Wash smells like garbage water?!

[OOOOOWWWWWEEEEE]

I did 2 five gallons washes. I only added carbon to one, and it smells like it's been sitting in a dumpster for a month. The other smells like sweet molasses. This was for plain sugar washes (corn sugar/molasses/distillers yeast). Is this normal? Did I just ferment a batch of garbage water and get a contamination? I'll let you know what my refractometer says on the ABV when I get home.

[OOOOOWWWWWEEEEE]

I think I've got a bad fermentation. This is totally confusing. The 2 five gallon pales have been bubbling away for the last 2 weeks, and continue to bubble today. The refractometer read 1.055 and 1.063 on the other. Neither sample had even a hint of alcohol in it (taste or smell wise). Contaminated batches? I pitched plain old distillers yeast...and I'm guessing at about 2-3x the amount found in the single yeast packets you'd use for home brewing.

WTF did I do wrong?

[Prairiepiss]

Can you tell us how exactly you put the washes together? Recipe? What was the SG at start? What brand of plain ol distillers yeast? Temps? And why would you add carbon to a ferment?

[OOOOOWWWWWEEEEE]

Recipe is 5g water, 9lb corn sugar, 1/2g molasses (about 5.5 jars of the walmart unsulfured brand). The yeast is just plain old distiller brand yeast. I stored them in my house during ferm, and temp was probably around 70 degrees most of the time.

I thought carbon helped clear it, so I added it during fermentation to one of the 2 batches I made. I made 2, 5g batches...one with turbo carbon, one without. The one with the carbon in it smells like garbage water.

[Dnderhead]

sounds infected..no wash,mash should smell bad just some better than others.

[rad14701]

Dump it and head over to the Parent Site, the New Distiller Reading Lounge, and the Tried and True Recipe forum... You have much to learn... A half gallon of molasses in 5 gallons of water won't give you squat for alcohol... The corn will only add flavor or, in your case, promote infection... I doubt you could even get 3% ABV out of that wash...

[Dnderhead]

if your using feed corn pour boiling water over it if recipe allows

[biker geek]

Guys,
He said "corn sugar", not corn