I'm suspecting I've got an infection. Had a TC in the FV for 16 days and it was smelling pretty sulphury.
Again.
I'm sure it's the youngs nutrient that's doing this.
Racked it off the lees today as the smell seems to be sowly dissipating and I didn't want even more vileness coming off the lees. As I was racking it smelled a little vinegary, so I think I might be about to lose this one. I'll keep it for a week in the FV, lid fully closed as it's finished ferment and see what happens. If it's honking of vinegar it's lawn feed.
So to my actual question. If this is infection what do i do now with my gear? I always clean and sanitise everything anyway, so carry on as normal or go into kill mode and hit everything with neat bleach or suchlike?
Infection
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lancsSteve
Re: Infection
What's the *taste* like? Fermentation smells can be disgusting but the beer fine depending on yeast etc.
I'd suggest the ultra-paranoid, 4-stage "death to it all" approach:
1 - clean with some decent cleaner (soda crystals or oxy) and take EVERYTHING apart and soak/scrub
2 - clean and sterilise with VWP or sterilise with thin bleach
3 - neutralise bleach and kill anything left Hot water and sodium metabisuphate - neutralise nbleach, kill yeast
4 - spray with Star San - no rinse
If anything lives through that try fermenting with an airlock or replacing FV!
I'd suggest the ultra-paranoid, 4-stage "death to it all" approach:
1 - clean with some decent cleaner (soda crystals or oxy) and take EVERYTHING apart and soak/scrub
2 - clean and sterilise with VWP or sterilise with thin bleach
3 - neutralise bleach and kill anything left Hot water and sodium metabisuphate - neutralise nbleach, kill yeast
4 - spray with Star San - no rinse
If anything lives through that try fermenting with an airlock or replacing FV!
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Gordonmull
Re: Infection
It tasted bogging! Not too vinegary but faecal. Literally, unfortunately. Just absolutely wrong. I'm up to TC #9 now and this was just vile. I'm suspecting, although I still need to verify this, with the NH3PO4/NH3SO4 nutrient, that the yeast is using up the ammonaical nitrogen, the phosphate and is stripping the sulphate of oxygen letting that nasty hydrogen sulphide taste and rank smell appear.
I didn't waste my time bottling it and I'm sure the garden was quite appreciative of the manky smelling nutrients it's had.
I hit everything with some extra strong VWP and carried on. If everything is ok then *phew*. If not and anything else goes wrong I'll rip my kit apart and try the nuke method you have suggested.
I didn't waste my time bottling it and I'm sure the garden was quite appreciative of the manky smelling nutrients it's had.
I hit everything with some extra strong VWP and carried on. If everything is ok then *phew*. If not and anything else goes wrong I'll rip my kit apart and try the nuke method you have suggested.