What do i do now?

[Thomasc02]

Hey guys. Im new to the forum and new to brewing my own beer. I have brewed about 3 batches now and had this problem occur last night. when i was done cooking my wort and went to put my airlock onto my glass carboy the rubber plug fell into the carboy (it was sanitized in star-san before it fell in.) i quickly took some paper towels, folded them up and soaked them in star-san and put a rubber band over the opening. i figured fishing out the rubber plug would be a waste of time and might contaminate the beer. so i was wondering what i could do for a quick alternative. Did i make the right choice with the paper towels for a temporary fix? If this has been posted before sorry. i havent had the time to look through the forum.

I checked on the beer today when i got home from work and everything seems to look good. i just dont know if i should change the paper towels and soak them in vodka and call it good or do something else that will better ensure the beer will turn out good. any help would be great. thanks guys and i hope to post more of my progress here in the future from the things i have learned from this forum.

 

[flars]

Your quick thinking was good. You could change to a sanitized aluminum foil cap now. Secure it from fruit fly entry, if you have any around, with a rubber band. Have the foil snug, but not overly tightened with the rubber band for CO2 to escape.

 

[1975brewer]

During the first few days during active fermentation you should be fine. You could even use foil wrap. Try to pick up a new stopper for after the first few days. when I first started brewing I used a plastic garbage can with plastic wrap over the top for the first 3 days and then transferred to a carboy (that was before brew buckets).

 

[Thomasc02]

So the aluminum foil would be better than the paper towels? glad to know i did the right choice and that it should be good for a few days. the brew supply store was closed today so i will have to pick up a new plug tomorrow.

 

[Thomasc02]

I also have an IPA that i brewed on saturday night and its already almost done bubbling. should i wait a few more days and just gently swirl the beer to keep the yeast going or do you guys think it is ok to bottle? i have never had a beer ferment so fast. usually it takes about7 to 9 days for the bubbling to stop. what do i do about that? once again thanks for the input.

 

[flars]

I also have an IPA that i brewed on saturday night and its already almost done bubbling. should i wait a few more days and just gently swirl the beer to keep the yeast going or do you guys think it is ok to bottle? i have never had a beer ferment so fast. usually it takes about7 to 9 days for the bubbling to stop. what do i do about that? once again thanks for the input.

It would be to soon to bottle. The yeast still have some clean up to do or the beer will have an off green beer taste. I will usually wait until about day 12 to take the first SG reading, check the clarity, how much CO2 is left in solution, and the first taste. A few days later I check the SG to see if final gravity has been reached. When the SG sample is free, or almost free of CO2 in solution, I dry hop for a week for an IPA. My IPAs are usually in the primary for four weeks.

Are you dry hopping this beer.

 

[Thomasc02]

i dont really know what you mean by dry hopping. do you mean when im boiling the wort? thats usually when i add my hops. this batch i used a concentrate with two bags of hops. one right when it starts to boil and one in the last 15 mins of the boil. im not sure how to check the gravity of the beer. i recently bought a hydrometer but dont know how to use it yet. sorry im still new to the short terms of things what does SG mean? and how do i go about figuring out how much c02 is left?

 

[bigdaddybrew]

Foil is good but I prefer plastic wrap as it will allow air out but will tend to seal better when there is no pressure. Buy the universal bung asap, I think it fits a little better than the standard bung.

 

[FatDragon]

I also have an IPA that i brewed on saturday night and its already almost done bubbling. should i wait a few more days and just gently swirl the beer to keep the yeast going or do you guys think it is ok to bottle? i have never had a beer ferment so fast. usually it takes about7 to 9 days for the bubbling to stop. what do i do about that? once again thanks for the input.

Bubbling is a sign of fermentation, but some fermentations don't bubble, and some bubbling occurs for non-fermentation reasons. Be patient and let it ride for at least a week and a half before bottling, 2-3 weeks is better advice. The procedurally-sound answer is to take a few hydrometer readings a few days apart, and you're done when multiple consecutive readings show up the same (and if you're doing small-batch brewing and want to dump the hydro samples back into the fermenter, be extremely diligent about sanitization). If you're really impatient, dry hop it at the one week point (or later) and leave it alone for 3-4 more days before bottling. Dry-hopping will make it a better beer and it might help motivate you to be more patient.

Good beer takes time. Bottle bombs and the messes and potential injuries they cause, on the other hand, are often the product of beer bottled too soon.

 

[Thomasc02]

so is dry hopping just adding more hops into the carboy while it is fermenting?

 

[flars]

i dont really know what you mean by dry hopping. do you mean when im boiling the wort? thats usually when i add my hops. this batch i used a concentrate with two bags of hops. one right when it starts to boil and one in the last 15 mins of the boil. im not sure how to check the gravity of the beer. i recently bought a hydrometer but dont know how to use it yet. sorry im still new to the short terms of things what does SG mean? and how do i go about figuring out how much c02 is left?

Dry hopping is adding hops to the primary after fermentation is complete. The "dry hop" is strictly for aroma, what hits your nose as you are ready to sip from the glass.

Here is a link to using a hydrometer and a correction chart if the wort sample is not at 60°F.
http://www.howtobrew.com/appendices/appendixA.html

This is Palmers' first book, free online. Most of the information is still good. Some parts on extract brewing, like extract usually having off flavors is out of date. Liquid malt extracts were not as good when the book was written. His new book would be a very good read for you.
"The Joy of Homebrewing" by Charlie Pappazian, fourth edition, might be a better first read, in my opinion.

SG is specific gravity.
FG is final gravity. A beer bottled before final gravity is reached, will finish fermenting in the bottle. This will increase the pressure in the bottle with CO2 still being produced by the fermentation and the yeast using up the priming sugar. Bottles will explode if the pressure gets to high. It is a dangerous situation.

CO2 that is left in solution can be seen in the hydrometer sample as bubbles. The CO2 can attach to the hydrometer, floating it artificially high. The hydrometer can be twirled to release the bubbles, or the sample can be agitated to force the CO2 to the surface and out of the sample.

Ask any and all questions, you will get good answers from many HBT users.

 

[flars]

Didn't mention this, never pick a hydrometer up by the neck. They are very fragile.