24hrs, no bubbles, getting nervous.....

[Ottis]

I made this up yesterday; Raspberry apple cider, its been 24 hours sense I pitched the Red Star Champagne yeast and still not a sign of activity.
I lost a batch of Red Lager a couple of months ago due to bad yeast, (my fault, improper storage) so it's making me kind of nervous...
I have two packs of redstar wine yeast and a pack of T-58 in my fridge, at what point should I consider re-pitching???

 

[PintOfBitter]

I'd wait another 12. how well cared for was your yeast packet?

 

[Ottis]

Just bought it Wednesday, but there's no date on the pack, unless it was on the top that I cut off and now cant find..

 

[Ottis]

PS, it was in the 50s here last night, and I hadn't bothered to turn any heat on.

 

[Revvy]

Look in the beginners section for the sticky called fermentation can take 72 hours to start. Replace the word wine for beer. Also look for the 10.000 posts that mention how airlock activity is not a reliable indicator of jack. And a hydrometer is the only way to know what your yeast is doing. Read all of that while you relax and have a nice glass of wine.

 

[Ottis]

Sorry, Im still new to this and I guess I worry too much about everything. the two batches that I have made started bubbling after a few hours.

 

[Revvy]

Every fermentation is different.

 

[Diver165]

I used Notty yeast and it took almost 36hrs to start. But boy when it did...!!! Wow! My cider is a seething rolling living thing! It's cool to watch! It has been going strong like that for nearly a week.

 

[david_42]

Champagne yeast is a slow yeast, that has been selected for carbonating high ABV wines. You would have been better off using one of the wine yeasts, but it will ferment.

 

[KhellendrosXS]

Ive had Montrachet take up to three days to show signs of an active (bubbly) fermentation. Just sit tight and it will eventually do its thing.

 

[Ottis]

It finally took off sometime yesterday while I was at work , (had to work the 4th, bummer..)

All is well with the world!

I think I will stick with the wine yeast from now on, my last batch (2nd, johnny Jump Up Hard Cider) called for cuvee wine yeast and it took off in abt 3 hrs or so.

Yes, I need to learn to relax.... (my wife agrees!)


Happiness is a bubbling air lock!

 

[Revvy]

Happiness is a bubbling air lock!

No, Happiness, is fa ermenting beer, a bubbling airlock is irrevelant. Plenty of beers ferment fine with nary a blip. That's why we tell you not to worry or rely on airlocks, but on your hydrometer. Then when you have a beer that doesn't bubble, you won't think something's wrong.

Also when your airlock stops it doesn't mean fermentation is necessarily over either. An airlock is just a vent, a valve to release EXCESS co2, and to keep your beer from ending up on your ceiling. It's not a magical fermentation gauge, or anything like that.

 

[AnOldUR]

Also look for my 10.000 posts that mention how airlock activity is not a reliable indicator of jack.

Fixed that for you.

That's why we tell you not to worry or rely on airlocks, but on your hydrometer.

The royal WE is unacceptable. Please speak for yourself.

 

[monty3777]

Sorry, Im still new to this and I guess I worry too much about everything. the two batches that I have made started bubbling after a few hours.

No reason to apologize. You ask a perfectly reasonable question. Champagne yeast is notorious for starting slow. Give it some time - your airlock activity will be minimal so no worries there! Let us know how it turn out!

 

[monty3777]

Yes, I need to learn to relax.... (my wife agrees!)


Happiness is a bubbling air lock!

You aren't the one who needs to relax! I think it makes perfect sense for a newer brewer to be concerned with airlock activity. It is certainly true that airlock activity is not the ONLY indication of fermentation, but it is an indicator.

 

[ruffcutt]

I always get super excited when the airlock starts bubbling away, and a little apprehensive until it does so. I'm glad I read this before I had this kinda experience, or I'd have panicked too. Thanks man, its a good thread.

 

[Ottis]

No, Happiness, is a fermenting beer, a bubbling airlock is irrevelant. Plenty of beers ferment fine with nary a blip. ....snip.....

