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hobbyiswine

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My first few batches of pee took off like a rocket. Good fermentation all the way to dry without any issues. My last batch got stuck at 1.010 and now my latest batch is creeping along. It moved from 1.080 to 1.070 in about 5 days. I am stumped at what could be the cause because I have always used EC1118, my temp is good in the 70s and my nutrient and energizer were added as usual. What the heck!!!! Help anyone??
 
Have you been whippin the snot out of it. Seems to need a bunch of o2 to make it keep going. I have also found if I start it with one bottle of lemon, let it ferment down a ways, add the next bottle, let it ferment some and add the last bottle it seems to keep going better. also stage the nutrient and energizer, add some at the beginning and the rest as the ferment continues. Arne.
 
Thanks for the tips. Seems i have been doing those already. I stir vigorously one to two times per day. I added nutrient at the beginning. Added more on day 4 since it was poking along and only have 32oz of lemon in the 5 gallons now. Will add more once the ferment picks up. I increased the temp to about 78. Looks like my temp on previous batches made it up that high last summer. Will see if that helps.
 
I came home very little activity and basically no progress. SG unchanged so i decided to make a starter with K1-V1116 yeast. My EC 1118 doesnt seem to getting the job done.

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How long should it take to get started. This is my first batch of skeeter pee. I put the starter in two days ago and the SG has not changed.
 
Its about 72F. I don't think I did the starter right. I don't have one bubble.
I have a chianti in a secondary that is bubbling away setting right next to it.
 
Make sure to bear it up good daily. For my starter I added water that was 104 degrees, about a cup. Then a tablespoon of sugar, sprinkle of nutrient and sprinkle or energizer. Let it get going good. Then add a cup of must, let it get going, and add another. Once it gets going good Dump into primary.
 
Now my skeeter pees not going. Lol

We just had a temp drop by about 10 degrees.
Gotta bust out the heater on my Mjo-Skeeto.
 
My pee is still not going. Think it might be the lemon juice i used this time. Was an off brand not Realemon. Hmmm.....will give it a few more days. Hopefully i dont have to flush it. That would put me begind schedule for summer!
 
I made a starter last night by taking a cup of warm water and adding a tbs of lemon juice, sugar, and nutrient. I mixed that up to dissolve everything then put the yeast (EC-1118) in and let set. I added about a teaspoon of sugar and lemon juice once an hour for three hours. I then put it in my must. I came home today to whip it and get some air to it and low and behold there was active fermentation. :)
 
Hobbyiswine, as long as it is real lemon juice it should work. Did you let it set for a day or two before adding the starter. This is to let the preservatives evaporate out so it doesn't kill the yeast.

Never mind. I see you already had it fermenting and it stopped.
 
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I cranked the heat to 78. Now there's white clusters forming. I sure hope they're yeast clusters.
Day 3.... SG same.
 
My pee is still not going. Think it might be the lemon juice i used this time. Was an off brand not Realemon. Hmmm.....will give it a few more days. Hopefully i dont have to flush it. That would put me begind schedule for summer!

If my weak memory serves me, I think a couple of years ago somebody had a bunch of trouble with an off brand lemon. Seems like it had sulfites or sorbate in it or something. Don't remember if they got it to go or not. It is on here someplace, but not sure I can find it. If I do will bring it up. Arne.
 
Sodium bisulphite and benzoate are listed on the ingredients for the lemon juice concentrate I used. I think those are both in the Realemon brand also but maybe this brand has more? Yes i let it sit for about 48 hours before pitching. I might head out of town for the weekend. If I come back and its not cooking I think I will dump it and try again.
 
K meta in my Walmart brand.

I think the problem I'm having is I used too much lemon juice. 8 1L bottles for 7 gallons.
I'm thinking of dividing it into two 6 gal batches and watering it down and adding more sugar to keep it at 1.080
 
K meta in my Walmart brand.

I think the problem I'm having is I used too much lemon juice. 8 1L bottles for 7 gallons.
I'm thinking of dividing it into two 6 gal batches and watering it down and adding more sugar to keep it at 1.080

My recipe calls for x2 - 32oz bottles to start with then the 3rd bottle when the SG gets down to around 1.00 for a 5.5 gal batch.
 

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