Fermentation can take 24 to 72 hrs to show visible signs.

[5 Is Not Enough]

Sometimes after 3 days I start to worry, then the airlock bubbles...
Did you aerate the wort?

 

[Vorsicht709]

When I pitched I did like it said on "how to brew" I put the lid on and shook the wort around, could it help to do it again?

 

[aekdbbop]

yep, just had a beer start today after 28 hours after pitching.. no worries, give it time!

 

[boo boo]

That is why I always make a starter when I use a liquid yeast culture.

Also as was pointed out areation of the wort is more critical when using liquid yeast. As you are not boiling the total amount and are topping your wort up with cold water, that cold water will already have disolved oxygen in it. Splashing the wort will get you enough O2 to work the wort.

Don't areate your wort now that it has been in your fermenter for a while.

 

[PseudoChef]

Dude, there's a sticky right above this thread which addresses this. Read it.

 

[tagz]

in a related question - is it bad for fermentation to take a long time? i have a pale ale that took a bit to get going (started after 24 hrs) but it has been bubbling for seven days now. i took a reading yesterday and it was only at 1.030 (started at 1.048). i was planning on transferring to secondary after 7-10 days to dry hop but its not anywhere near ready. is there any problems that can arise with it taking so long? by the way i used wyeast 1056. thanks.

 

[Yooper]

As long as it's fermenting, you're ok. You might have it on the cool side, which is fine, but it takes a little longer to ferment out.

 

[tagz]

thanks.

i have it at 68 and its been chugging along but i was worried that i would get some bad flavors or risk infection if the process was drawn out.

 

[Brentk14]

I started a Pale Ale on saturday night and pitched the yeast which was wet yeast. the sg was 1.055. after maybe 24 hours the airlock is not bubbling. I was thinking about re pitching the yeast. should I? or what should i do?

 

[Iordz]

RDWHAHB!
The only thing you can do is wait. Don't pitch more yeast, just relax and let the yeast do its thing. Lag times can be as long as 3 days, try not to worry about it. Warming the fermenter up might get the yeast going and speed up the process a little.

 

[Brentk14]

ok hopefully its fine. Thanks

 

[Fatgodzilla]

OG 1.055 is a big brew. the yeast is working hard eating and growing. Give the little buggers a chance. Did you make a sterter for the yeast or use dry yeast ? What temerature your brew at ?

 

[Brentk14]

I used Liquid Yeast. Temp is right at 68 deg. Should i take a grav reading today or just wait and hope? haha

 

[TheJadedDog]

I used Liquid Yeast. Temp is right at 68 deg. Should i take a grav reading today or just wait and hope? haha

Did you make a starter? Liquid yeast can take a while to get going if you pitched directly from the smack pack/vial. I'd wait another day, then take a gravity reading if there is still no activity.

 

[Brentk14]

Didnt use a starter. Definitely should have. I'll just play the waiting game.

 

[GloHoppa]

RDWHAHB!
Lag times can be as long as 3 days, try not to worry about it.

Iordz, you are so 1337 right now

 

[lembeck2001]

I haven't seen any signs after about 55 hours in the fermenter.

I used a Winter Warmer kit from Listermanns here in Cincinnati that included a dry yeast packet. If I don't see something by tonight, I think I will pick up some more yeast and pitch it again. The packet had not expired, but I'm wondering if it was a bad packet?

On a side note, this is my second batch. The first one I did was so active after 24 hours, it actually popped the lid off the bucket.....twice! I went from one extreme to another.

 

[Evan!]

OG 1.055 is a big brew.

I beg to differ. 1.147 is a "big brew". 1.055 is a session beer.

 

[HP_Lovecraft]

I had similar problems when using liquid yeast for the first time.
I just poured the vile into my .1070 brew, and moved it into my 60-degree basement.

24 hours later, no activity.

I think I made 3 mistakes:
1- I should have made a starter, despite instructions on tube.
2- Higher gravity brews need more yeast regardless
3- A chilly basement is not the best place to start fermentation.

Fortunetly, by hour 30, it was cruising right along at normal speed. Though lesson learned.

nick

 

[popscube]

This may sound weird, but tell me about the bubbles you see. Usually when I brew my airlock seems like it is percolating. But with this American Amber it's just a little bit of bubbles in the airlock. Are bubbles...just bubbles or does it need to percolate?

Thanks,
popscube

 

[Scimmia]

This may sound weird, but tell me about the bubbles you see. Usually when I brew my airlock seems like it is percolating. But with this American Amber it's just a little bit of bubbles in the airlock. Are bubbles...just bubbles or does it need to percolate?

Thanks,
popscube

The airlock doesn't "need" to do anything at all. All it's doing is releasing the CO2 produced by fermentation, so if you have any activity in the airlock, something is going on. If you don't have any activity in the airlock, it probably means you don't have a tight seal and the CO2 is escaping somewhere else. RDWHAHB

 

[popscube]

Ok, so a long as there is activity I'm good? I know I got a good seal, the slightest amount of pressure on the lid causes the airlock to move. I guess need was a bad term, but should there be a certain amount of activity in the airlock?

 

[Joker]

As long as everything is tight you will have airlock activity. However, if you you have something loose i.e. the lid of the bucket or the stopper not in tight you will not get airlock activity. That is why people say airlock activity is not the best way to judge if your brew is done fermenting.

Krausen is a good measure and of course hydrometer readings will remove all doubt.

 

[popscube]

Should I open my fermenter and take a reading? It's been in since Saturday, and I've had very little activity? Or should I give it the full week and then check?

 

[tuckferrorists]

something tells me you already know the answer to that. My first batch never had a single bubble come out of the airlock even though the pressure was so great the slightest push on the lid would knock the airlock. RDWHAHB

 

[popscube]

Yeah, I do....but it would have been better if you would had said, I had not a single bubble come out, and the beer was great anyway.

 

[borders]

I'm brewing a wheat beer. It sat in the fermenter for over 27 hours with no activity. I originally used white labs hefeweizen IV yeast but repitched with muntons dry yeast last night after 27 hours of no activity. The airlock is bubbling steadily this morning, perhaps from the white labs, perhaps from the muntons, not sure.

After reading all these posts, perhaps I should have waited up to 3 days for the white labs to start working. However, not having the benfit of this knowledge beforehand, I simply repitched with the muntons dry. If the white labs was good but was truly getting geared up, what affect would both the white labs hefeweizen IV and munton dry yeast have on the final taste.

The muntons came with the kit which was an american wheat. I wanted a more hefeweizen taste so I substituted (per advice of the LHBS) white labs hefeweizen for the muntons dry. I'm thinking that while this may not be the intended taste for the kit, the final beer should still taste pretty good, despite mixing different yeasts in the fermenter. Any thoughts?

 

[Yooper]

It'll be fine, no matter which yeast is actually doing the job. You might have had more hefe taste if you let the hefe yeast do its work, but it sure is hard to wait! Either way, the beer will still taste good.

 

[borders]

It'll be fine, no matter which yeast is actually doing the job. You might have had more hefe taste if you let the hefe yeast do its work, but it sure is hard to wait! Either way, the beer will still taste good.

Excellent...........

 

[duker]

I dropped in the primary Sunday afternoon, started bubbling, then quit, I know you guys have told me not to worry, on one hand I am not on the other I do not want my first batch to taste like sock-water. I am holding stead-fast, but when should I become concerned ie. yank the lid off, take hydro readings, add yeast freak out, dial 911 or the unthinkable... down the drain