Any reason NOT to swirl the primary after ~1 day?

[simpig]

I see all this yummy yeast fodder at the bottom of my carboy and wonder if there is any reason I would NOT want to swirl things around a bit within the first 1-2 days of my primary fermentation to let the yeast get at all the good stuff - any problems with doing this?

 

[MrBIP]

Surely others here (with more experience) can provide the reasons why, but everything I've read says not to be mixing things up after you've aerated and started fermenting. Just let it be to do its thing. Even though all that stuff is settling on the bottom, you can still clearly see the yeast activity for many days. Pretty sure "swirling things around a bit" would not be recommended.

 

[The Brew Mentor]

I see no harm in swirling the fermentor, but it's not really needed unless you have a highly flocculant strain of yeast that wants to drop and go to sleep before the job is done.
I regularly swirl the fermentor and warm it up towards the end of fermentation to help with the clean up.
Brian

 

[chessking]

I don't see how swirling would hurt, after the O2 has been blown out. I just don't see the need. If you pitched the proper amount of healthy yeast, at the proper temperatures, then you beer will fine.

Also not all that crap on the bottom of the fermenter is yeast, and what yeast is there may be dead cells, petite mutants, or quick floculators that wont add anything to the ferment. Warming it up at the end of ferment will encourage the healthy cells to finish up.

 

[Altbier bitte]

I don't know if it would hurt anything, but that isn't 'yeast fodder'. Yeast fodder would be sugar, which is dissolved in the wort - only particles settle out.

 

[Nosybear]

No harm as long as you don't splash it around. But I don't see why it's necessary but then, I'm lazy.

 

[Kaiser]

I don't see that it will hurt either.

As a good practice I suggest that when pitching yeast, the yeast is brought into suspension in some wort before it is pitched. And then it should be evenly distributed in the wort. That will help it getting a faster start.

Kai

 

[Hammer1]

No real harm but then no real benefit either. The only time that I swirl a primary is after I add hops, and that's not untill 3 days before I rack to a secondary.