Airlock activity versus density

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inkball

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Hi boys,

First, notice that i'm not a total ''newb''; i've been brewing around 20batches of wine/porto/beer/etc in the past.

Now, i'm trying to brew some ''neutral'' alcohol:
10L of water
4kg of white sugar
4gr. of fermaid K (nutriment)
EC-1118 yeast.

Started bubbling after 3-4 hours, and accelerated for a day, and its on the cruse since then. It been like 4-5 days by now. I just checked density... And it's still 1.12... WTH :drunk:?
 
1.12 as 1.12 and original density was 1.12. Goal is to make 16 to 18% alc./vol. ... but density isnt moving... I don't get it. Can it be caused by solid particles (of sugar) still in suspension when i took density, that have melted by now?

There IS gaz comming out of the airlock (1bubble/2.5sec)...
 
inkball said:
1.12 as 1.12 and original density was 1.12. Goal is to make 16 to 18% alc./vol. ... but density isnt moving... I don't get it. Can it be caused by solid particles (of sugar) still in suspension when i took density, that have melted by now?

There IS gaz comming out of the airlock (1bubble/2.5sec)...

Yes, if you had undissolved sugar when you took your original reading, then it's totally unreliable, and should have been higher than 1.12. So, the current reading could well be correct. Unfortunately, your calculations can only be theoretical without a valid OG, but should be reasonable to estimate.
Also, it's not really density, which has units. Specific gravity is unitless.
 
If i want to evaluate OG can i calculate it like this:
4kg of sugar in 10L. 1L of water is 1KG (at 4°C?), if i had only 4kg of sugar. I have 14Kg/10L so 1.40Kg/L ? I'm i right?
 
If i want to evaluate OG can i calculate it like this:
4kg of sugar in 10L. 1L of water is 1KG (at 4°C?), if i had only 4kg of sugar. I have 14Kg/10L so 1.40Kg/L ? I'm i right?

The reason water density is relative to 4 C is because water expands on either side of 4 C. SG measurements are typically at 15 C/60 F.

Technically 14 kg total weight in 10 total liters will have a density of 1.4kg/l, correct. However, adding 4 kg of sugar to 10 liters of water will change the final volume a bit, changing the results. something closer to 14 kg / 12 liters. Not sure if you started or ended with 10 liters.

You would want to work in degrees plato and convert. I'm not sure if you used 10 total liters, or 10 liters of water, so both would look like:
4 kg into 10 liters (10 kg) = 4 kg sugar in 14 total kg = 28 plato.
28 plato = 1.120 specific gravity which should be around the 17% potential zone.
This will have a solution volume around 12 liters.

4 kg diluted to 10 total liters requires about 7.5 liters of water
4 kg / (4 kg sugar + 7.5 kg water) = 34.8 plato
34.8 plato = about 1.15 SG, with a potential above 20%

Assuming I did that correct.

That is your starting point. So, if you had 10 total liters, you went from ~1.15 to 1.12, and I would let it keep going for a long time. I'm assuming you are using this for one of the many alcohol flavor infusions, because the "D" word will get this thread killed instantly.

In the future, you may want to use yeast nutrient, or make a starter with a huge yeast population, also hydrate in water not dump in dry. It's very possibly you could get a stuck fermentation, in which case I would add nutrient, hydrate more yeast in pure sanitized water, and re-pitch.
 
Hi boys,

First, notice that i'm not a total ''newb''; i've been brewing around 20batches of wine/porto/beer/etc in the past.

Now, i'm trying to brew some ''neutral'' alcohol:
10L of water
4kg of white sugar
4gr. of fermaid K (nutriment)
EC-1118 yeast.

Started bubbling after 3-4 hours, and accelerated for a day, and its on the cruse since then. It been like 4-5 days by now. I just checked density... And it's still 1.12... WTH :drunk:?

by bubbling do you mean fizzing/sizzling? have you been stirring it twice a day?
that high gravity shouldn't be under an airlock yet with an oxygen loving yeast.
add nutrient steps every 20-30 points and airlock it around 1.020-1.40 and its going to take 3-4 months in bulk aging to go from nasty to neutral.

original gravity is already a lost cause, you'll need a vinometer to see final ABV.
 
Hi guys,

Been a month and a half, i tried 3 times. Nothing work. I went back to Porto,beer,cider... Which work... ahhh the easy way.

I promise to try again... But I'm not sure on what to do... I'll use EC-1118 Which is a great resistant yeast... But then?

Might the problem be that there's too much sugar at the start ? or Is it the lack of nutriment ? i'm putting in Fermaid-K (its supposed to be 1to1.5g/4L and i go to 2 since its pure water is it too few?)
 
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