How much airlock activity?

Hi Again, My first brew is on day 3. Just wondering what to expect. Although some people have said sometimes you get no airlock activity, assuming I do and even on a gentle ferment how often do bubbles come out? I know its a silly question, but i just dont know what to expect as i have no experience as yet

Don't worrry about it. The first few days of bubbles is normal. Gasses being expelled. But, still let it ferment for alotted time. I hope.

Hey there. I'm going to start with a disclaimer that I've only done a few batches myself, but I know what you're going through. I was nervous about my first batch. All of my batches started "bubbling" in the airlock within 24 hours but then have died down to little to no activity by day 3-4 which I understand to be pretty common. It doesn't mean your fermentation is complete, only that the first stage (primary) is complete. If you have a hydrometer, that is the best way to determine if fermentation is complete as your gravity will stop dropping. During primary fermentation though, I've gotten anywhere from a bubble every second or two, down to a bubble every 15-20 seconds.

Just as an afterthought, here is an awesome link someone sent me on here when I had a similar question on my first batch. Its a pretty good read.
http://www.brewgeeks.com/the-life-cycle-of-yeast.html

Great, thank you. It is day 3 and it actually started bubbling every 20 or 30 seconds after i posted the thread started. First sign of activity. It's going for it now. I do have a hydro, and i will check gravity after about 7 days or so. It is an extract kit, says to check after 4 to 7 days. Im going from primary to bottle so gravity needs to be right, dont want any bombs!

OK excellent. What tempeture are you storing it at? And don't be afraid to let it sit. Its very common to let your beer sit in the primary fermenter for 3-4 weeks just to give the yeast time to finish up and let the beer clear. Patience is a virtue!

Patience i am running thin on lol. its on 20 degrees celsius. Cant get it much warmer as its only 7 outside so hard to keep it warmer with winter.

20C is fine,that's 68F. When the rapid bubbling slows or stops,that just means inital fermentation is done. Formally called primary fermentation when secondarys were thought to be absolutely necessary. Since many use only primary now,I began refering to it as initial fermentation.
So when it slows or stops,it'll then slowly,uneventfully creep down to a stable FG. Then give it 3-7 days to clean up by products of fermentation & settle out clear or slightly misty. Then bottle.

OK cool. I will take a hydro today, and another tomorrow. If stable you think bottling Sunday would be ok?
Deon

hitman73 said:

OK cool. I will take a hydro today, and another tomorrow. If stable you think bottling Sunday would be ok?
Deon

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Sure it will be OK as long as your hydrometer shows that it isn't still fermenting. Leaving it a bit longer in the fermenter will make it mature faster but waiting is so hard for your first beer. Give it some time in the bottle to carbonate and then sample it. A week will give you some carbonation but don't expect your beer to form a big, long lasting head. It takes time for this to happen.

Also, don't expect your beer to taste great. It will taste great to you, because you brewed it but an experienced beer judge would give you really poor scores. Sample another on week 2 and compare the two. One more on week 3. By about week 5 the beer will have begun to taste like it should...unless it is a dark beer which will take more time yet. Don't drink them all too soon, you'll be missing out on the best.

Have you started your next brew yet? Getting more beer on its way will make the wait easier and will get you enough in the lineup to help the patience part. Your first beer can then be maturing while you sample the second batch. With a bit of practice you will notice the flavor changes as the beer begins to mature.

Great advice. Im beginning to see i need to buy a LOT more bottles and a couple more fermenting barrels. That way I wont have to be impatient forever.

That will definitely help. I have 4 fermenters and about 300 bottles. I never have to drink my beer when it isn't ready.