Odd yeast activity

[stewie24]

Hi all,
I bought a Cider ale kit from midwest supplies a while back. I brewed the batch and put it in the carboy on 5/15. So today will be 3 weeks that it has been in the carboy. The yeast fermentation was rapid for about the first week to 10 days. However, even after the 3 week mark, the airlock still bubbles. Nothing was added to the boil (fermentable wise) other than what the kit came with. It does not have anything that would take a long time to ferment. So my questions are:
Why is the airlock still bubbling after 3 weeks? (one bubble about every 30 seconds)
If it is still bubbling how much time should i give it before bottling? (I figured i'd let it sit for another week and then if its not bubbling then go ahead and bottle it.)
Thanks in advance.

 

[vitrael]

Post your recipe to provide us with a little more information. Different yeast behave differently, and ciders ferment very differently than beer--they usually need to be stopped or given low-attenuating yeast so that they don't ferment out almost completely and become very dry.

 

[stewie24]

Recipe:
6 pounds pilsen lme
1 pound honey malt grain
1 pound brown sugar
Plus the hops.
The yeast i used was the cider wyeast activator.

 

[TipsyDragon]

an airlock is not a fermentation indicator its a pressure release valve. use your hydrometer and check to see if the SG has stopped falling.

 

[Conman2U]

NOOB question....I understand airlock activity isn't a sign of fermentation, but I always took that to go more towards the lack of activity. Isn't it kind of strange to be getting that much activity 3 weeks into it? Would'nt the little yeasties be slowing down in activity after the first week or so? Like I said NOOB, only 1 batch brewed and I am having the exact opposite effect.

 

[stewie24]

Yes conman, I agree. After 3 weeks the yeast should be all but dead or almost dead. I've brewed over 70 gallons of beer within the past few months, but never have i had an airlock that was still bubbling after 3 weeks.
Tipsy - I'll check the gravity here within the hour, so if the fg is on target to where it should be, would it be safe to bottle then with the priming sugar? (i haven't and don't want to have any bottle bombs) (assuming the yeast is still alive and working).
Thanks

 

[Mad_Milo]

Only way to know if you've hit FG is to take gravity readings over a couple days. With this being fermented with cider yeast it probably won't act like an ale yeast. They are long and methodical after the initial takeoff.

 

[stewie24]

Oh ok. Thanks mad milo. Yeah didn't even think of the yeast being slow. Like i had said, the yeast was bubbling like all get out for the first week to 10 days and since then it has slowed down rapidly. But being that i did use a cider yeast, then that would be the correct assumption. I'll take a FG reading here in a few, and see if it changes over the next couple of days. If it doesn't change, would it be safe to bottle it even though the yeast is still somewhat active?

 

[hector]

Have you ever tasted it ?

I've had a Batch of Beer and it behaved similarly . There were tiny Bubbles coming upwards to the surface even after 3 Weeks .

The ambient Temperature was always constant at 66F .

At the end I noticed that my Batch was infected !

Hector

 

[Mad_Milo]

Only time it's safe to bottle is when the FG stabilizes. Otherwise you will have overcarbed beer at best, or bottle bombs at worst.

 

[stewie24]

Hector - The beer doesn't have any bubbles coming up from it, just once every 30 to 45 seconds there is a small bubble of air in the airlock. No, i didn't taste it as it comes with 4 ounces of apple extract to add to the kit when bottling so figured i'd just ride it out and taste it from the hyrdo reading right before bottling.
Mad milo - Yeah i knew you can bottle when the FG is stable. Hopefully these readings won't change over the next couple of days.