[James Lorden]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lorden_family/6232764306/

Generally I pitch and cover with aluminum foil for 24 hours to prevent and pressure build up during the initial growth phase then switch to a blow off tube if I think I might need it.  This Tripel 1.084 OG is sitting at 64 after 20 hours with wlp500 in the back and wlp530 in the front decided to take off a little early!  Nothing like a good old fashion open fermentation!

[bluesman]

Those Belgian strains, especially 530, are raring to go and blow off every time, even at lower ferm temps. I'm making a 530 starter tomorrow for 11 gallons of a Tripel that a freind and I are brewing this weekend. I'll plan for a blowoff for sure.

[James Lorden]

Those Belgian strains, especially 530, are raring to go and blow off every time, even at lower ferm temps. I'm making a 530 starter tomorrow for 11 gallons of a Tripel that a freind and I are brewing this weekend. I'll plan for a blowoff for sure.

Well this Chimay yeast is not about to be outdone.  The 500 is uncontainable!  What does your recipe look like? Are you using table sugar?  If so quash are you adding it?  I put mine in the boil, made the recipe a few times before and went from1.081 to 1.010 - can't see changing it up by adding sugar later like many advocate now.

[euge]

I find hefe yeast strains to be quite vigorous. Many years ago I awakened to a weird sound in the middle of the night. Discovered that it was a "spraying" sound. Yeast and beer were geysering out of the carboy's bung (having blown the airlock off) at 5 second intervals and painting the ceiling and walls of the bathroom. This was my second batch I didn't know what a blow-off tube or headspace meant to the fermentation process. I guess it's a good problem to have.

[andylovesburritos]

i don't mean to hijack, but i wouldn't know how to word the question in the search or in which part of the forum to look. anyways i don't understand the foil, this is the second time i've seen this and i'm curious as to why an airlock isn't being used.

[euge]

An airlock is not really needed for primary. A bit of foil over the top of the carboy and the co2 escapes- positive pressure. Nothing is going inside so why mess with an airlock? I use buckets and just lay the lids over the top and don't snap them down. No infections.

[bluesman]

Those Belgian strains, especially 530, are raring to go and blow off every time, even at lower ferm temps. I'm making a 530 starter tomorrow for 11 gallons of a Tripel that a freind and I are brewing this weekend. I'll plan for a blowoff for sure.

Well this Chimay yeast is not about to be outdone.  The 500 is uncontainable!  What does your recipe look like? Are you using table sugar?  If so quash are you adding it?  I put mine in the boil, made the recipe a few times before and went from1.081 to 1.010 - can't see changing it up by adding sugar later like many advocate now.

I've made Dubbel's with D Candy syrup and a Quad with some cane sugar. The 530 yeast is a climber...it's very sticky and likes to work it's way up fermenter walls and lids as you have demonstrated.

[dbarber]

Don't mean to hijack the thread, but have you or anyone else used fermcap to control the belgian and hefe yeast. I love the wy 3887/WLP530, but the blow-offs and loss can be substantial even in a 6 gal carboy.

[James Lorden]

i don't mean to hijack, but i wouldn't know how to word the question in the search or in which part of the forum to look. anyways i don't understand the foil, this is the second time i've seen this and i'm curious as to why an airlock isn't being used.

I have heard from sources such as Chris White from White Labs that even the slightest pressure on the yeast during replication can have an affect on the yeast (I have heard as low as 2 psi).  When an airlock or blowoff tube is used there is a slight pressure build up.  I generally leave the foil on until the first signs of high krausen then switch to a blow off to prevent a mess.  This yeast just took off.

If you watch brewing TV Dawson did an open fermentation experiment with a hefeweizen with an open bucket vs a closed bucket and side by side the beers tasted different.  The only real difference that I can think of which explains these flavor differences would be the lack of pressure from the lid.

On a more realistic process side I also use the aluminum foil because it's easy since I am constantly going in and out of the carboy in the first few hours.  I tansfer and then, if not at the proper pitching temp might stick in the fridge to cool a little more, then I will pull the foil off and oxygenate, then I might pull the foil off to pitch yeast, maybe I forgot a gravity reading so I need to pull the top off again.

Each time I go to pull that top off I spray that foil top with alcahol and flame the crap out of it with a creme brule torch - try doing that to your carboy cap!  So there is also a convinience factor that probably is more significant to me than the osmotic pressuse nonsense I was preaching before

[James Lorden]

Don't mean to hijack the thread, but have you or anyone else used fermcap to control the belgian and hefe yeast. I love the wy 3887/WLP530, but the blow-offs and loss can be substantial even in a 6 gal carboy.

Nope, I use that stuff in the boil and when making starters on the stove but never in fermentation.  If the the theory is true and foam proteins only work once then I have wasted a lot of foam during this fermentation!  On the other hand I know that everyone says the stuff drops out and I often filter my beer - but still it makes me a little bit nervous... call me paranoid.