Belgian Blonde Ale still bubbling after a week

[StankAle]

Hi everyone.
First off I want to say that my very 1st batch of beer came out great. I did a NewCastle clone that tastes really good after one week in the bottle. I had to try a few out of sheer excitement. I am going to leave the other bottles for at least another week or 2 for conditioning.
Now to the point of this post:
Last Saturday I brewed a Belgian Blonde Ale kit from Midwest Supplies. I am fermenting the beer in a 6.5 gallon carboy at a steady 68 degrees.
Here is a link to the recipe:
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/products/ProdByID.aspx?ProdID=3509
I used a Belgian Witbier Activator liquid yeast instead of the Dry Yeast.
I went to check on the progress and much to my surprise I found that the airlock was still bubbling at a pretty steady pace. I did notice that the Krausen level has dropped a decent amount but I am concerned that I am still getting gas bubbles after a week in the primary. Anyone have any advice?
Oh by the way I cleaned and sanitized everything very thoroughly so I doubt there is any infection.
Thanks in advance everyone.
Dustin

 

[Orfy]

Still bubbling after a week is not out of the ordinary.
Worry if it's still going in 2 weeks.

Best advice is to take a gravity reading and you'll know what is happening for sure.

 

[StankAle]

Ok its Wednesday night and I just checked the fermenter. The Krausen is definitely falling but I am still getting bubbles in the airlock. I have no idea why I am still getting bubbles as its almost been 2 weeks.

Do I have to wait for the krausen to go down all the way before I transfer to the secondary ferrmenter? Can I take a hydrometer reading if there is still a layer of krausen in the fermenter?
I am hoping that this batch is not ruined.

 

[Jaybird]

Relax Bro your gonna be just fine.. Yes take a hydro reading any time you like... krausen or not. just be sanatairy and youll be fine... besides then you get to taste it
JJ

 

[StankAle]

Ok I will relax...
I am going to take a hydro reading tomorrow and see if I am @ the reommended FG.
If so, I will go ahead and rack it to the secondary.
I will keep you guys posted.
Oh, I promised myself to properly take a OG reading on my next batch. This is something I failed to do so far.

 

[Jaybird]

Ok I will relax...
I am going to take a hydro reading tomorrow and see if I am @ the reommended FG.
If so, I will go ahead and rack it to the secondary.
I will keep you guys posted.
Oh, I promised myself to properly take a OG reading on my next batch. This is something I failed to do so far.

shame on you there are a few people here that dont take OG readings but I like to know whats going on inside the fermenter... Good luck
JJ

 

[malkore]

you really need 3 gravity readings, 3 days in a row, that are consistent. the final gravity in your recipe is an estimate, not a hard rule.

 

[Bjm1188]

I have a similiar issue currently with a wheat beer that's been bubbling in the primary for 11 days now. I took a reading yesterday and it was still above the targeted FG, so I'm not that worried yet. Will take readings the next few days as well. Could be that the yeast wasn't 100% (I didn't have a chance to make a starter) and so it's slow to ferment. Let's hope that's the situation.

My understanding is that if it dips below your targeted FG and is still bubbling away that you may have a "gusher infection" where wild yeast has gotten into the wort and will eat everything until there is little to no flavor left

i really hope this isnt the case for either of us!

 

[StankAle]

I just took a hydrometer reading and it shows the proper level of 1.012. I still have some Krausen (although not much) on the top. I want to transfer to a secondary for at least a week. Is this a bad idea to rack while I still have the krausen layer?

 

[DeathBrewer]

ahhh, wheat and belgian yeast...they krausen takes forever to drop. you can rack now from under the krausen if you'd like.