No sign of fermentation

Just racked my second brew to the carboy after 10 days in the primary. I never saw any signs of fermentation and there was not any trub on the bottom on the bucket. I did not take a hydrometer reading since I do not have one but will be using one from here on out. Should I just dump the beer rather than bottle it in a few weeks?

Don't dump it, never dump it unless it smells or tastes nasty. But don't bottle it if you are not sure it has attenuated properly. If fermentation takes off in the bottles you could have a dangerous mess on your hands. The simple solution is get a hydrometer. The beer isn't going anywhere, you can leave it be until you get one and to be quite honest you probably shouldn't brew without one for this very reason. They are cheaper then the beer you're thinking of dumping so go get one.

Are you trying to wrap up all the noob questions in one post?

I asked one question.

lack of trub tells me it didn't ferment. is it sweet? what kind and how much yeast did you pitch?

Gibby11 said:

I asked one question.

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And I answered one question.

Welcome to the hobby... Dont worry about them. Some people are just better at being %$#@ than others... they have it down to a science. Get that hydrometer...

Thanks for the advice guys. I am going to get a hydrometer today. I used dry yeast one packet (6 grams) of Muntons. Not sure if it is sweet I guess I can give it a taste when I get home.

Well, I'm relatively new, and I read the beginners forum. You should too. Not trying to give you a hard time, but it answers questions like these.

I'll still give you a few pointers:

1. Buy a hydrometer. They are like $7.
2. Take a hydrometer reading as soon as you get it. Hopefully it's not too high as to be nasty sweet.
3. Take another reading two-three days after the first hydrometer reading.
4. If the reading is the same, it is almost surely done fermenting and is safe to bottle (although 3-4 weeks is recommended for clarification).
5. Go read the Beginner forum and FAQ. They are awesome. Pay attention to the "airlock is not a fermentation signaller" stuff.

Good luck!

-Agree on hydrometer. Its the only way to fly (well refractometers work too I guess).
-Agree that a silent airlock does not tell you what is going on with fermentation. It usually does, but you could have leaks in your bucket/airlock.
-Muntons yeast is not the best stuff out there IMO. Especially the 6 gram packets. If your hydrometer indicates that fermentation never took off, I would go buy a higher quality dry yeast and run through the rehydration procedure (takes 30 minutes).
-Welcome to HBT!!! Lots of brewers from Minny here.

watersr said:

And I answered one question.

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Just to clarify, I wasn't trying to be snarky to Gibby11. Happy to try and answer the question. I was joining Gibby in responding to this post

iaefebs said:

Are you trying to wrap up all the noob questions in one post?

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Thanks again guys.

Watersr your help is much appreciated!