12 hours in the fermenter, there is no Krausen

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Petho

Petho

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My first attempt at a Wheat beer.
6# wheat malt extract
1 1/2 oz Liberty (3.8%) 60 min
1/2 oz Liberty 5 min
Whitelabs WLP 320 yeast.

Brew day went well except for a near boil over after adding the DME. Im working with a new fryer burner and got carried away.
Decent aeration and pitched yeast at 66deg which should be right in the wheel house.
This morning, after about 12 hours in the fermenter, there is no Krausen. I have slow airlock activity but the brew has no sign of foam on the top.

Ideas???
 
Petho said:
My first attempt at a Wheat beer.
6# wheat malt extract
1 1/2 oz Liberty (3.8%) 60 min
1/2 oz Liberty 5 min
Whitelabs WLP 320 yeast.

Brew day went well except for a near boil over after adding the DME. Im working with a new fryer burner and got carried away.
Decent aeration and pitched yeast at 66deg which should be right in the wheel house.
This morning, after about 12 hours in the fermenter, there is no Krausen. I have slow airlock activity but the brew has no sign of foam on the top.

Ideas???
Click to expand...

I wouldnt worry yet.. I have had several fermentations that took off slowly and didnt start showing activity for 24 to 48 hours.... If you still have nothing another 12 hours or so, give the carboy a good shake- sometimes that can kickstart some fermentation... No worries, but Orfy is right- check your fermenter temp....
 
Sound the alarm.

Or just give it another 24:cross:

As a side note, a mini fan aimed at the boil kettle will do wonders to knock down a boil over. I have one running throughout my entire boil now. It allows you to crank the burner and make sure you have a vigorous boil without having to babysit the pot.
 
My past 2 brews have been relatively mild when it comes to fermentation. Some are rather violent and require a blow off due to the immense krausen, others just bubble away contentedly doing their thing. Im sure you will be okay :)
-Me
 
12 hours isnt that long... you only need to wait, that is the most important ingredient. Patience. It can take 72 hours for a normal ferment to start... 24-72 is normal. You need to step away from the fermentor.
 
Thanks for the quick reply, this is my 3rd brew and you figure I would get the DWHAHB philosophy.
The other two brews has hefty Krausen from the get go so I was...well...I'm off to HAHB.

Thanks Guys!
 
Petho said:
Thanks for the quick reply, this is my 3rd brew and you figure I would get the DWHAHB philosophy.
The other two brews has hefty Krausen from the get go so I was...well...I'm off to HAHB.

Thanks Guys!
Click to expand...

One thing to realize is that every fermentation is different, you can even split a batch into two fermenters, pitch the same yeasts into both, and, have two completely different looking fermentations...that's just how it is when dealing with living micro-organisms....

Someone on here posted a pict of two carboys next to each other almost touching, and one of the krauzens reacting to the small amount of heat given off by the next one, and building only on the side closest to the other one.
 
Like others have said. I'd suggest having another homebrew and waiting another couple days.

I know how you're feeling though. I've only got 2 brews under my belt (third being brewed today) and it took the first one a good 36 hours to start fermenting. I was worried I did something wrong.
 

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