LAB does not separate - troubleshooting

Good day,

I am experiencing difficulties with getting my LAB to separate. The milk does make curds in my jar, however instead of forming a thick layer at the top it seems to get drawn in towards the middle and sit there. I’d love to upload a picture here. Probably the best way to explain it is that it forms an elongated curd sitting vertically in the jar.

I followed Chris Trumps’ recipe quite precisely, and allowed for plenty of time to ferment. The only difference is that I was using a smaller jar, with about 1 US pint of milk inside. Is that too little? Also, could I have waited too long? Does the thick layer of curd at the top sink down again after a day or so?

Another note is that I took the fermenting LAB for a drive to the farm. There is a mention of not shaking the jar on CGNF Hawaii’s instruction page for LAB. Would this be the problem?

I did attempt to scoop out the curds which was difficult but obviously I did not get all of it. Then I strained the solution through a fine mesh bag used for nut milks. It seems to be more cloudy than the serum in Chris Trumps’ videos. I am not sure whether that is safe to use?

Framed differently; what exactly is the danger of allowing any of the curd to slip into the strained serum?

Any thoughts are very much appreciated!

Have a great day wherever you are!

Rein