If you don’t want to make new kefir and want to store it, place the grains in at least 2-4 cups of milk, remembering the “1 tablespoon of grains to 2 cup of milk” rule. Then add a little more milk. I like to store mine in at least 4 cups of milk to make sure that they have plenty of food to eat. Then you place this in the refrigerator. This will last for one week. If you want to store it longer, drain the milk and add new milk after 1 week. If you are going to be gone longer than a week, double the milk you add. It eats the lactose (milk sugar) out of the milk and you want to be sure it has plenty to eat and won’t die. It is a living colony and needs food, just as you do. Also, the grains will be a little slower making kefir when you first take them out of the fridge. The cold just slows them down a bit, after being in the fridge and then coming back out onto the counter to make kefir. The second time you make kefir they will be back up to speed.