Since I’m getting more into brewing lagers, I decided to invest in a stir plate. I ordered one from stirplates.com. It will be nice to just “set it and forget it” instead of doing intermittent shaking.
A couple hints.
Remember to add the stir bar when boiling your starter and remember to use your magnet on the stir bar before dumping into your wort.
Duly noted – thanks!
Awesome gadget to have. I would also hint to use some anti foam or big enough flask/container to contain the krausen that may happen. Way to just dramatically increase your yeast count from standard starter methods.
Bearcat, is “anti-foam” a homebrewing product?
Yep, commonly sold under the name Fermcap. As in Fermcap-S Foam Inhibitor- 1 oz. .
Thanks Denny. The stuff looks like, to me, white slimmy runny glue. Works really well though and in your BK too.
A stir plate is a great investment.
Then Tubercle got his by thinking quick.
The boss got me to help him one day to clean out a storage area at work and we were throwing a bunch of stuff away. He picked up a stir plate and said “what is this”?
The Tubercle said “Not sure ::), but it looks dangerous. I better take it out of here right away and dispose of it”. He handed it to me and said “Yea, I guess you’re right”. :o
Straight to the parking lot… 
Idiot.
and use a flask at least twice the volume of your starter.
You…or the boss? ;D :D ;) :-*
Oh, just got my first stirplate also…
Tubercle’s motto: If it’s free; It’s for me!! ;D ;D ;D ;D
+1 8)
I would recommend inserting stir bar into the cold wort before you start boiling.
Let us know how it works. A stir plate is on my wish list and that seems like a good deal if it works as advertised.
Not to say anything anti- stiplates.com-certainly is easier way to go about obtaining one, but you can do this yourself if you have the want-to. It is the DIY section. I am have made a few. It is fun to watch two stir plates going that you made from computer parts and a trip to radio shack.
I looked at diy stirplate guides. Definitely not my kind of project! :-[ I gladly ponied up the $50 for one from stirplates.com.
It is very important that you DO NOT add the stir bar after the wort has been heated to boiling temperatures. Because the flask is so smooth the wort is actually superheating if the stir bar is not in there to provide nucleation sites. When you then add the stir bar later the wort will suddenly boil and shoot out of the flask. This happened to me once and I am lucky that neither I, or someone else got hurt. The wort sprayed 5 ft out of the flask and hit the cabinets.
Kai
Holy smokes!!! Good tip, thanks!
I really should have stated to add your stir bar before starting your boil. I usually do this but once I forgot, but I did get it in there before it was on the burner too long.
Thanks for discovering these little things for us. 
I’ve never added the bar to the boiling wort and haven’t had any issues.
I will boil the wort and DME in a pan while the flask and stir bar are on the plate stirring some iodophor. I’ll dump the iodophor into the ice bath and pour the boiling wort into the flask (which is in the ice bath) with the bar at the bottom. I haven’t had any adverse results (yet).
sounds like that process is working ok for you, but even with a borosilicate flask you’re risking thermal shock & possible cracking by pouring boiling wort into a flask being cooled in ice bath. that process could work right up until it doesn’t.