I have two 5 gallon brews fermenting just a quick check I put them in the fermenter Sunday evening they went crazy for a day or so now they are bubbling at every 13seconds and the other one at every minute and a half is this good?
bubble rate check
- Thread starter danger831
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:
Six_O_Turbo
Well-Known Member
It's fine. Sounds like both of your brews are going along just as they should. For future reference, it's not a good idea to rely on your airlock as an indicator of fermentation. A hydrometer to test gravity is one of the best tools you can invest in as a homebrewer.
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2006
- Messages
- 16,779
- Reaction score
- 5,896
Use the airlock as a gut-check on the progress of the fermentation. Other than that, its not worth placing too much faith in gas flow. Use the hydrometer .
Frankly, once it goes a few days and the air lock or blow-off shows activity assume things are going well if you are at temp. I generally wait unit 3-4 weeks, then either move it to a 2ndary, keg, or bottles. Checking the gravity is best suited at this time. Once you think its done, check your FG then do your thing. Force carb or do the priming thing.
Frankly, once it goes a few days and the air lock or blow-off shows activity assume things are going well if you are at temp. I generally wait unit 3-4 weeks, then either move it to a 2ndary, keg, or bottles. Checking the gravity is best suited at this time. Once you think its done, check your FG then do your thing. Force carb or do the priming thing.
Hang Glider
Beer Drinker
+1
if you start counting bubbles, you're going to depend on bubbles, and one day, when you get no bubbles, you'll freak out.
It's just a gas valve, nothing more.
NorCalAngler
Well-Known Member
I'm new and I've seen this said a few times, but it is perplexing. Yeast eat sugar and poop alcohol and CO2. The CO2 has to go somewhere so why wouldn't bubble activity be a good indicator of fermentation activity? Unless you don't have a good seal on the primary, but that's a different issue altogether and the lack of bubbles should cause you to check the seals on your fermenter.
ReverseApacheMaster
Well-Known Member
That's exactly the point. The airlock is only an indication of fermentation activity if all your seals are good. If your seals aren't good, you can still have fermentation occurring.
NorCalAngler
Well-Known Member
I guess it's confusing for a new brewer because I never see people respond with "If you don't have a good seal on your fermenter then you may not see any activity in the airlock even if fermentation is happening." It's usually just "The airlock isn't a good indicator of fermentation, relax and check the gravity."
I would think the lack of a good seal is an issue that needs to be remedied so you don't have oxygen or other nasties entering the primary.
BioBeing
Well-Known Member
The CO2 is still going to be pushing out, so you don't have to worry about things getting in. Some people even use open fermentors
There are also cases where you might be getting airlock activity when there is no fermentation happening - off-gassing, for example, on a temperature shift.
That said: there is definitely something to be said for a nicely bubbling airlock. Don't forget to give it a good sniff too, while you stare at it
My worry was that I made my very first batch late at night and put it in the primary and came back around 10 AM the next morning and it was happily producing 2 bubbles every 2 seconds out the airlock. Then within 24 hrs after that it had almost stopped bubbling all together and shortly there after isn't bubbling in the air lock at all.
Reading everything I have so far on here Ive tried not to panic because you may never even see bubbles in the air lock so I'm not as worried. Plus there is a 2 inch Krauzen (I think it's called) where everything settled back down. Only thing I'm debating is how long to leave it in the plastic primary before I move it to a secondary carboy and how long to wait to bottle etc. But that's just another whole can of worms.
Reading everything I have so far on here Ive tried not to panic because you may never even see bubbles in the air lock so I'm not as worried. Plus there is a 2 inch Krauzen (I think it's called) where everything settled back down. Only thing I'm debating is how long to leave it in the plastic primary before I move it to a secondary carboy and how long to wait to bottle etc. But that's just another whole can of worms.
maddriverman
Member
fourth post...I say the airlock is a good tool for determining fermintation.Unless of course you have a leak in your bucket?For some reason I will just trust that the yeast and water and sugar are going to behave like their suppose to.when the bubbles slow so has fermintation?Why all the hate for the airlock?
because the airlock's purpose has nothing to do with proving fermentation. Period.
You can chose to use it that way, but its a bad method. A hydrometer/refractometer is the only way to know fermentation is happening.
Fementation needs to be OVER before you put a beer in secondary. Airlocks can still bubble often WELL AFTER fermentation has ended and the beer's at its terminal gravity.
Using the airlock is an educated guess. A hydro reading is a scientific fact/reporting tool.
You also have no way to konw if your cheap plastic bucket or carboy bung/cap is really air tight. I've had beers ferment that never bubbled, despite the vessel appearing tightly sealed.
The airlock lied to me, but the hydrometer told the truth.
I'll stick with truths.
You can chose to use it that way, but its a bad method. A hydrometer/refractometer is the only way to know fermentation is happening.
Fementation needs to be OVER before you put a beer in secondary. Airlocks can still bubble often WELL AFTER fermentation has ended and the beer's at its terminal gravity.
Using the airlock is an educated guess. A hydro reading is a scientific fact/reporting tool.
You also have no way to konw if your cheap plastic bucket or carboy bung/cap is really air tight. I've had beers ferment that never bubbled, despite the vessel appearing tightly sealed.
The airlock lied to me, but the hydrometer told the truth.
I'll stick with truths.
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2006
- Messages
- 16,779
- Reaction score
- 5,896
This is a good reason to have web cam on your airlock that way you can watch it at work!!!
BioBeing
Well-Known Member
fourth post...I say the airlock is a good tool for determining fermintation.Unless of course you have a leak in your bucket?For some reason I will just trust that the yeast and water and sugar are going to behave like their suppose to.when the bubbles slow so has fermintation?Why all the hate for the airlock?
So, what you are saying is that it is a good tool unless it isn't.
I prefer my tools to be a bit more reliable than that!
You'll read many posts on here from nervous noobs who panic if they don't see bubbles. So, we tell them to relax, don't worry, have a homebrew and take a hydro reading. Yes, the yeast will do their job. Yes, it is nice to have an easy visual confirmation of that. But, if it isn't bubbling, or if it is bubbling when it "shouldn't" be, some people get nervous.
And yes, if the bubbling slows it tells you fermentation is slowing. But if it stops, it doesn't also mean fermentation has stopped. If you go by the airlock to tell you when to bottle, you WILL get bottle bombs. Maybe not this batch, but the next one or the one after. Are you feeling lucky?
So that is why we "hate" on the airlock. Although, as I said earlier, seeing it bubble like mad the morning after you pitch is a wonderful sight. You just have to know that even if it isn't bubbling, it doesn't mean the yeasties aren't doing their thing.
meddin
Well-Known Member
Well said. I for one like seeing the airlock bubble away. It makes me happy
. That being said, I trust it as a measurment of my fermentation rate about as much as I trust leaving my dog(s) in the same room as the bag of dog food.
This is a good reason to have web cam on your airlock that way you can watch it at work!!!
I think the biggest thing I've learned from my brother (who brews) and these threads is to chill out and let things happen. I was anal as hell brewing this first batch until I got a few beers in me and relaxed. Then it became fun and was much more pleasant. It's a good life lesson to. Patience is a virtue. It's just hard to patient with your first brew. 
