This is only my second solo brew, it went into the primary Monday at noon, so it has been going for just over 48 hours. All day yesterday it was bubbling like crazy, I expected it to slow a little but I watched it for 15 minutes and didn’t see a single bubble come through the airlock. My first thought (because it is a bucket) was that the lid come open, so I hammered it down and waited an hour and still nothing. I had borrowed a hydrometer last time but didn’t have one this time and went ahead without doing readings. It is NB Block Party Amber Ale (came with the kit) and the closet it has been brewing in has been between 64-68 degrees (have been monitoring). Just wondering if there is something I didn’t think of that may be causing it to stop fermenting, still kind of hoping the lid is just loose.....
Fermentation stopped after only 2 days?
- Thread starter LBKsam
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:
You are probably fine. I have had several brews that have stopped bubbling aggressively after a couple of days (I've had some that didn't stop for nearly two weeks, also). Bubbling isn't a necessarily a sign of fermentation. As you said, you might have a leaky lid. The only real way to tell if it has stopped is by using a hydrometer or refractometer a couple of times over a few days to see if things are changing.
Two things going on here simultaneously. Bucket lids leak. They are well known to leak even if hammered down. Nothing to worry about, they close tight enough to keep insects, dogs, cats, etc out. The second is that it takes pressure to make the airlock bubble. When the major part of the fermentation is over (yes, only a couple days normally) the yeast quit making CO2 and all you have left is the CO2 dissolved in the beer coming out of suspension and even with the bucket perfectly sealed (often not possible) it takes time for that little bit of CO2 to make enough pressure in the bucket to move the airlock.
http://www.brewgeeks.com/the-life-cycle-of-yeast.html
Might be too late now but if you wanted to test your bucket to see if it's leaking, you could use a spray bottle with a star san mixture and spray around the lid to see if you can find the leak. Again, probably too late now given that fermentation is probably slowed but perhaps next time.
PS - This is the sole reason I went to glass carboys. I wanted to be able to see what was going on inside the fermenter. It drove me crazy not being able to see it, LOL.
PS - This is the sole reason I went to glass carboys. I wanted to be able to see what was going on inside the fermenter. It drove me crazy not being able to see it, LOL.
Thanks, I feel much better after reading that.
Another thing to keep in mind is that yeast LOVE warm temperatures, and fermentation will go fast if the beer is warm. And because fermentation itself produces heat, the yeast will go faster and create even more heat. So if your fermenting beer was in a room of over about 64 degrees, it means that the beer itself may have been as high as 75 degrees or more. A fast fermentation isn't necessarily bad (or good), but it's important to try to keep the temperature under 70 degrees or so for most ales. I've personally seen a warm fermentation finish out overnight, in less than 24 hours. In the winter, it's easier to keep the fermentation under 70 degrees, and a stick-on aquarium temperature strip is a great way to monitor the temperature.
Somewhat harder to keep cooler in West Texas, still in the mid 80s here during the day. I will keep that in mind on my next brew and try to monitor the temperature closer. Also plan on switching to glass so it will be less likely to leak. Thanks for your help!
