Precautions when dry hopping?

[BeardStorm]

Hey guys,

I'm about to dry hop an IPA with pellets according to a recipe. I'm worried about contaminating my brew!

Any additional precautions that I could take to make sure it's ok? (Camden tables or something?)

The pellets came straight out of a vacuum bag into a sanitised tub and into the fridge, but it has been 30 days. Was that a mistake? have some hops in the freezer if so.

I've only had 1 batch ever go bad from contamination, and that was dry hopped. Of course it may have gone wrong somewhere else!

Any help greatly appreciated as always

 

[An Ankoù]

I would just weigh out the pellets you need, into a clean receptacle, and pitch them in, leaving the lid off the fermenter for a minimum of time. I always use leaf and put them in a hop bag, which increases the risk of contamination, but I've never had a problem. At this stage your beer's full of alcohol which will see off many bugs, and the hops themselves are bacteriostatic. I wouldn't add campden tablets.

 

[An Ankoù]

I would just weigh out the pellets you need, into a clean receptacle, and pitch them in, leaving the lid off the fermenter for a minimum of time. I always use leaf and put them in a hop bag, which increases the risk of contamination, but I've never had a problem. At this stage your beer's full of alcohol which will see off many bugs, and the hops themselves are bacteriostatic. I wouldn't add campden tablets.

I forgot to say, I hope your sanitised tub, which has contained you hops in the fridge for 30 days, had an equally sanitised lid on it, or at least some aluminium foil?

 

[Ghillie]

Throw them in loose, you won't have an issue.

Hops are anti-microbial by default.

 

[BeardStorm]

I forgot to say, I hope your sanitised tub, which has contained you hops in the fridge for 30 days, had an equally sanitised lid on it, or at least some aluminium foil?

Yeah, tub has a lid and both were thoroughly sanitized on brew day!

 

[BeardStorm]

Thanks very much guys, I'll follow your advice. You calmed my worries!

Apologies if I put this question is slightly the wrong forum btw. I'm still getting used to the community