Quickie: do I really need two packets of WLP001?

[Galena]

Must be nice having enough experience to draw upon that you can confidently contradict not only a popular recipe builder but also the yeast manufacturer.

I think you are missing the point, if the software says you needs two packets, then you can of course add 2 packets but at a ridiculous and unnecessary cost.

Help me out here, what should I have done? I've never used liquid yeast before and decided to follow the instructions on the packet. If there's a better way then show me, and I'll try it next time.

Twice on this thread alone I have suggested what you should do to make enough yeast for this brew and put enough by for the next time. It's an easy process with a little equipment, which you can get by without but better off with.

I am not taking issue with you btw I understand you are new to this

 

[nickjdavis]

The volume markings are another story though. I noted during yesterday's test that the notches on my B40pro aren't quite aligned with my own measurements, which were taken with a 5 litre measuring jug. Do the markings on the equipment take into account a fitted chiller? Malt pipe? Hot or cold? No idea. Mine were almost ⅔ litre out at times, which is neither here nor there when you've somehow lost six. I'm starting to wonder if I mis-counted the number of filled 5 litre jugs when prepping strike water or the HLT, but ... no. Even for me that would have been a monumental whoopsie.

The markings on the B40 almost certainly do not take into account the space in the chiller....Brewtools cannot assume that everyone has their chiller....they (if sensible) would have marked the B40 volume markings to reflect what is actually inside the B40 alone....I cannot believe they'd have done anything else.

Do not trust the markings on a plastic measuring jug....they are likely to be the least accurate of all. You can of course calibrate your jug by weighing the water inside it. For all intents of purposes 1L = 1kg.

As for the B40...perhaps you need to do another boil off test and this time connect up the chiller and other external piping that may be used to not only determine your boil off volume but your loss to the chiller.

Hops will also soak up some of your precious wort as well....so this will need taking into account but this is best done by fine tuning based on real world experience.

 

[muppix]

I think you are missing the point, if the software says you needs two packets, then you can of course add 2 packets but at a ridiculous and unnecessary cost.

I think I'm still trying to suss things out, forgive me if I'm labouring with seemingly unnecessary detail over things that have long been accepted. If I tell Brewfather that my HLT has 1 litre of dead space, it'll increase the sparge water step by one litre to accommodate. I get that. What I don't get is why 1 pack of yeast turns into 2 packs when I change to locally available fermentables with the same EBC, but I'm happy to park that query for now since I have what I need to get on with the brew.

Twice on this thread alone I have suggested what you should do to make enough yeast for this brew and put enough by for the next time. It's an easy process with a little equipment, which you can get by without but better off with.

You've told me to overbuild and I'm grateful for that, but I have no idea of the steps involved. Doesn't matter, I'm sure the info's out there so I'll do some more research. Thanks again.

 

[muppix]

Brewtools cannot assume that everyone has their chiller....they (if sensible) would have marked the B40 volume markings to reflect what is actually inside the B40 alone

Of course, but the malt pipe is part of the standard setup and would affect the volume, so do the markings take that into account? I'm guessing probably not since you can't see the bottom of the scale when the malt pipe is fitted, just the top half. I should probably go back and RTFM again - those fastidious Finns have likely documented the scale's datum.

Do not trust the markings on a plastic measuring jug....they are likely to be the least accurate of all. You can of course calibrate your jug by weighing the water inside it. For all intents of purposes 1L = 1kg.

But what if my scales are uncalibrated? Kidding. You make a good point about the jug, I'll weigh the water and will cross-reference with any other jugs I can get my hands on.

As for the B40...perhaps you need to do another boil off test and this time connect up the chiller and other external piping that may be used to not only determine your boil off volume but your loss to the chiller.

I did that ahead of the boil-off test and am pretty sure that nothing's left in the chiller because I have it arranged in such a fashion that it drains completely via the lower tap once you let air in via the upper tap. Admittedly I tested that with cold water but I don't expect there to be any steam from the chiller so hot losses should be the same as cold, where that part is concerned.

 

[Galena]

You've told me to overbuild and I'm grateful for that, but I have no idea of the steps involved. Doesn't matter, I'm sure the info's out there so I'll do some more research. Thanks again.

I have posted this before, but this is the basic technique


and to work out more accurately if you look at the image from Brewfather below you will see in the left column to make this beer it suggests you need 2 packets of yeast, which as an in date pack of liquid yeast can be considered to have 100Bn cells and it calculates you need 2 packs for this 1.050 wort as you need 195 Bn cells. So this I assume is where you got thw 2 packs from.

Okay, move to the right hand column and you will see I have entered 1 packet (100Bn cells) and I want enough yeast cells to give 195 Bn cells for the brew and another 100Bn for storage. Scroll doen and you will see that if I make a 1.6L starter with 157 grams of DME it will give me 307 Billion cells, and it also tells me to pitch 1.08L and to save 0.52 Litres. So we can round that down and put 0.5 litres in a mason jar as in the video and then pitch the 1litre into the wort.

That is how you make 3 packs from 1 and pitch 2 and keep 1 for next time.
I hope that helps.

 

[muppix]

Mate, thanks for the detailed feedback, I really appreciate it. I'm sitting here with my morning coffee and haven't had time to fully take this in yet, though I've figured out that the pitch rate on the original recipe was set to the first option in the drop-down, 0.35, and that my batch recipe was using the second option, 0.75. I can't know why the original recipe was using such a low setting, but I assume that me changing my ingredients gave the tool enough data to work out the expected OG and since it knew the style I was aiming for it adjusted the pitch rate, hence my two packets from one. Mystery solved, thanks again.