Early start for fermentation

Hi!

This is my first time homebrewing so forgive me if this is a stupid question. About 11 hours after I put the wort in my primary, my airlock started bubbling. About 5 hours later, it just stopped. Its been 2 days now. What are possible problems/solutions?

Thanks!

 

Problem: Everything is going well.
Solution: Relax, Don't Worry, Have a Homebrew.

 

Thanks for the reassurances everyone! I checked the fermenter and there is a bit of green residue about inches above the wort. Is that the krausen? Also, if I put it in Thursday at midnight, when is it definitely safe to rack over to the secondary?

 

+1 on not using a secondary unless absolutely required, especially for your first brew. It's a bit hard to give advice without knowing the style of beer, but the majority are well served by leaving in primary for three weeks then bottling/kegging.

 

So I should just leave it? And I know this is unrelated... but can I return the wort to the fermenter after testing it? I don't have a hydrometer jar, so it would be a big waste if I had to throw it out.

 

Don't add it back, drink it. It only takes about 4 ounces to take a reading and the chance of contamination is too great to add that small amount back to your brew.

 

Not knowing the style, yes, I'd leave it. But don't try to put the beer back in the fermenter; the odds of contamination are way too high. If you don't have a small cylinder to do readings in, I'd pick one up at the first opportunity. They're $4 at my local homebrew store.

 

The closest shop I found was about 45 min away, so for now I'm going to have to make do w/o one. What would you suggest?

 

I'd suggest making the drive. There really isn't any good substitute in the average house for a sample tube, except a really tall, skinny vase.

You'll be leaving the beer in the fermenter for 3-4 weeks, so no rush.

 

Thanks. The hydrometer came in a plastic container. Is that useable as a test jar?

 

Bingo, that's what i use.

 

Great! The top and bottom caps have foam attached. Does that make a difference?

 

take the foam off of the bottom.

 

The tube it came in It takes less beer than the proper sample tube.

David

 

Invest in one of these: http://www.brewcat.com/Merchant2/me...e=hbps2&Product_Code=5432&Category_Code=21002

One of the best things I bought. If the thief and hydrometer are sanitized, you can just hold the thief to the side of the carboy and dump it back in.