I realize that now, but it still put a smile on my face to see those bubbles!

while we're on the subject;
Question;
Does fermentation always (or at least usually) have an effect I could see if (when) I move up to glass carboys?
Right now I'm just using a basic homebrew kit I picked up on ebay, plus I bought an extra 6.5gal plastic fermenter to use for a secondary.

 

[Revvy]

I realize that now, but it still put a smile on my face to see those bubbles!

while we're on the subject;
Question;
Does fermentation always (or at least usually) have an effect I could see if (when) I move up to glass carboys?
Right now I'm just using a basic homebrew kit I picked up on ebay, plus I bought an extra 6.5gal plastic fermenter to use for a secondary.

This should give you an idea.



Krausen on top and stuff rolling around in the fermenter. Remember not to worry, it IS ugly. You would not believe the number of new brewer panic threads from those who make the switch to a carboy. The don't realize how ugly and violent it is under that bucket.

 

[AnOldUR]

Does fermentation always (or at least usually) have an effect I could see if (when) I move up to glass carboys?

When using a clear fermenter, you will see movement when the yeast are active and in a sealed vessel you there will always be airlock activity.

Right now I'm just using a basic homebrew kit I picked up on ebay, plus I bought an extra 6.5gal plastic fermenter to use for a secondary.

Actually, 6.5 gallon is large for a secondary. Too much head space may lead to oxidation if you are conditioning for any length of time.

 

[Yooper]

When using a clear fermenter, you will see movement when the yeast are active and in a sealed vessel you there will always be airlock activity.



Actually, 6.5 gallon is large for a secondary. Too much head space may lead to oxidation if you are conditioning for any length of time.

correct. The 6.5 gallon is probably supposed to be a primary. Usually, you match the carboy size very close to the batch size, and top up if necessary with a similar cider or white wine, or water, so that you have very little headspace.

 

[Ottis]

I bought the setup with the plans to make beer, the standard 5 gal kits.
Ace hardware has 2 and 5 gal plastic food grade (i think) buckets w lids for sale, I'm thinking abt getting some of those for smaller batches..

PS that video is crazy! WoW!

 

[Revvy]

That's not even the craziest I've seen on youtube. I didn't want to scare you off. There's a ton of cool fermentation videos on there, check them out.

 

[WastedCider]

I used Red Star in my last batch of cider (Started about a week before your first post) and I had primary fermentation beginning about 3 hours after pitching. But the yeast sat in an apple juice starter for roughly 5 hours previous to pitching.

From what I have read starters really help, especially with dry yeast. It lets you gauge if the yeast is active and it starts you off with an exponentially larger number of yeast cells. It works out every time I have tried it.

Yesterday I tried to salvage the yeast slurry for my new batch after bottling that batch. My results were not as great. 24 hours and no fermentation. I salvaged with fresh apple juice from the very bottom of my carboy, so I am guessing I only saved completely dead yeast cells. After I hit the 24 hour mark with no activity, I pitched a packet of Lavin EC-1118 wine yeast. Fermentation started within two hours without having made a starter (or even re-hydrating) the Lavin.

I believe that this supports my dead yeast theory, because I pitched at least 10 oz of dead yeast juice. If I remember correctly, dead yeast can act as a yeast nutrient, so the high volume of dead yeast likely acted as a buffet for the Lavin which allowed me to get away without re-hydration or a starter.

This is a very long way to say don't be afraid to pitch more yeast. It may not be perfect or ideal process, but nor is fermenting at 75+ all the time. Which I do because I live in a small place in SoCal. Process is great, but at a point you have to remember that people made fermented beverages for 10,000 years before Louie Pastuer. Sometimes mistakes and irregularities in process breed a unique brew that you could never reproduce.

 

[WastedCider]

My first pale ale exploded all over my dorm closet. Luckily I didn't panic about the beer, but only because I knew there was way too much CO2 in there for contamination. I'm lucky I got to know brewing from watching someone before I tried my hand at it.