Hi, I'm a novice to home mirco-brew, so naturally I have a question. I've
bought a Coopers Micro-brew kit, and have my wort in the fermentor as of
yesterday. I am wondering, in about 5 more days when I'm ready to bottle,
when it gets down real low, what about that pond scum on the top surface?
I understand that some of the bottom setiment will get in, no problem, but
the gunk on the top surface get bottled too? I assUme not. Please advise
oh great beer mongers of the world! :) Thanks, Basil Fawlty

Basil Fawlty wrote:
[color=blue]
> Hi, I'm a novice to home mirco-brew, so naturally I have a question. I've
> bought a Coopers Micro-brew kit, and have my wort in the fermentor as of
> yesterday. I am wondering, in about 5 more days when I'm ready to bottle,
> when it gets down real low, what about that pond scum on the top surface?
> I understand that some of the bottom setiment will get in, no problem, but
> the gunk on the top surface get bottled too? I assUme not. Please advise
> oh great beer mongers of the world! :) Thanks, Basil Fawlty[/color]

you might like using a specific gravity meter. This will tell you when the
beer is ready to bottle as it won't change over say three days. Stuff will
ferment longer than it appears to. As for the scum, just be careful with
the bottling hose? Usually the krausen will disappear as fermentation
progresses but a blowoff hose helps get rid of it some.
--
subjugate the rhyme and rock with the rhythem
only got one line to balk all the schizm

Basil,

The pond scum you mention is possibly harmless "foam" (for want of a better
description) which always develops during fermentation.
Once the frementation is complete, & you have allowed the brew to settle, I
would not expect to see scum on the top.
If you do have it after settlement has occured, scim it off carefully before
bottling.
Scum of a whitish, almost greasy texture, used to be seen in the old days
when we used open fermenters. I have not seen this for many years & I'm not
exactly sure what it was anyway.
Good luck,
Pete

"Basil Fawlty" <basil.fawlty@hushmail.com> wrote in message
news:pan.2005.11.24.16.35.03.288531@hushmail.com...[color=blue]
> Hi, I'm a novice to home mirco-brew, so naturally I have a question. I've
> bought a Coopers Micro-brew kit, and have my wort in the fermentor as of
> yesterday. I am wondering, in about 5 more days when I'm ready to bottle,
> when it gets down real low, what about that pond scum on the top surface?
> I understand that some of the bottom setiment will get in, no problem, but
> the gunk on the top surface get bottled too? I assUme not. Please advise
> oh great beer mongers of the world! :) Thanks, Basil Fawlty[/color]

Basil Fawlty wrote:[color=blue]
> Hi, I'm a novice to home mirco-brew, so naturally I have a question. I've
> bought a Coopers Micro-brew kit, and have my wort in the fermentor as of
> yesterday. I am wondering, in about 5 more days when I'm ready to bottle,
> when it gets down real low, what about that pond scum on the top surface?
> I understand that some of the bottom setiment will get in, no problem, but
> the gunk on the top surface get bottled too? I assUme not. Please advise
> oh great beer mongers of the world! :) Thanks, Basil Fawlty[/color]

Basil:

I've only brewed top fermented ales twice, but they both settled out to
the bottom of the fermenter when fermentation was complete.

You really should wait for two weeks at least before bottling or you
risk over carbonation of the beer because the sugars in the wort not
being completely worked out adding to the carbonation sugar and making
for too much head when you pour the beer.

Hope I am not leading you astray,

W.N.(Bill) McCaw