First brew, and worried

A little worried about my first brew. There seems to be no activity in the fermenter after almost twelve hours (I pitched the yeast 12 hours ago). I made the mistake of syphoning the cooled wort into the primary fermenter, but didn't thing that would cause any real problems other than alot of trub. The other thing I'm worried about is the yeast was out for about eight hours (out of the refridgerator). I had some technical difficulties and after I crushed the nutrient pack inside that activator pack I left it at room temp for that long. I don't think that would be a big deal as well, but.... I'm a newb.

I think I should see some activity, but If I'm freaking out for no reason please let me know.

Here's pics in the fermenter right now.

Just relax, 24-72hrs is the normal time for fermentation to begin.

I agree with ThomasRau, relax and let the yeast do its thing. Did you take a gravity reading before pitching your yeast? You should be able to monitor the fermentation better that way than by what you can see.

Just my .02 cents, could be wrong too.

I will relax, big sigh of relief thanks!!

Yes, got 1.050, seems ball park for what I'm brewing. Can I use a funnel with a filter to go into my secondary fermenter to remove some of the trub, there is alot, I mean alot down there?????

no, you can't use a funnel. you can NOT splash the beer once its done fermenting...period.

if you do, you'll aerate the beer, which causes oxidation, and will end up adding an off-flavor very simliar to wet cardboard, and it won't age out.

you rack it OFF the trub to secondary. SEcondary allows for further clearing (NOT fermentation), and after two weeks you should be able to bottle or keg, and little to no trub will be left in the bottle.

an auto-siphon is your friend for racking...it has a little tip on the end that lifts it off the bulk of the trub.

Okay, thanks. So don't worry about the trub too much. Just put the brew in the secondary after about four days and be carefull when using the auto syphon to not pick up too much trub. Thanks for the help, big relief.

My beer didn't start fermenting until well over 24 hours. Turned out fine. RDWAHAHB!

ndhowlett said:

Okay, thanks. So don't worry about the trub too much. Just put the brew in the secondary after about four days and be carefull when using the auto syphon to not pick up too much trub. Thanks for the help, big relief.

Click to expand...

Not four days, that's not enough time, especially since it's hasn't kicked started yet. Don't rush it. Wait until it's done fermenting, then it's ok to rack it. I usually leave mine for 10 days before moving it to a clearing tank.

Did you aerate well? Liquid yeast need ample O2 to get started and as you didn't make a starter, you are going to have a little wait until that yeast starts going in that 1050 wort.

ndhowlett said:

Okay, thanks. So don't worry about the trub too much. Just put the brew in the secondary after about four days and be carefull when using the auto syphon to not pick up too much trub. Thanks for the help, big relief.

Click to expand...

Don't rack it after only four days. Use your hydrometer. It'll tell you when it's okay to transfer the wort. Don't transfer it until primary is done. If you don't have a hydrometer then leave the beer in the primary for two weeks then transfer to secondary.

ndhowlett said:

I will relax, big sigh of relief thanks!!

Yes, got 1.050, seems ball park for what I'm brewing. Can I use a funnel with a filter to go into my secondary fermenter to remove some of the trub, there is alot, I mean alot down there?????

Click to expand...

Wait, are you saying that there is a lot of trub in the fermenter right now?

ndhowlett said:

Here's pics in the fermenter right now.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I guess that looks like trub.

Trub is a byproduct of fermentation. Unless there's something else going on here, the fact that there's trub in the fermenter suggests that fermentation has already begun. You pitched it last night, and there's no activity in the airlock now? I suppose it's possible that the yeast is done already . . .

Anyone else think that ndhowlett's yeast might have already converted most of the sugars?

Ultimately, though, it doesn't matter. Just give it a week or so before racking to the secondary; take a hydrometer reading at that point to see how it's going.

RDWHAHB!

Mike B said:

Anyone else think that ndhowlett's yeast might have already converted most of the sugars?

Click to expand...

To me it looks more like a bunch of solids from the boil made their way into the primary. Been-there-done-that. No worries, just be careful to leave it all behind when racking to the secondary, it doesn't hurt anything.

Thanks for the relief guys, lots of actiivity now!!! Stoked about my first brew!!!

Hmmm. got me thinkin.. Not to be a spaz, I did pitch the yeast about four hours ago and nothing... I am sure that It wont. Couple of things though, I pitched the yeast at 91 degrees F, is that too hot? Also I got a little crazy and threw two apples in there when I added the Malt extract when it was boiling. I started to think about random spores that might have been on there, I cored them after I washed them. It is my first batch so i got that goin for me...

I don't know what those apples might do, but I have twice pitched into 90+ wort with no problems

RGH: If you threw the apples into boiling wort, that should have killed any stray yeast/bacteria on the apples, I would think.

Thanks guys, also I was wondering how crazy are you when it comes to keeping things clean? I lysoled the crap out of my counters before I began, and I used anti-bacterial hand soap to clean my fermentors and then rinsed them out really well. any good tips? I also stirred it with my schlong to throw my own "taste" into the brew. JK about that last one.

It's been about 27 hours since i pitched my liquid yeast. I haven't seen any activity (i know that i won't necessarily 'see' the activity), but when is too late to aerate? Could i go down there and shake up my carboy some to help things along? also, i'm using a hefeweizen yeast and it is sitting in my basement at around 66-67 degrees. is that too cold? i kept it upstairs at about 75 for the first 20 hours or so.

