A few beginners question

I started my first batch of beer the other day so I have a few beginner questions. I am making an "American Cream Ale" furnished from a package from my local home brew distributor. Is there any certain length of time I should wait to transfer to the secondary or should I check the gravity readings to see if it is stable. It seems to be fermenting quite well with lots of bubbles. I took a peek inside and there is some green stuff on top of the foam...the smell is also pretty bad. Since this is my first brew I'm not really sure what to expect so any help would be appreciated!

Hey Jason,

No there is no certain time...wait a week, or until the foam has fallen. In the meantime, relax, have a brew, and read this stuff.

As El Pistolero said, there is no "set" amount of time. I wait until the bubbling in the primary has slowed to the point where there is less than one bubble per minute. So far, this has been as few as 3 days and as many as 6 to 7. Relax. Have a brew. Patience will serve you well.

I'm no expert because I've only made about 6 brews myself but I will offer this one piece of advice, be very patient. Don't rush to drink your beer right away after its been bottled. I always had my friends (none of whom brew) constantly asking me when we could drink the beer. I'd always cave after 2 weeks in the bottle and the beer would be good enough, but the cases that I wouldn't drink then that would be in the bottle for 4-5 weeks longer would be much better. But either way remember that now you are part of a fun community! So just relax and have a good time with it!

But the green and the smell is nothing to worry about right?

The green is just hops, and the smell will go away. Relax, don't worry, be happy, peace, love, and have another brew.

Thanks, the Howtobrew.com Intro was most helpfull also. I should have read that a long ago.

Generally it is recommended that you not open the top until it's time to transfer to the secondary... risks the chance of bacteria. Like it has been mentioned before, wait till bubbling settles below 1 bubble per minute... if it's still bubbling, it's still fermenting, meaning your beer is still becoming more alcoholic. Once it reaches that poitn of less than 1 bubble/minute, transfer to your secondary fermenter, let sit for 1-3 weeks (again, verying on your brew). Once the Gravity stabilizes for 2 days (consistent readings for 2 days) bottle.

Then again, don't listen to me TOO much, Im still brewing my first right now!! Patience is becoming taxing, but I was quite worried myself at first, not knowing when to do what...even with reading 3 books before starting!