Fermentation issue

Hi everyone, fairly new to brewing. The last four batches I've made have had no bubbling. Fermentation is happening. Krausens are forming, gravity readings are changing and good beer is happening but I can't figure out why there are no bubbles. I have a few theories and I was wondering if anyone would have input.

I use 6.5 gallon bucket for five gallon batches. Is the extra space just accommodating the gas produced? The water in the air lock shifts with pressure changes but no bubbles. My other thought is that the seal isn't secure. Last time I taped around the lid but no change.

If it doesn't matter I'll just leave it alone but if it has the potential to affect my beer and prevent me from making the best beer I can I want to figure it out.

Any input would be welcome, thanks in advance.

What kinda of beer is it homes ? Do you know what kinda yeast it is ?

I've mad an amber ale, a gluten free amber ale and two pale ale. I've used Safale US-05 yeast for all of them since it's temp forgiving. It ferments at about 70-72 degrees Fahrenheit.

MacF said:

. . . . . If it doesn't matter I'll just leave it alone but if it has the potential to affect my beer and prevent me from making the best beer I can I want to figure it out.

Any input would be welcome, thanks in advance.

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It does not matter, please do ignore the airlock, gravity readings are the only accurate way to determine what is happening with your beer, wait until you think it is done, then take a reading, then wait another 3 days and take another reading, if it moves, wait another 3, etc.

The easiest and best way to make great tasting beer is to have patience.

I've only done partial mash kits from BrewersBest , 2 India pale ales , 2 imperial pale ales and and my just brewed their imperial nut brown. All the ales came with that US 05 that your using and they fermed hard and heavy for around 3 days , and 1 bubbled steady for 9 days ... The nut brown ( that I've got many replies about on here , thanks HomeBrewTalkies ) I noticed next to no fermentation ... I was wondering if

Was wondering if it was a characteristic of the uk yeast that came with the nut brown kit ?

My first batch I used a bucket similar to what you're talking about, and I thought there was a good seal on it. I was wrong. It fermented fine and worked out well, though not a single bubble was ever visible. It's remarkable just how sealed fermentation chambers need to be. I'd say, you're all good.

Regarding ifearnothing0 (except stuck fermentation!), it could very well be the characteristic of the yeast. Some yeasts make big krausens which are sometimes so gross you think something's wrong with the fermentation only for them to eventually slip away and fall out. Some yeasts make hardly any krausen at the top, or if they do, it's so brief you may miss it. Do some research on the yeast strain you used, because you might find that it often shows little evidence of it's work on the surface.

I would send a PM to Revvy with your question. He is usually pretty good at diagnosing problems relating to the absence of bubbles.

osagedr said:

I would send a PM to Revvy with your question. He is usually pretty good at diagnosing problems relating to the absence of bubbles.

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Oh man . . . .

If you're not seeing bubbles, it means that the co2 is leaking out someplace instead of going through the airlock. It doesn't matter a bit, though, so put the lid on tight and put the airlock in and don't give it another thought.

We are sure we got fermentation now , and we are mor than sure our buckets are perfectly airtight , the lids on these buckets will swell under heavy fermentation

Whenever I am concerned about a leak, I take my finger and press ver very gently on the lid of my fermenter. If I see a bubble forming in the airlock due to the new pressure, I let it go. If you can press on the lid with no airlock response, you've got a leak somewhere that is big enough to cause problems.

DMartin said:

If you can press on the lid with no airlock response, you've got a leak somewhere that is big enough to cause problems.

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What problems can the leak cause?

We fermented so hard on second batch it craked the lid on our bucket right next to the airlock hole

osagedr said:

What problems can the leak cause?

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Once fermentation is complete, there wouldn't be any more CO2 pushing out of the leak, and without that airflow bad things might get in.

Yeah we tried to go to our closest home brew shop and they didn't have that kind of lid , so we ended up buyin a diff lid and bucket... All is well now , and we ended going to a diff LHBS a mont or 3 later and they had the lid we needed originally .. So we have 2 ferm buckets and a carboy at present ... Now we are looking into kegging , but it seem like ya can't find a an actual complete corny keg set up for that 200 bucks .. We been browsing and ebayin and c listing and it seem jus gonna have to throw a pile of money at somebody if I want to keg my own ****

CO2 is heavier than air, if you don't disturb the fermentor alot the co2 will blanket the brew.

osagedr said:

What problems can the leak cause?

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None! Unless you have an active air current flowing into and out of the fermenter the co2 produced will protect the beer. Bacteria and wild yeast cannot fly. They can only fall or be blown into the beer.

The only concern would be oxidation and IMO this would only be a concern if you were aging the beer for months.

kh54s10 said:

None! Unless you have an active air current flowing into and out of the fermenter the co2 produced will protect the beer. Bacteria and wild yeast cannot fly. They can only fall or be blown into the beer.

The only concern would be oxidation and IMO this would only be a concern if you were aging the beer for months.

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Sorta what I was thinking. There are enough things to worry about when it comes to brewing without inventing new ones.

I use a fermenter that has NO airlock, just a cover that allows gas to escape.

I dump in my 7 gallons of wort, pitch my yeast and in 3 or 4 weeks start looking at its clarity and specific gravity.


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