Help with cider making

First time I have tried to make cider, decided to go the wild yeast way, all fine but the fermentation has stopped after 2 days , is this normal please

No, it's not. How are you sure it has stopped?

There's not much to go on here, and I'm relatively new to homebrewing in general, and the closest thing to cider I've made is a batch of graf - nor have I tried using wild yeast.

What I can say (based on my limited experience, but I do read a lot on HBT!) is that fermentation stopping after two days would seem unusual - which leads me to believe fermentation probably hasn't really stopped.

Don't confuse a lack of airlock activity with the end of fermentation. It's not a reliable indicator.

The only truly reliable indicator is taking specific gravity measurements with a hydrometer. When these measurements hold constant for three days, then one can more reasonably conclude that fermentation has completed.

First, I'd give it more time. Most of us ferment for a couple of weeks, minimum.

Second, if you're still concerned, you can try gently swirling the fermentation vessel to rouse the yeast and move it to a slightly warmer location to encourage the yeast to pick up the tempo.

Of course I encourage those with more experience to chime in, but again, I think two days is too quick to come to any conclusions.

There is a layer of froth on the stop but I have not seen a bubble for a day or so, although I don't stand and stare at it for long. I will take the pg and see if it changes as you recommend. Many thanks for your advise I will keep you informed

If you still have a layer of froth on top, it's almost certainly not done fermenting.

SG readings are the best way to make the determination, but were it my cider, I's probably let it sit for a couple of weeks first.

I can sympathize, though, patience regarding this hobby doesn't always come easily!

Mozart said:

If you still have a layer of froth on top, it's almost certainly not done fermenting.

SG readings are the best way to make the determination, but were it my cider, I's probably let it sit for a couple of weeks first.

I can sympathize, though, patience regarding this hobby doesn't always come easily!

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Sg has not moved for 24 hours. No bubbles. Sg 1004 . Can I add yeast now to get it going or is that a no go

Sg has not moved for 24 hours now. Is it possible to add yeast at this stage or is that a no go as I am using wild yeast

Unless you add a large amount of yeast to the batch the wild yeast will prevent them from taking hold. Also unless you add more sugar there is very little for any yeast to ferment.
An FG of 1.004 isn't abnormal. With yeasts chosen for fermentation(montrachet, 71b, &c) 1.000 or 0.998 aren't uncommon but for something that happened to land on your apples 1.004 is probably about as low as it's going to go.
At this point you're just letting it bulk condition.

Do you suggest I leave it alone. It tastes sweet . I only made it a week ago and I have been told to leave it although it is not bubbling

I am in the EXACT same boat. I put my 1st cider in the primary 2 days ago, and while fermentation was vigorous after 12 hours, it has since appeared to stop. I added 2 cups of brown sugar to mine, so I KNOW there's enough food in there for those little yeast buggers. I felt the same after my 1st homebrew stopped bubbling after 2 days...and it turned out fine.

What yeast did you use? I used S-04...but I had NO idea what yeast to use, so don't base my choice on very much.

It's totally possible for yeast to ferment simple sugars in 24 hours, although it's common for it to take a bit longer. My guess is that the temperature is quite warm, and it speeds fermentation quite a lot.

If the SG is dropping, or finished, it's fine. In the OP's case, 1.004 is perfectly fine although it might go a little bit lower.

Thanks for all the advise, mrphillips . I am using wild yeast, which is no yeast accept that which is in nature. On the apple skins I have been informed, unfortunately I washed the apples which you should not do, I have now been told. Will give the cider a slight shake to see if it gets going again, otherwise I will leave alone . Picking more apples today for next lot, not sure if I should risk going wild yeast route again.

tuggy53 said:

Thanks for all the advise, mrphillips . I am using wild yeast, which is no yeast accept that which is in nature. On the apple skins I have been informed, unfortunately I washed the apples which you should not do, I have now been told. Will give the cider a slight shake to see if it gets going again, otherwise I will leave alone . Picking more apples today for next lot, not sure if I should risk going wild yeast route again.

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You said you don't have a lot of experience, so forgive this question: are you sure it's at 1.004 and not 1.040? You said it's sweet, and cider that ran down to 1.004 should be very dry. Mouth puckeringly so!

Wild yeast on the apples probably won't work as fast as commercial yeast - there's less there, plus you washed some off. And you just don't know how hearty the strain is.

I would swirl the fermenter pretty hard and see what happens. Also don't let it get too cold or it might slow down. But I definitely think if it is still sweet, it's not done yet.

I never considered wild yeast as the ONLY means of fermentation, but I like the sounds of it! The only reason I used S-04 is because that strained works well with English dry ales, and I knew I wanted my cider to be niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice and dry.

If you're unsure if your wild yeast is working, I don't see anything wrong with adding a packet of yeast or, even better, liquid yeast. I'm not very patient, so I would probably add more yeast to it...but I don't think it's the best way to go

Sorry yes you are right it was sg was 1.04. Gave it a shake and started to froth. I am going to leave it for another week. It does seem very dark almost black green in colour. Cloudy . Is that normal

tuggy53 said:

Sorry yes you are right it was sg was 1.04. Gave it a shake and started to froth. I am going to leave it for another week. It does seem very dark almost black green in colour. Cloudy . Is that normal

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Cloudy is normal at this point, but black green sounds odd. What color was it when it started? I think of cider as brown or rust colored. It will start to clear out as the sugar gets eaten. I would continue swirling kind of hard every day for a week, then let it sit for a day and see how it looks.

It was a normal light brown colour . Tastes ok. Very sweet. Used a mixture of apples including a few wasps I expect

If it's still real sweet, there's probably quite a bit of fermentation that still needs to take place. I'd leave her set for another week, and then try her again. At least, that's what I'm doing with my batch.