Need More Bubbles

**Kayos** · 06-12-2007, 06:01 AM

My last few brews have been really hurting on carb. Flat and stay that way for a month or more. I use 3/4 cup corn sugar boild in a ilttle water and pour that into my bottling bucket before racking from my secondary. What am I doing wrong? I don't stir it after I rack to my bottling bucket. Should I? I will refer to the carb chart from now on for dextrose amount, but the 3/4 cup should definitely carb OK, and it is NOT! Suggestions?

pfranco81 · 06-12-2007, 06:39 AM

Well you should definately stir your beer and your priming sugar. Although, not stirring should result in some super-carbed beers along with some not-so-carbed beers. After the month or so are they coming to the right amount of carb? What temperature are you conditioning at?

Blender · 06-12-2007, 07:25 AM

You should have carbonation after a month. Store them at 70 degrees or a bit higher. You could also turn them upside down after a couple of weeks to put the yeast into suspension again, I have found that this helps too.

I bottle and cap in sets of 12. I gently stir between each set.

**Kayos** · 06-12-2007, 09:33 AM

I do agitate the bottles gently every few days when carbing. I condition close to 70F. I will try stirring, but I am not having bubbles in any of them, not some over some under carbed. I think I am getting a good seal from my wing capper as well.

FlyGuy · 06-12-2007, 01:10 PM

If you are storing your bottles in the 60's, and depending on the yeast strain, this could be your problem. After bottling, it is best to leave your beer at 75F (or even a bit higher) for the first week or two, and then you can cool them a bit.

Also, if you use a secondary and the beer is really clear when you bottle, there may be little yeast left in suspension to carbonate the beer. It will always happen eventually, but I have noticed that the longer my beer sits in the secondary, the longer it takes to carb up. This makes it even more important to follow the point above about keeping it warm.

neckbone · 06-12-2007, 06:21 PM

I just bottled my 6th batch. For 5 of them, including this one, I just put the priming sugar in the bottom of my bottling bucket and stirred as the bucket was filling. On one, I boiled the sugar w/ some water and mixed that in the bucket. The boiled one was significantly less carbed than the others. I have no idea why, but you might want to try that next time. And definately stir it periodically while the bucket is filling.