Stellarstar
Well-Known Member
I have not notice my air lock bubbling, I have had beer going for 3 days. Are bubbles always going or do I have to watch it for ages?
Air lock bubbles?
- Thread starter Stellarstar
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It really depends on a lot of things. If you aerated properly, pitched the right amount of yeast, and had good sugar conversion (assuming you were brewing all grain), then you should have seen air-lock activity all ready. You must also have an absolutely air tight seal around the top of the bucket or bung depending on if you are using bucket or carboy. The only way to know for sure that the yeast is not doing anything is to take a gravity reading. If it has dropped, then they are doing their job.
DonutMuncher
Well-Known Member
+1
As long as you have an air-tight seal, you should probably see some airlock bubbling when fermentation gets going. It is possible your seal isn't tight, and could also be possible you missed all the action (it can start bubbling within hours of pitching yeast).
Hopefully you have a hydrometer. After about a week of fermentation, I'd take a measurement and see if it's close to the final gravity you're expecting.
mcclainm24
Member
Are you using a liquid or dry yeast? Liquid yeast can take up to 48-72 hours to get started.
homebrewdad
Well-Known Member
If you are using a bucket, chances are very good that you have a bad seal, and the CO2 that would have made bubbles is instead leaking through the seal.
Stellarstar
Well-Known Member
I have used dry yeast in a bucket. Should I take lid off and check seal or is it ruined. Cheers
TopherM
Well-Known Member
What temp did you ferment at? If you are fermenting at 70F+ instead of controlling the fermentation temp within the yeast's optimum range, you could have even had a fermentation that completed overnight, and you literally missed it.
Temperature is a catalyst to fermentation, but fast fermentation is also dirty fermentation, producing off flavors in the final brew. Controlling the temp within the yeast's optimum range slows down the fermentation, but makes it much much cleaner.
Temperature is a catalyst to fermentation, but fast fermentation is also dirty fermentation, producing off flavors in the final brew. Controlling the temp within the yeast's optimum range slows down the fermentation, but makes it much much cleaner.
You might also want to watch the temperature of the fermenter. I used a blow-off tube on my last batch and didn't see many bubbles but at about 48 hours the temperature spiked up 6 degrees in an otherwise temperature-controlled environment. This tells me that those yeasties are active even though they're not bubblin'. I just had to add a couple of new bottles of ice to my ferm chamber to get everything back to the right temp.
push down gently on the lid, do you see bubbles coming out of the airlock? if not you don't have an airtight seal. if you do see bubbles then you may have some other delay going on. pry open the lid and peek inside for signs of a krausen, i can sometimes tel if there is a kruasen by shining a light though the bucket (in the dark of course) if you're too chicken to open it up.
Like I said originally, the only way to know if you have fermentation going on or not is to take a gravity reading, and if the specific gravity is lower then the original gravity, then the yeast are doing their job. I would recommend to take that reading sooner then later because if you pitched bad yeast that are not viable, then you need to repitch now. The longer wort sits, the more you run a risk of it getting infected. Just my thoughts.
Stellarstar
Well-Known Member
The of has dropped and getting closer to finish of think it should be right, when I read it should be bubbling I was a bit worried cause I hadn't seen them. Will let u know how it ends up.
Stellarstar
Well-Known Member
Og that is not of
