Airlock Bubbling Abruptly Ceased

[foam_top]

This might be completely normal but when I went to bed 7 hours ago my airlock was bubbling 1-2 times per second. This morning there is absolutely no bubbling, I watched for a solid 5 minutes at least. I brewed the evening of Jan 13, first bubbling appeared the next morning. Here it is only the 16th and it just seems abrupt to me. Any advice?

Thanks in advance.

 

[bransona]

This might be completely normal but when I went to bed 7 hours ago my airlock was bubbling 1-2 times per second. This morning there is absolutely no bubbling, I watched for a solid 5 minutes at least. I brewed the evening of Jan 13, first bubbling appeared the next morning. Here it is only the 16th and it just seems abrupt to me. Any advice?

Thanks in advance.

You're fine. Fermentation is just slowing/stopping. Your yeast have worked hard and earned a rest.

 

[obie]

where are you located? temperature of your house???

 

[unionrdr]

More specifically, only initial fermentation is done. It'll now slowly, uneventfully creep down to FG.

 

[brewpool]

My most recent batch of APA did the same using WLP002. I never observed an abrupt stop like this before so I was a tad concerned. It was perfectly fine though and completely fermented out. I wouldn't sweat it.

 

[foam_top]

Ambient temps are mid 60s(f). Temp reads low 70s on fermenter. I'm glad to hear this is normal, however, I was using the bubbling to gauge primary fermentation. From what I understand, once bubbling is every 90 seconds or less that's when you rack to secondary. I don't actually have a secondary vessel but does this mean I should bottle 2 weeks from today? The recipe is an amber ale if that helps any...

Thanks again.

 

[unionrdr]

You really need a hydrometer to tell when the beer's done fermenting, not the airlock! The airlock can't tell you when it's at FG at all.

 

[Sailingeric]

Are you using a bucket? May have an air leak, which is just fine.

 

[foam_top]

You really need a hydrometer to tell when the beer's done fermenting, not the airlock! The airlock can't tell you when it's at FG at all.

I have a hydrometer but I'm resisting opening the lid to exposure. Is now a good time to do so?

 

[Elkobrewer]

Do you have a turkey baster if so just sanitize and suck some brew through the airlock hole to test gravity. That way you don't had to take the lid off

 

[foam_top]

Do you have a turkey baster if so just sanitize and suck some brew through the airlock hole to test gravity. That way you don't had to take the lid off

I think my turkey baster is much too large to fit in the hole... sexual pun not intended. Maybe my bottle tubing. But then I might have to fish multiple times to get enough liquid for a reading.

 

[Stillraining]

I second the leaking bucket gasket...There is still some small activity

When there was a ton of off gassing ( Proof you have viable yeast ) the excess used the air lock, now its using a leaking bucket seal.( Path of least resistance)l. I HATE sticking things in my beer..I would just wait 2 more weeks as you suggested and bottle it.. Very high gravity beers can stall yeast...this is not one of thoes. They are done with their job as others have posted and are slowly ramping down into the cleaning stage of their job.

 

[foam_top]

I second the leaking bucket gasket...There is still some small activity

When there was a ton of off gassing ( Proof you have viable yeast ) the excess used the air lock, now its using a leaking bucket seal.( Path of least resistance)l. I HATE sticking things in my beer..I would just wait 2 more weeks as you suggested and bottle it.. Very high gravity beers can stall yeast...this is not one of thoes. They are done with their job as others have posted and are slowly ramping down into the cleaning stage of their job.

That's a bummer if I got a faulty bucket, I guess that would be another pro towards glass carboys. In any case, I will let it sit for a few weeks without removing the lid and such. Thanks.

 

[Stillraining]

That's a bummer if I got a faulty bucket, I guess that would be another pro towards glass carboys. In any case, I will let it sit for a few weeks without removing the lid and such. Thanks.

I use nothing but buckets..the pros out weight the cons IMHO. Just check your gasket when you get around to it as well as the top edge of your bucket.. Your LHBS will switch it out for you if its defective.

 

[unionrdr]

It's not all buckets that leak. It's the ones like Brewer's Best style ones with no lid seal that leak under the higher Co2 pressures of initial fermentation. Glass carboys suck, since they're not tempered glass, just regular easily-broken & cut off your pieces glass! I switched to the Midwest short, 7.9G buckets with lid seals. More compact & the lids don't leak.
I usually give primary 10-14 days before checking FG for the 1st time. Then I'll know if it needs more time, or if it's done & just needs 3-7 days, on average, to settle out clear or slightly misty.

