Water kefir problems and how to fix them

First: new grains, or settled ones?

If your grains have only just arrived, a flat, sweet batch is not a problem, just a matter of settling in. What is normal in the first week is described in Water kefir: the first days.

If your jar has been running nicely for weeks and something suddenly changes, ask yourself what is different. Has the weather turned warmer or colder? Did you buy a different bag of sugar? Has the jar moved to a new spot, have you been away, did it just come out of the dishwasher? Nine times out of ten, the answer is in there.

No bubbles, and the fig stays on the bottom

After 24 hours the sugar water looks almost the same as when you made it. The fig is lying on the bottom and the drink tastes sweet.

What usually causes it:

• The kitchen is below 20°C, especially overnight.
• The water has had its calcium taken out: filtered, softened or distilled.
• The tap water still had plenty of chlorine in it.
• Too little sugar was used, or a sweetener.
• The grains have just come out of a break in the fridge.

What helps: a warmer spot, tap water that has stood for a few hours or a still mineral water, and 4 tablespoons of real sugar. Give the batch a few extra hours, then go back to the 24-hour rhythm. More about choosing water and sugar in Water and sugar for water kefir.

Too sour, almost vinegary

What usually causes it: the batch stood too long or too warm, or there are too many grains in too little water. A jar in the sun also tips over into vinegar quickly.

What helps: strain earlier, find a cooler spot and check the ratio: 30 g of grains to 1 litre. If your grains have grown, use more water. Do not pour a sour batch away. Topped up with apple juice or sparkling water it makes a fresh spritzer, and a splash of it is very good in a salad dressing.

It smells strongly of yeast or beer

A light yeasty smell is part of it, rather like a mild cider. If it starts to smell properly of beer or bread dough, the yeasts have taken over.

What usually causes it: long batches, a lot of warmth, frequently changing sugar, or a lot of fruit and cordial in the second fermentation.

What helps: stick strictly to 24 hours, do not skip the lemon slice, and use plain white sugar for a while. After two or three batches the balance is usually back.

The drink turns stringy or syrupy

Now and then water kefir thickens, almost like syrup, and pulls into strings as you pour it. It looks strange, but it does happen.

What usually causes it: the culture is out of balance, often after a hot spell, a change of sugar or a batch left too long. Certain bacteria then produce more of the slippery stuff.

What helps: rinse the grains well in the sieve with cool water, wash the jar in hot water and rinse it thoroughly, and start a new batch with fresh sugar water, a fig and lemon. Keep to white sugar and exactly 24 hours for a few batches. You would rather not drink the stringy batch, but the grains are not lost.

The grains are shrinking or turning mushy

Over a few weeks you have fewer and fewer grains: they go soft, fall apart or form a slush on the bottom.

What usually causes it:

• Very soft, filtered or softened water, with little calcium and magnesium in it. Common in Scotland, Wales and the North West, where the tap water is often very soft.
• Too little sugar or too long between feeds: the grains are hungry.
• Constant warmth: they use themselves up faster than they grow.
• Pressing hard in the sieve, or rinsing with hot water.

What helps: harder water or a still mineral water, a spoonful of golden caster sugar in the mix, a fig in every batch and a temperature between 20 and 25°C. Let them drain in the sieve without pressing. Keeping them in shape is covered in Caring for water kefir grains.

The grains are not growing

In the first weeks they often hardly grow at all, because they are settling in. If the amount stays the same for a long time after that while the drink ferments nicely, nothing is wrong. Some cultures in soft water put their energy into fermenting rather than growing. Some cane sugar in the mix, a still mineral water and a steady rhythm usually give growth a nudge.

The bottle does not fizz

The first fermentation is fine, but after the second there is hardly any fizz in the bottle. Look at the rubber seal on your swing-top, the amount of fruit, the temperature and the base kefir: was the fig already floating when you strained? Every adjustment you can make is set out in Water kefir: the second fermentation.

It tastes bland and watery

There is some fizz, the fig rises, but the taste is flat: not sweet, not fresh, not much of anything.

What usually causes it: a lack of aroma rather than of fermentation. White sugar alone and a small, dry fig give a very neutral drink. Sometimes the lemon slice is too thin or forgotten.

What helps: replace a tablespoon of white sugar with cane sugar, use a soft fig and a good thick slice of lemon with its peel. Above all, give it a second fermentation with fruit. A bottle of rhubarb water kefir or strawberry water kefir shows straight away how much flavour your base really has.

Mould, or not?

Mould is uncommon with water kefir, because the drink turns acidic quickly. In a damp house, though, with condensation on the windows for half the year, it is worth knowing the difference.

With real mould, throw the batch away and do not carry on with the same grains. Send us a photo and we will work out together what happened. With fresh water kefir grains you will have a new batch going within a day of the parcel arriving.

Fruit flies around the jar

From late August into September, fruit flies love the tart smell. A tightly woven tea towel, pulled taut with an elastic band, keeps them out. A loose piece of muslin or a lid simply resting on top is not enough. A small dish of cider vinegar with a drop of washing-up liquid beside the jar catches the rest.

Everything at a glance

Many of these situations start with a few small mistakes at the very beginning. They are listed in Beginner kefir mistakes.

Frequently asked questions

For every other question about your grains and your daily batch, see the complete water kefir guide. Want a fresh start? Live water kefir grains start at £11.