Does this look normal?

Ok, well, I finally got up the courage to do my first brew and it was a blast, I definately got a huge sense of accomplishment, now I can't wait to taste it. I used 3 pounds of malt extract instead of sugar. My LHBS had me boil their 3 lbs of malt extract for 30 mins in 2 gallons of water then add the kit syrup which I think was hopped extract. It was 'Coopers Bitter' and was pretty much the same consistemcy (real thick brown syrup) as my malt extract from my LHBS which kind of confused me. Anyway After the 30 mins of boiling the malt extract I removed it from the heat and poured the Coopers bitter extract in and stirred. My directions did not have me boil after that and it didnt seem the stuff (Coopers Bitter extract) really dissolved all that well. After that I cooled it to around 100 and added it to my carboy (Primary fermenter) which already had 2 gallons of cold water in it then i topped it off to 5 gallons. I took the specific gravity reading and it was 1.038-1.040. Next I pitched the yeast after a 15 min rehydration period in a cup of 80 degree water. I pitched it into 73 degrees. I noticed there was a thin layer of lemon marange like consistency foam on top but thoguth it would subside (this was Saturday night 9 PM). I also noticed a good amount of lighter brown sediment on the bottom of the fermenter. Now today (Monday 10AM) my airlock is full of foam and the yeast are going crazy, I get a bubble every second sometimes more and there is alot of sediment on the bottom. I plan on siphoning to a secondary (Glass) fermenter once the bubbles slow to around 1 bubble every 40-50 secs. I have attached some pics to try to illustrate what i just wrote. please help, I really want this beer to turn out tasty If I messed this up by not boiling after i added the second thing of malt extract I dont mind starting over, i just want good beer in about 25 days lol. Thanks again.

cvav8or

Edit: the following link has two pics associated with it, An overall pic and a close up pic of the airlock.

http://www2.snapfish.com/slideshow/...ID=4160068214/a=44021725_44021725/t_=44021725

I don't think you've messed up at all.

Just wait till your gravity drops and is stable before you rack to a secondary, don't judge when its time based on the bubbles.

Looks like you'll have a good beer - cheers!

Looks just fine to me. That foam is called krausen and is just what you want to have happen.

Doing good. Do not rack to secondary until the krausen has dropped, there is no benefit to transfering sooner.

You might want to consider using a blowoff tube instead of an airlock at the beginning of fermentation. You rig a one inch tube from your carboy to a bucket of water/sanitizer. Air goes out, not in. You will get some kraussen in the tube, but you won't have an airlock launch. If your airlock gets too much stuff in it it can clog and then the pressure will launch your airlock. start with a blow off tube and once your kraussen has gone down (a day or two) you can put your airlock on. Preventing beer jets is good

Ok ok I feel much better. Thank you all for the advice, Since my airlock is still on and the air is escaping just fine I will leave it on but do a blow off hose next time. Unless of course the airlock blows off LOL.. Oh man I cannot wait to taste this brew.

cvav8or

+1 on the blow-off. Think of it as an insurance policy. There's lots of posts here showing the aftermath off a clogged air-lock. Think old-faithful beer geysers, even pretty forceful launches of said airlocks.

Some beers are more troublesome than others (hefes, etc.). Blow-off tubes are a good practice - you probably won't need it, but you'll be glad you did when you do need it.

Well after reading everyones recomendations and then looking very hard and long at my brew, (that sounds bad) anyways.. moving along... I noticed that the intake of my airlock had a large accumulation of what looked like a paste and that I couldnt see the bubbles anymore. It's a plastic carboy for my primary and pretty thin plastic at that so it has some give, well when I went to see if the carboy had any give left I could feel it was rock solid (I could immediately tell there was a ton of built up pressure in there. So I fashioned a blow off hose and removed my airlock and stopper very carefully. Let me tell you... It had to have been within minutes of exploding because I couldnt believe the amount of air or gasses that came hissing out as I slowly cracked the seal and once off I could see the intake of the airlock was completely clogged shut. It has only been about 10 minutes and already I have krausen in the tube. I'm glad I caught this before it exploded in my wifes pantry, that would have been the last batch of brew I ever got to store in there if you know what I mean. thanks again for all the help all you just saved a marriage.

cvav8or

Good man! Always avoid angering SWMBO Once the activity in the blow off tube subsides you can resanitize your airlock and stick it back on. Enjoy the brew

Nice catch. I have never had one blow but I have heard of brew hitting the ceiling when things go bad.