Stalled

[wombat]

Gday -
Been doing the below for years - but this one has stalled big time -
200 litre plastic drum - 36 kgs sugar - 2 aldi albran - 2 lowans yeast -
Just do a few big runs - put oak in them - all done for a year -
Did the norm added yeast at 40 c -
It stalled -temp still 32c so added another lowans - it slowly started bubbling again but was dead after 2 days -
Taste test to me just half done - mild sugar taste -
Have turned off blanket - but cant put it through without calling for help - losses to great -
Anybody got solutions-
Got PH meter coming in the mail to check ph -
Have turned electric blanket off atm -

Wombat

[howard]

wait for the postman? :smile:

where do you get your water from?
do you filter your water?

[TheRealMrMessy]

Hey wombat!
1070ish wash should be fine as SG. 40c is a high start temp for lowans, usually taps out at 38c and want to keep it under 35ish. The early process will only get hotter for a few days - any idea how hot? You say electric blanket, what's the ambient temp? Wash temp?

pH or nutrient is your likely culprit but that temp has me :think: .

[wombat]

Thanks Howard and TherealMrmessey -

Water source - always been rain water - no filters - never before ever tested it for PH - never added DAP -

Always have started wash a few up or down from 40c

1st night after got her going put plastic bag over top of drum - so as to stop evaporation - went back 3 weeks later - temp for that period around
24 - 32c - plus had foam under drum ( as on cement floor ) to keep temp stable - turned electric blanket on 3rd day - it keeps it at 30c -

Thought may have killed it in the 1st few days after putting bag over top of drum -

wombat

[wombat]

Gday PH Gurus -

Finally received PH meter -
Calibrated it -

Crikey the reading is 2.8 - sounds horrible low to me but I know nothick -

Suggestions please -
Have wash at 28 C atm

Cheers wombat

[wombat]

Should I use ag lime or Gypsum to increase the ph

What would roughly the PH to aim for - or should I just run it through the stil and be happy -

wombat

[The Stig]

Start using oyster shells , they dissolve only as needed and keep things buffered around that happy 4-5ph

[wombat]

Gday Stig -

Thanks for ya reply -

Oyster shells ?

I live way up in the bush - 4 hrs from the sea -
Oyster shells - are they purchased at say a ag store - something like CRT -

After each wash does one just clean off the shells and add to the next wash -

Cheers wombat

[The Stig]

Buy whole oysters and consume , then clean the shells - I like to let the ants have a go for a week then boil them and dry them in the sun .
Once used in a mash just rinse off and dry again in the sun ready for the next mash .
If that’s not your thing you can get shell grit from most pet stores or produce stores , same thing just tip into the wash and let it do its thing

[wombat]

Thanks Stig -

I should have woken up re oyster shells - only used them when a bit younger - long time ago -
was told they worked a certain way - didnt work for me -

Thanks again - appreciate the prompt replys -

wombat
==================

[RobMichelle]

Are you adding citric acid before checking ph level?

[wombat]

No I didnt add anything

wombat

[TDick]

short answer - another option is Tums antacid - Calcium Carbonate.
Crush a few chewable tablets, toss them in and give it a big stir.
Just did it with a slowed cornflakes mash. IMMEDIATE bubbling.

[TheRealMrMessy]

Oyster shells are calcium carbonate too - and work as a buffer around the 5.2pH mark. Don't need to overdo it, I use a couple when I'm getting down in generations of reusing dunder etc. and still pull most of the shells back out in 60L runs.

Wombat in a basic sugar wash with sensible gravity it is a surprise you are having pH issues which is why I was suspicious of the temperature angle - maybe your water is really soft or the aldi albran is lowering it more than you appreciate? Give it a check before starting next time, you want to be around the 5.5 mark, give or take.

[wombat]

A BIG Thankyou to all who responded to my call for help -

A quick question to the female boss this morning - do we have any shell grit ( we have cockatiels and canary's ) - Yes - 1 kg -

Boom Boom - chucked in 3 smallish handfulls and straight away the clear colour of the wash started turning to the
milky albran colour - so stirred the wash - checked ph approx 3 - added 5 more handfulls of shell grit - stirred again -
checked tonight - wash doing its thing - magic - thanks again - will report ph of rain water and ph and how wash going -

wombat

[The Stig]

Sweet :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[wombat]

Gday -

Update -
been putting shell grit ( why - because we had it ) in wash - gets it going but after about 2 days it slowed right down so been putting a couple of small handfuls every second day
PH been running around 3.8 - temp down to 24C -Taste test - starting to get near the bitter taste - thinking of turning off electric blanket - then putting through -

Any thoughts -

What should I have ready to adjust next sugar wash come our spring ( when it warms up )
I use 35 kgs of raw sugar - 180 ltrs of rain water -
2 boxes of aldi albran
2 lowans yeast

So my understanding is I should have
Oyster shells - to increase ph to get around 4.8-5.5
Should I have these as well - DAP to help yeast ?
Are these to lower if PH is high - Epsom salts / Citric acid

wombat

[howard]

epsom salts is a nutrient for yeast.

chicken grit/oyster shells only work when the wash PH goes low and becomes more acidic.
the acidic wash dissolves the shell and increases PH, so it is relatively slow-acting.
i only use chicken grit in generational rum washes, never needed any in a sugar wash.
i don't just chuck shells in, i put them in a hop bag, then i can wash and reuse the shells in another rum wash.

i notice that the original TPW does not mention aeration, i aerate the crap out of the wash with a paint stirrer before adding yeast.
the fermentation is split into 2 x sections.
firstly the yeast have a party feeding and multiplying on the oxygen and nutrients.
then the happy yeast turn their attention to the sugar.

i filter my town water, which has a PH of about 8.
after dissolving the sugar the PH is about 5.7 - 6.0.
i leave the PH at 5.7 - 6.0 which seems to easily cope with the PH drop during fermentation.

the other thing is temp, maybe invest in a Wi-Fi Inkbird to monitor temp from the comfort of your lounge. :smile: