elaborate more on that please?
I use a coat hanger and my drill.

[bonjour]

Sorry,

Once the wort is cooled down to 90F I rapidly move the chiller up and down thru the wort cilling it to (usually) below 70F and simultaneously aerating the wort.   Lots of foam

Works great, even on really big beers.

Fred