 

[foam_top]

I may have been misleading making it sound that I am in favor of glass carboys, I just meant leaky buckets is something I never considered. I am indeed using a brewers best bucket. Maybe in the future I'll close the lid and seal the outside with teflon tape.

 

[beergolf]

That's a bummer if I got a faulty bucket, I guess that would be another pro towards glass carboys. In any case, I will let it sit for a few weeks without removing the lid and such. Thanks.

It really is no big deal if the lid does not seal tightly. I have a couple that leak slightly, so the airlock does not bubble. Guess what? an airlock is nothing but a way for the gas to escape. If it leaks from the lid it, what is the difference. Airborne bugs are not super nija bugs that can crawl up and under the lid.

Airlocks are not a fermentation gauge. Just a way to blow of extra gas.

Is this one done yet?

[ame]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4jzT_KTTZ0Q[/ame]

 

[Stillraining]

I may have been misleading making it sound that I am in favor of glass carboys, I just meant leaky buckets is something I never considered. I am indeed using a brewers best bucket. Maybe in the future I'll close the lid and seal the outside with teflon tape.

All my buckets are 6.5 gal bottling Buckets..That way I can pull samples with out removing the lid or sticking anything in my beer This one has set outside for 2 days/nights now cold crashing..I'm bottling today and don't even pull the lid to transfer to another bottling bucket.( Remove air lock first and cover hole with paper towel as filter) My valves are a good solid inch + above the bottom so no trub and very little yeast gets sucked or transferred over. I can see the trub/ yeast line through the bucket if its close I tilt the bucket back 1/2" or so.

 

[unionrdr]

^On the nosey! I put mine in about the same spot. Spigots are downright handy. Just pull the airlock centerpiece, Spray the spout on the spigot with Starsan & go for it. The sealed buckets don't leak under pressure like the BB's do. That's what makes therm better.

 

[beergolf]

I am not a fan of fermenters with a spigot. Too much chance for infections. As much as you think you can clean and sanitize them I believe that the risk for infection is not worth it. Pull a sample and unless you can perfectly clean and sanitize it, then it is a spot for an infection to take hold. Infection causing bugs cannot crawl up and under a leaky lid. Give me a bucket with a lid that does not seal completely over one with a spigot any day. Almost 250 brews in buckets, a couple of which leak and the airlocks do not bubble and not a single infection. Can unionrdr say the same?

 

[unionrdr]

Yup. The only infections I've had came from muslin hop socks & the like.

 

[beergolf]

Are you sure?..

You did not dry hop you sacred kottbusser and that was obviously infected.

Or your stout that painted the walls and the desk.

 

[Stillraining]

I have a ways to go to catch up with you...we will compare notes when I do.

On a side note...how often are you replacing your buckets?

 

[sky4meplease]

My most recent batch of APA did the same using WLP002. I never observed an abrupt stop like this before so I was a tad concerned. It was perfectly fine though and completely fermented out. I wouldn't sweat it.

WLP002 just did the same to me. Hot and heavy for three days then nothing.
I'm not touching it for two weeks maybe three no matter how tempted.
I will however raise the temp gradually to the high end of the ideal working range for the strain to promote a strong finish.
If the OP is using a high floc yeast it may have ripped through the heavy work and will slowly finish up over time.
Find something else to do in the meantime.

 

[unionrdr]

Are you sure?..

You did not dry hop you sacred kottbusser and that was obviously infected.

Or your stout that painted the walls and the desk.

I added the honey & molasses to secondary with the kottbusser. As for it & the stout being infected, for one, it seems I need to soak the bottles once a year in PBW, scrub, rinse & dry for storage. That always seems to take care of the gushers. Just rinsing them out, over time, doesn't appear to be enough. My secondary is a 6 gallon better bottle, so 5 gallons of kottbusser could well have picked up something at that point? Gotta get a 5G BB for next time. I do 5 & gallon batches besides. I also got stricter with cleaning my tubing, bottling wand, etc just to cover the bases.
Not all the bottles gushed or made excessive foam. Just my dumb luck the one in the video did. And the stout was cool room temp, but not chilled in the fridge for my usual 5-10 days. So that one was my fault.

 

[beergolf]

If your gushers are one offs then it probably is bottles. If it is the whole batch, then it is an infected
batch. The size of the secondary will not cause an infection, but will allow it to take hold easier.

