Possible cause of contamination?

[Sparkz]

Hey guys,

Done many batches of beer, all were fine until recently.

I built myself a brewing unit in the passage, little after a family member got some more guinea pigs, now in the passage very close to my beer brewing, you got the big bags of hay, some wooden run, the guinea pigs themselves in a massive cage. I mean its all less than a meter away from my brewing. Theres poo all on the floor from them, excess straw.

Ever since iv not managed 1 good batch of beer, each have been contaminated and have had to be poured away.


My speculations are that because of all the dust and bacteria in the air from them its causing my beer batches (and ingredients for that matter) to become contaminated.

If chances are that could be the case im gonna demand the cash for my wasted beer kits back off the family member who has moved them and demanded they stayed there, Bit harsh as I spend money out of my own pocket to build the brewing unit and this only happened a few weeks after

 

[Mr BR]

Well sounds to me as if you have answered your own question there, if it has all went pete tong since the arrival of the rodents and you havent changed your cleaning regime then its bound to be down to the them or there equipment ,can you not move them or enlcose your brewing gear?Hope you sort it out soon even try brewing a batch somewhere else and if it turns out all right then you have a stronger case against the family member to move the said rodent offenders or reimburse you for lost product. Hope this helps and good luck :thumb:

 

[Aitch]

I've got a Patterdale, he loves rodents, let me know and I'll bring him round...

 

[pittsy]

All i can say about that is i would not brew while there is hay and poo and rodents close by , there will def be things floating in the air , i would be happy to brew elsewhere they move a closed fv next to em but wouldn't open fv at all by them .so in short yes its the rodents cocking up your brew

 

[Sparkz]

haha that Patterdale may come in handy.


It was just a wonder pretty much I mean, The only other thing it could of been was movement of the beer from where I used to brew it in kitchen to the passage. I build the unit. Spent £100's with all extra equipment believing it would be out of the family's way. It was only a few days before I started the my first brew in the passage that the guinea pigs were bought by my mum and put in the passage.

Difficult to get her to move them as shes a completely stubborn person who sulks until she gets her own way and thats where she wants them.

I really thought its odd how maybe 15 or 20 perfect brews turned into several horrible brews in a row.

I thought for ages they could be a problem as brewing is always a sterile process. But with poop, hay and bad smells lurking constantly its no wonder the beers have been tasting horrid and contaminated.

Probably wasted £100 or more with ingredients, looks like my brewing days are over, got 1 last batch on the go now just to see and if that turns out like dirt then wont bother again

 

[RobWalker]

Its not cooler in there is it?

 

[Sparkz]

nope about the same really

 

[BeerEagle]

Go to Wilkinsons and slip the little buggers some rat bait when she's not looking. (just kidding...

... or not)

 

[Mr BR]

when you say put in the passage is that out side the house in the hall or what describe where it is please and is there any other animals in the house ?Maybe be able to help you work out where the contamination is coming from , dont give up there is always a solution :thumb:

 

[Sparkz]

actually ill do a little diagram thanks for your help

 

[Sparkz]

Basically, the passage is inside, its to the right of the kitchen.

Cant move their spare hay, food which is exactly opposite the beer brewing, as family will move them back regardless + theres no other space for them (each bag of has is about 1 meter high by 50cm wide), poop and mess spills out of there cage.

The old place I brewed cant be used anymore as its been occupied with familys other things,

 

[LeicesterLad]

If your doing kits and your FV's are sealed with the lid on then I cant see how infection could get into your beer.

After you had the first infection did you thoroughly clean the FV out with a steriliser, do you properly clean the FV before use ?

Ive had a fly in my fv before that causes infection the other couple of times is either cutting corners not cleaning properly or leaving the beer in the FV too long before racking.

 

[Sparkz]

hmmm, yea everything is sterelised thoroughly as per usual.

The way I can think of bacteria and dust getting in maybe through the handle holes on the fv?the metal handle goes through the holes but theres a slight gap.

Even perhaps some of the ingredients being contaminated beforehand? as I did store a lot of the ingredients in that brewing unit

 

[LeicesterLad]

What ingrediants are we talking about ?

How long are you leaving the beer in the FV ....if theres a hole in the FV then maybe ? try buying a youngs fv with lid and see what happens ??

The only other thing I can think of is the temperature during fermentation.

 

[alanywiseman.]

Another possible solution may be to acquire/make a FV with a water trap and tap. This way the lid can be sealed (and clingy filmed if neededs be) but you can draw off a sample?

 

[Sparkz]

well, I store spray malt, hops, in sealed bags, but the speculation is, even even sealed bags there may be a tinyest of not noticeable holes. Potentially not a problem but if the mess and smell can create bacteria to contaminate anything then it could be a problem.

I was wrong btw regarding the FV. Its the same infection with both the economy (youngs) fv and the other screw top FV.

For a moment when I typed I thought the metal handle actually went through holes to the inside of the FV, but the holes were that small it never effected it before. But im mistaken the holes do not go into the FV but into a plastic side handle on the outside.


To give an idea of the tastes of the beers brewed and failed since the guinea pigs were there, I did 3 single can kits, did what I usually do and boil extra like hops to add to the kits, which have been fine before. Each kit tasted very odd, they didnt clear well at all. The taste was winey, maybe a hint of apples and old socks. Of course I left them in the barrel for ages (some even as long as 3-4 months). Poured each, 1 or 2 cleared, the other still didnt clear. They all had the same bad taste. In fact each of them had that other weird taste/smell. You know if you go into a really old persons home? theres that weird aroma? That was it.

After researching and checking things online some people mentioned about going back to basics (not adding hops or anything). So I got a wherry kit. They never seem to fail and even my first brew was a wherry which was quite nice. However it ended up exactly the same.

Temperature here has never really been a problem, if its a bit too cold then the brew is wrapped up. If its too hot....... well that never happens here, even in summer, in this house your either warm or cold/freezing, never boiling hot. Never overcooked the yeast or had it too cold for it to start (always been a good SG ranging from 1.032 - 1.042 and then finishing between 1.004 and 1.009.

In the past on 1 or 2 occasions I have been lazy and after transfering the beer to barrel I have left the FV as it is uncleaned for weeks (mostly forgot) but then when doing the next brew I have bleached it left it to soak for days, swilled several times and sterelised.




Alan.... Thats actually an excellent idea and never thought of that until you mentioned. 1 of the times where bacteria could indeed get in is when doing gravity readings. I use a turkey baster but the FV is still opened for a minute maybe

 

[alanywiseman.]

When you lift the lid a negative pressure is formed meaning that air from outside your FV will enter it. Fingers crossed using a combination of a water trap and a tap will eliminate this as your source of infection.

 

[Wolverine]

Just be carefully when taking a sample from the tap if you don't allow any air in then by drawing off beer you will suck the water from your trap backwards and either outside air or worst tap water will be in your brew anyway could put vodka in your trap ? Or not use one at all just keep the lid on and sealed Youngs fermenters don't have holes drilled for airlocks and I never use one these days.

 

[Sparkz]

thanks, yea I also have the other FV with the lid that screws on. It has a hole for a tap at the bottom :)

 

[Sparkz]

Just another Q.

The final beer that was already brewing is youngs "harvest mild". Before I implement changes and methods people have mentioned.

What would you guys say its meant to taste like? (a poor hobgoblin? an above average tesco value brew?)