Air lock

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kevinlassen

chefkevshomebrew
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I have never used one of these before. Should it look like this after a day? I haven't heard it bubble yet just was liquid isn't even anymore. I can put my 3 piece on that I have if you guys don't think this is normal

image-2350270615.jpg
 
Looks like there is pressure behind the water making it lopsided. Just not enough to produce bubbles yet. Reading many forums though fermentation may not start right off the bat.

Just make sure your storage temp is correct for your type of yeast and be patient.
 
Yeah, that's totally normal. The CO2 is building up in the container, so it's pushing the liquid down. You should have it bubbling in a few hours, if not less.
 
I was looking at that picture and oddly expecting it to start bubbling.
 
It looks fine to me. Just give it some time, even if you dont see any bubble after a few days take a gravity reading to check to see if the yeast is working.
 
So.. I brewed on Saturday and it still hasn't bubbled yet. I think my the area I had it was too cold. Bad thing is I don't have a thermometer on my bucket to tell me the temp. I moved it closer to a heat vent. Do you think it will be ok or could the yeast have die? I have a packet of dry yeast I could add to it. Just don't want it to go crazy and make a huge mess.
 
FWIW, on my first brew the airlock never bubbled. It looked like your picture for a couple of days and then equalized on day 3. I thought my beer never fermented when in fact it did. There was obviously just a leak around the edge of the lid that let CO2 escape. Everything turned out fine.
 
Upthewazzu said:
FWIW, on my first brew the airlock never bubbled. It looked like your picture for a couple of days and then equalized on day 3. I thought my beer never fermented when in fact it did. There was obviously just a leak around the edge of the lid that let CO2 escape. Everything turned out fine.

Thanks for the input. I'm sure it's going to be fine just a little worried because this is my first brew with this new kit I got. I've always used the "brewers best" bucket and three piece air lock.
 
Thanks for the input. I'm sure it's going to be fine just a little worried because this is my first brew with this new kit I got. I've always used the "brewers best" bucket and three piece air lock.

If I had to guess, you're using the bucket and 2-piece airlock from Midwest Supplies...am I right?
 
I had that problem once ... the airlock wasn't tightly seated in the hole so a small spacing between the rubber plug and the cover was leaking CO2.
I should add that the hole was hand made with an utility knife so the circle wasn't perfect ... :drunk:

I prefer the S-type ailock over the 3-pieces ... they are harder to clean but the "bloop-bloop" is louder than in an 3-pieces. The chant of fermenting beer is ... enchanting :rockin:
 
Who cares what the airlock is doing?? It looks from your picture that its fermenting just fine. Leave it alone! The airlock is simply an amusement device...
 
When i first brewed my failure cooper mix I used a bucket and airlock. Air lock looked exactly the same as that and it definitely turned into beer, just nasty tasting. The buckets don't do it justice. This second time around, my demijohn with a very calm fermentation is bubbling... plastic buckets and weak rubber o-rings don't do it justice.
 
When i first brewed my failure cooper mix I used a bucket and airlock. Air lock looked exactly the same as that and it definitely turned into beer, just nasty tasting. The buckets don't do it justice. This second time around, my demijohn with a very calm fermentation is bubbling... plastic buckets and weak rubber o-rings don't do it justice.

What in the world are you talking about? A massive amount of very tasty brew is fermented every day in plastic buckets.

and leave that lid on there...rdwhahb!

+1. Now leave that lid alone for at least 2 weeks.;)
 
I have the same kit. I just racked to the secondary bucket. The lid seals perfectly on one bucket but does not on the other meaning I will see airlock activity with one, and no activity on the other.

As others have stated, just leave it alone. You have a good layer of krausen so the yeast are busy, and there will be a layer of CO2 on top of the beer to protect it from oxygen.
 
BigFloyd: I was saying the they don't do the airlock justice as the seals from the lid allow co2 out and minimize what you see in the airlock. I don't recall commenting on how his brew was going to taste, just how my beer turned out. I believe the topic on hand was AIR LOCK activity not how it will taste.
 
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