How long to start fermenting?

Hi all
Today I thought I would try and make some cider using carton juice from the supermarket. I used the following ingredients.

20litres of juice
1kg sugar
Lager yeast

I disolved the sugar with some of the juice, put it into the fermenter bin then added the rest of the juice. I sprinkled the Lager yeast into the fermenter and left for 15min then mixed it, closed lid and fitted airlock.

It has now been about 4 or 5 hours and I havent had as much as a single bubble.

Should it take this long? if not then what can I do to get things started?

I only ask as I have made a couple wines in the past and can remember fermentation starting almost instantly.

give it 24 hours

What would you recomend if it doesnt start after the 24hrs? Add another yeast?

What preservatives were in the juice?

Crazytwoknobs said:

What preservatives were in the juice?

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Nothing that would stop it from fermenting, as Ive used the same juice in wines in the past.

I got home from work about an hour ago, walked in the front door and the house smells like rotten eggs.

I went into the kitchen and the Cider is now bubbling away!

Should it really stink this bad? I dont mind the smell of my wines, but this one is going to have to get shifted to another storage place till it calms down.

If you're using lager yeast and fermenting at warm temperatures, it'll stink up a sulfur-y storm. If you're using lager temperatures, it'll be a bit better.

Can anyone hazard a guess at how long I need to wait before this will be drinkable.

This is the first cider I have ever made, so I am unsure of how long I need to wait in the primary stage and also if there is any need for a secondary?

Any info would be great.

Are you fermenting at lager temperatures with lager yeast? Or ale temperatures? I'm not sure what you're trying to accomplish with the lager yeast. Which lager yeast are you using? Do you plan on cold storage?

If you are reaching the end of primary, you can rack to secondary and wait for it to clear. After it's clear and not dropping lees any more, it can be bulked aged or bottled.

Ive not got the yeast sachet on me at the moment so cant say exactly what lager yeast it was.

When I was in the home brew store picking up a few bits and peices, the guy in the store recomended the yeast and said that it was quite favoured for making cider by a good few customers, so I though I would give it a bash.

The Cider Im making is sitting in my kitchen at room temp just now, but I am having to move it to a cooler storage room soon to make space.

Ummm, I've just never heard of using lager yeast in cider or wine at room temperature before. That seems very unusual. You'll get alot of sulfur smell with wine yeast, so lager yeast will take that up a notch!

I have no idea, then, how long it'll take. Lager yeast is usually much slower than wine or ale yeast, but if you're doing it at a warmer temperature that would probably change. I don't know how well your yeast will flocculate, so I can't predict the clearing, either. Well, when it's done fermenting, you can rack it to secondary and wait it out. You'll definitely need a secondary, and probably need to rack it again after 30 days or so. It will probably clear on its own.

Many thanks for taking the time to reply to this post

And hey, it sounds like you're in uncharted territory. Let us know how it works out. Maybe you're onto something.