I still would not use a fermenter with a spigot. Too much risk for infection.

 

[unionrdr]

Well, I do clean/rinse/sanitize the spigots every time, so that seems to be fine. The extra head space in the 6G BB does bug me though. But that bit of saison-like tartness in the kottbusser is a bit of a mystery. Some say it was a sour, I'm rather on the fence about it. Wanna brew it again the same way soon & see what happens this time. It just goes to show that sanitizing is not enough. Everything has to be squeaky clean first, or you're just sanitizing dirt.

 

[beergolf]

It just goes to show that sanitizing is not enough. Everything has to be squeaky clean first, or you're just sanitizing dirt.

Ding,ding, ding .... we have a winner.

That is why I would never use a fermenter with a spigot. Pull a sample, but do not get it perfectly clean.. Even spraying it with Starsan will not clean it. Infection waiting to happen.

 

[Stillraining]

Ding,ding, ding .... we have a winner.

That is why I would never use a fermenter with a spigot. Pull a sample, but do not get it perfectly clean.. Even spraying it with Starsan will not clean it. Infection waiting to happen.

Ya all these are junk don't you or any brewery ever buy one.

 

[beergolf]

Ya all these are junk don't you or any brewery ever buy one.

That is much different.

Not a bucket with a cheap plastic spigot. It is like comparing a Yugo to a Ferrari. DUH.

Get real...

 

[unionrdr]

Not to start any arguments, but I learned early on to keep the spigots clean. Not to mention, setting them at the right height for the intended purpose. A lil higher for a primary, a lil lower for a bottling bucket. Strain or otherwise remove as much gunk from the wort as possible going into primary. This works for me more often as not to keep the trub/yeast level compacted on the bottom of primary below the level of the spigot.
But my Hellfire IIPA got all those treatments, & still plugged the spigot a couple times while racking to the bottling bucket. So cases like those can be a sticky point. I do spray Starsan up into the spout on the spigots after sampling. So at the least, it's not wet with beer going nasty. I just do not have good luck with auto siphons & the like. But do whatever works well for you, as we so often say around here...

 

[Stillraining]

That is much different.

Not a bucket with a cheap plastic spigot. It is like comparing a Yugo to a Ferrari. DUH.

Get real...

The" real comparison"...Both vehicles will get you to your same destination in safety..its only a difference in their driving experience that makes them different.

You probably don't like these then either.


We all get it...You don't trust spigot equipped buckets...doesn't mean its not routinely done nor needs to be a Sticky Warning to new brewers against their use..

You and I have both made our points ,lets leave it at that and let people decide for themselves.what they want to do.

Carry on
.

 

[beergolf]

Again you are putting words in my mouth. I never said anything about conicals. You are comparing apples to oranges,

I mentioned buckets with a spigot. Much different animal. Those spigots are notoriously difficult to clean.

 

[unionrdr]

Well, like I said, they work for me more often as not with proper cleaning & sanitizing. To each their own. They just work better for me...

 

[Stillraining]

Ding,ding, ding .... we have a winner.

That is why I would never use a fermenter with a spigot. Pull a sample, but do not get it perfectly clean.. Even spraying it with Starsan will not clean it. Infection waiting to happen.

I will quote you again. Your words not mine.

You see a difference and I don't.. Nothing wrong with us disagreeing. Both styles of valves be that plastic or SS take some time to clean properly after pulling a sample or whatever..But its not rocket science.

Procedure has something to do with my success as well... Besides good cleaning and sanitation, I dump 208 degree wort into my buckets effectively frying anything that might wish to live.

Only concern I have ever had is breaking off a valve as has been posted. Just pay attention to what your doing and its not an issue.

 

[beergolf]

I know I was just expressing my opinion. I do not trust spigots on a bucket fermenter. I is just my opinion. Ask 10 brewers a question and you will get 12 different answers.

I never mentioned conicals. In fact I do have a Fast Ferment conical that I use sometimes. It won't fit in my fermentation chamber so I only use it for beers that can be fermented at ambient temp. The dump tube is easier to clean than a spigot.

In my original post I said that I would trust a bucket with a slightly leaky lid over a fermenter with a spigot.

If they work for you then keep using them.

 

[Stillraining]

I totally respect that... as you didn't put a challenge at the end like your original post.

 

[sky4meplease]

Wow that was painful.

 

[rocketsan]

Two idiots p!ss!ng in the wind...