Post below about my pitching ECY07 into a Wee Heavy and the wait for fermentation to begin is now over 40 hours. There is no activity whatsoever. What is the longest time you would give this to start before pitching another yeast to try and salvage a batch with almost $50 in it already? I am not a newbie, but do get nervous when fermentation lags over 24-30 hours. This is the longest I have ever had wort sit with no fermentation signs at all, thus the multiple posts. I have a Wyeast 1728 getting ready to go on the stir plate and am thinking I'll give the wee heavy 50 hours and go to plan B?
How long is long enough?
- Thread starter befus
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If you didn't do a starter with that beer then it's not surprising it's taking so long. Also, verify with a hydrometer since it could be going slow enough at this point that your airlock may not be bubbling (or you didn't see it).
Please note the sticky at the top of the beginner's forum......Fermentation can take 24 to 72 hrs to show visible signs. And by visible signs, we're NOT referring to what an airlock does or doesn't do.
fuzzy2133
Well-Known Member
I agree. I would take a second reading in a couple days if your first is still sitting at the OG before pitching.
EDIT: When you include what Revvy said that should put you at or past the 72 hrs mark.
sloanfamilydsm
Well-Known Member
If it were mine and i had another yeast on hand that was the same style, I'd pitch it. It would also give you a chance to check the seal on your fermenter and a visual look to ensure fermentation hasn't began. I've never had one ferment without the airlock bubbling, but a hydrometer/refractometer reading and temp check might ease the anxiety.
OK. I see I have stirred up the beer gods.
Revvy, I have been brewing since 1986 and have never had a wort sit on yeast more than 30 hours without overt signs of fermentation with or without a starter (I don't lager or do particularly cool ferments which may explain it partially) so I don't care if the beginners forum has six weeks posted as a fermentation time table, my experience has been different so I asked a question. This is a special brew in honor of my son and I don't want it messed up and since it will sit until next December before I will know if something wild got loose in there, I'm a little edgy and was hoping for early, obvious activity.
afr0byte, that's what I would have thought except ECY yeasts supposedly are between 3-400 billion cell counts, so I thought it might show early signs rather than late ones. I'll sit on this one against my better judgement, but thanks for your input.
That is what I plan on doing. Thanks.
That is my inclination as well, but I will bow to the collective wisdom and wait 72 hours before doing so. Thanks also.
I hope you mean 3-400 billion cell counts? A normal white labs vial has about 100 billion cells (fresh). If you actually mean 3-400 million then you way under pitched.
, my mistake, corrected now, thanks.Xpertskir
Well-Known Member
Subscribed for the "well its fermenting" post in a few days.
Hehehe............boy what I wouldn't give, and I'll take all the ribbing you wish. My son has had a very difficult past 12 months and I had this perfect brew all planned out and you know the rest. I hate it when guys over react.. and here I am. I have surgery planned next week in addition and wanted to get this to secondary, etc before then and so there is no question I am over reacting to most things these days anyway. Go yeasties go!
Guess what, it doesn't matter one riff that you've never experienced it, quite clearly by the SHEER NUMBER of folks who have posted in there, OTHERS HAVE.
People don't make that crap up. We're not saying it to jerk your chains. I learned A LONG TIME AGO, never to compare any fermentation, never to hold any expectations from one brew to another.
I'm TRYING TO HELP YOU BY SHOWING YOU SOMETHING. ME, I would find COMFORT in that info.....
That's why we HAVE THAT STICKY, so folks don't over-react.
Haven't you heard the saying, "There's a first time for everything?" Just MAYE it's your first time.... *shrug*
If you're REALLY concerned, then why the heck haven't you used the ONE TOOL that will tell you what's happening? If you've been brewing since 1986, you would think that perhaps you would have heard of taking a gravity reading? But we suggest that folks take it AFTER the lag time has passed.
If in NORMAL situations yeast can and has taked up to 72 hours, and you underpitched, then it should be expected that it might take 72 hours, dontja think?
Very possibly, and I certainly hope this is correct. Sorry if my response annoyed you, I don't feel well and I guess it shows.
Hermit
fuddle
Is it a clear carboy so you can see if the wort has turned cloudy with yeast?
It's a Morebeer bucket, but I replaced the lid this morning just to make sure it was sealing (should have taken gravity too I guess) and saw no sign of krausen or suspended yeast, just a dark clear wort. I can see in the bottom (the bucket is opaque rather than white) a layer of trub that has settled out and is not being churned up by yeast activity, but maybe tonight.
Hermit
fuddle
Well, you should have a yeast cloud by now. Even if you had some live yeast I'd suspect under pitch. Yeast are pretty hardy and opportunistic in the right conditions.
Well the magical 72 hour mark has passed with no signs of fermentation. Probably good at this point as if something took off right now I'd be pretty skeptical. That said I have WLP028 on the stirplate. Had a bad week yeast wise, was going to use Wyeast, but it was a few days out of date and after all this I was not going to chance it. Made the 20 mi. trip the semi LHBS and picked this yeast up today. Will pitch early in the a.m. and hope for the best.
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