Stupid Airlock

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That is it for me reading anymore. I have learned who to listen to and who to ignore in the future though.

Humility...oh well.
 
i know what you mean.. if you're brewing an ale.. you should be getting airlock activity within a day. its a good sign of the primary ferment.. there is no way something creating that much gas is not going to bubble.. after 3 days or more you will not be seeing as much activity but it is still bubbling...
a simple answer to the question why it isn't bubbling would be. either your past your primary or you have a leak.. but it does not mean your beer is done..
but the answer i typically see around here is.. WTF are you an idiot, you dont know anything, airlock has nothing to do fermenting its a valve and thatss all, barometric pressure bla bla bla look how smart i am...
but 100% of my brews the bubbling starts alot in primary ferment. then it dies down a lil.. i don't touch my beers for 3 weeks and they are always done, so i dont worry about it much.. but to tell people not to look at the airlock for activity is wrong.. after the first week yes, dont use the airlock as a guide.. in the first week it is an excellent guide to know when your primary fermentation has started/stoped.. not if the beer is done
 
Greenbasterd said:
.. in the first week it is an excellent guide to know when your primary fermentation has started/stoped.

First, let me say I don't really give a rat's tail which side people are on. It's America and it's your beer.

But here's the thing: this quote is flatly untrue as stated.

EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE: At this very moment I have a robust porter fermenting (day 5) in plastic bucket w/ an airlock. I've watched at least 5min straight on a few occasions, but the airlock has not bubbled once. So, as I stated earlier, I decided to KNOW and took off the top for a hydro reading. Didn't need to take one, however--thick krausen and strong CO2 smell/stinging.

Is the lack of bubbles a rarity for me? Yes. Is it unheard of? No.

Does it underscore the fallacy that an airlock is always a useful gauge of fermentation? Only if you adhere to scientific method.

Like I said, I don't really care. I'll brew me, you brew you. But while people can have different interpretations, what they can't have is their own facts.
 
I'm going to cancel my cable. This thread is all the entertainment I need, you guys are hilarious!
 
Can we let this thread die now, please? As the OP, I watched this thread get interesting, resolve the issue, get ugly and then sort of get back to the original point.

My original point was that people should quit saying that “airlock activity is meaningless” because it’s not true. I have a lot of fun watching the bubbles and it gives me a pretty good idea of what’s going on with my beer. Case made, we’re done. Or are we? The case was not closed, but rather; afoot.

As it turns out airlock activity is always meaningful. Lack of airlock activity not so much. You might have a leak.
 
I knew the airlock police would just destroy this thread as soon as i read the title! And I agree with you Revy!
 
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