36 hours and no fermentation

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miatawnt2b

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First post for this noob here. I am having a problem with fermentation, and I am wondering if I should wait a bit longer or if I should pitch another yeast. I found a Coopers recipe for "Instant Karma" IPA. It called for a White Labs WLP023 Burton Ale. When I was ready to pitch the yeast, I noticed that the best before date was a month outdated. Figuring this wouldn't be a problem, I pitched the container anyway. 24 hours later, I panicked a bit, and agitated the carboy for about 45 seconds. Now, 36 hours after the pitch, I still have no signs of fermentation. So I am wondering if I should wait longer, or stop by the brew store today and get another yeast? If I pitch another, should I pitch the same thing (liquid) or something else, should I pour it in like I did before, or go with another method?

I am a little frustrated as I find it hard to believe the yeast was dead before I pitched it, and was also sure the wart was 70*.

Thanks for the help folks.
-J
 
36 hours isn't unusual for pitching an older vial straight in. You should make a starter next time. I would give it another day before I thought about pitching more yeast. The most I would do right now is give it a bit of a stir with a sanitized spoon.
 
JimC said:
36 hours isn't unusual for pitching an older vial straight in. You should make a starter next time. I would give it another day before I thought about pitching more yeast. The most I would do right now is give it a bit of a stir with a sanitized spoon.

Definatlly good advise. If you get to 72 hours or so without any action, repitch the same yeast (check the best before date). No harm done. Yeast starters are valuable to give fermentation a kick start, but are the best way to tell if you have good yeast or not!
 
My wort had a fairly high initial SG 1.055. Am I correct in assuming the higher density wort can lengthen the lag phase?

I also checked the wort this morning, and the airlocked bucket actually pulled a vacuum last night. Does this mean anything?

-J
 
First of all, you are likely fine, I would wait another couple of days and if there is still no signs of fermentation then consider pitching more yeast. However, just because the airlock is not bubbing, does not mean fermentation is not taking place. A gravity reading must be used. However, this brings up an important lesson.

You should always make a starter. I know that it seems like not a big deal, and more risk for contamination, but trust me, it is easy and well worth it. 2 cups water boiled with 1/2 cup DME for 10 minutes. Cool that, put it in a bottle or jar, shake thoroughly and add yeast. Doing this will increase your lag time substantially. I am talking fermentation takes off in 5-7 hours (maybe even less), instead of 48.

Also, buy an extra packet or two of dry yeast. It is cheap and stores very well in the fridge. Just in case you even do have a stuck fermentation, you will have the necessary fix on hand.
 
Great... thanks for the advice. Do you keep a couple different dry yeasts on hand or just a standard all purpose variety. I was going to get a few Coopers Dry Ale Yeast packets.

-J
 
miatawnt2b said:
Great... thanks for the advice. Do you keep a couple different dry yeasts on hand or just a standard all purpose variety. I was going to get a few Coopers Dry Ale Yeast packets.

-J

I keep a couple packets of safale around, both the English Ale and American Ale varieties, in the event my liquid yeast fails to take off. I find the Safale to be suitable for just about everything but specialty beers (like a belgian or a wheat). I know a lot of guys on here also use Nottinghams.
 
Congrats!! Considering the long lag, you probablly won't have a very vigerous fermentation, and you may need to continue being patient while the yeasties do there thing.
 
libs said:
Congrats!! Considering the long lag, you probablly won't have a very vigerous fermentation, and you may need to continue being patient while the yeasties do there thing.

Sounds good. There was about 1 bubble per second this morning. I had figured 7-10 in the primary, but what exactly should I be looking for before transferring to the secondary?

Thanks,
-J
 
It's all about the hydrometer. :D

Depending on the yeast strain, you'll probably end up with about 25% of your original gravity when it's done.
 
Fantastic! I am really learning a lot every day so far. Sorry for all the questions.

Anyhow, so I had an OG of 1.054 and the burton yeast says that my target attenuation should be %69-%75. This means I am looking for somewhere between 1.016 and 1.013 FG to know that fermentation is complete?

But wouldn't the FG number have something to do with the actual sugar content in the recipe?

-J
 
Just an update, after 8 days, I took a SG reading and I was sitting at 1.021. looks like I have to wait a bit longer to rack to the secondary, but progress nonetheless.

-J
 
We put our batch in the primary last night and 13 hours later checked and saw 20 bubbles per minute. Seems like a short lag time. Is that good?
 
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