I would keep it around 70 until you see signs of fermentation, then you can reduce the temp if you like.

Wait until 3 days is up if there is still nothing going on you could gently swirl the carboy around to swirl up whats in there and kick start the yeasties.

jmgreen7 said:

It's been about 27 hours since i pitched my liquid yeast. I haven't seen any activity (i know that i won't necessarily 'see' the activity), but when is too late to aerate? Could i go down there and shake up my carboy some to help things along? also, i'm using a hefeweizen yeast and it is sitting in my basement at around 66-67 degrees. is that too cold? i kept it upstairs at about 75 for the first 20 hours or so.

Click to expand...

Have you taken a hydrometer reading..I mean you seem to "know" that you won't see activity..so from your understanding of that did you happen to catch the part about yeast sometime needing up to 72 hours AND more importantly that the only way to really kjnow what is going on is with your hydrometer.

DON'T aertate, don't "DO" anything else for 72 hours then take a reading...you will be pleasantly surprised, and wished you had done that to begin with, instead of stressing that nothing is "happenning."

well, i wish i had done a hydrometer reading. This is brand new equipment, and when i went to get the hydrometer out, it was shattered. I had a spare, but didn't find it until this morning. I'm just crossing my fingers at this point.

jmgreen7 said:

well, i wish i had done a hydrometer reading. This is brand new equipment, and when i went to get the hydrometer out, it was shattered. I had a spare, but didn't find it until this morning. I'm just crossing my fingers at this point.

Click to expand...

Well you have one now...you really don't need your og to know if the beer is doing anything..you just need to take two readings a few days apart..if the second one is lower, even a single point from the previous reading, then it is fermenting....

So take one now...then again when it has been 72 hours....

revvy,
just an update. i'm def fermenting now. it was going pretty well yesterday. seems to have slowed down a little this morning, but i'll check it when i get home to make sure it's going still.

Thanks Guys, I had the same problem and was worried.
I made wine before but this is my 1st beer, planning another one like right now and was a bit mellow about that late fermentation.

Big Thanks to all that answered, Happy I found that site!

Quick question... I siphoned my wort into the primary 2 days ago. within 12 hours i had gread activity and a good head going. now two days later the head is gone and there is no activity and no bubbles in the air lock. This is my first brew and i know alot of people freak out for their first brew so here i go. It's not dead is it!?!

Cam: just chill, brother. Let it sit for another couple of days, and then take a gravity reading with your hydrometer.

What temperature is your fermentor at?

yesterday it was around 76 this morning was 60.

Wow this thread has been hijacked multiple times since 2007.

RGH said:

Thanks guys, also I was wondering how crazy are you when it comes to keeping things clean? I lysoled the crap out of my counters before I began, and I used anti-bacterial hand soap to clean my fermentors and then rinsed them out really well. any good tips? I also stirred it with my schlong to throw my own "taste" into the brew. JK about that last one.

Click to expand...

It's not recommended to use hand/dish soap to clean.

yesterday it was around 76 this morning was 60.

Click to expand...

Hmmm, I'm no expert, but that's a pretty big swing in temperature. Is that the ambient temp or a temp reading of the fermentor or wort itself? You'll want to pick a temp within the proper range for the yeast you're using and stay with it all the way through fermentation. A big drop like yours could stall out your yeast before it's done converting all the sugars in there.

Hmmm, I'm no expert, but that's a pretty big swing in temperature. Is that the ambient temp or a temp reading of the fermentor or wort itself? You'll want to pick a temp within the proper range for the yeast you're using and stay with it all the way through fermentation. A big drop like yours could stall out your yeast before it's done converting all the sugars in there.

Click to expand...

Thats a direct temp from the fermenter itself. Read from my Fremometer. It's still in the "Ale" temp range but such a big drop scares me.

Thats a direct temp from the fermenter itself. Read from my Fremometer. It's still in the "Ale" temp range but such a big drop scares me.

Click to expand...

Well, I've had more than one ferment temp get away from me and cause under-attenuation. It may just create a thin taste to the beer in terms of mouthfeel, or perhaps somewhat of a medicinal off-flavor. The off-flavor may go away with age, but the thinness is hard to mask (although serving at a slightly warmer temp helps).

So how are you going about controlling temp? Is it just sitting in a closet right now?

TTB-J said:

So how are you going about controlling temp? Is it just sitting in a closet right now?

Click to expand...

Well so far it has just been hanging out in the bathroom converted walk-in closet so it has its own heater. The closet stays about 72 all the time. But it was pretty cold last night and that may have effected the temp in the house.

Well so far it has just been hanging out in the bathroom converted walk-in closet so it has its own heater. The closet stays about 72 all the time. But it was pretty cold last night and that may have effected the temp in the house.

Click to expand...

Gotcha. Well, anyway that you can rig it to keep the temp constant during primary is the way to go - I've soon a million options across this forum. You may find that 72 ambient will be a little high - I normally shoot for mid 60's on ales to account for the extra temperature caused by fermentation.

brewed my first batch yesterday. I have the same problem. You are not alone!

I Brewed my 3rd today after only starting my first on Aug 21, 2011 I haven't even tasted it yet it's still in its carbonation stage..... It's just so Addictive and I'm just following a combination of 100's maybe 1000's of peoples tips and advise and hoping I am doing the best that I can. only time will tell.