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

[skullface1818]

Makes sense, tho with my long starters (I generally wait for about 3 days before I start my brew day) fermentation starts in a matter of hours, about 7-12 to be exact.

but I know to not freak out unless its been 2-3 days, depending on yeast

 

[richfei]

I started my first 5 gallon extract a few days ago. Making a hefeweizen and used WLP300 with the expectation of an active fermentation. Nothing happened in the first 24 hours, then came a little bubbling in the airlock. 12 hours after that, massive krausen, overactive airlock and some overflow. Glad I came across this thread and waited patiently

 

[InfectedBrewing]

Yes, I started brewing a chocolate milk stout and I made a blow off. It was really active during that time but once its stopped overflowing I put the airlock on and very little activity . I was worried, but I'm glad to have ran into this thread. Thanks guys!

 

[DallasHomeBrew2]

Can the beer be harmed by leaving it in the keg too long after fermentation has stopped? The kit says to ferment for 7-14 days, and everyone here recommends at least 3, maybe 4 weeks. If the fermentation has appeared to have stopped after 16 days and I left it in the keg for a full 21 days, could the batch go south? Or is it better to be safe than sorry? Thanks.

 

[KNOTSANE]

Can the beer be harmed by leaving it in the keg too long after fermentation has stopped? The kit says to ferment for 7-14 days, and everyone here recommends at least 3, maybe 4 weeks. If the fermentation has appeared to have stopped after 16 days and I left it in the keg for a full 21 days, could the batch go south? Or is it better to be safe than sorry? Thanks.

Your fine. Just check your gravity to be sure ferm is complete. Let it sit for 2 weeks or so and let the yeast finish up their thing and clean it up. Think if it as a secondary without transferring your beer to another vessel.

 

[dannylerch]

can the beer be harmed by leaving it in the keg too long after fermentation has stopped? The kit says to ferment for 7-14 days, and everyone here recommends at least 3, maybe 4 weeks. If the fermentation has appeared to have stopped after 16 days and i left it in the keg for a full 21 days, could the batch go south? Or is it better to be safe than sorry? Thanks.

rdwhah

 

[bleme]

Can the beer be harmed by leaving it in the keg too long after fermentation has stopped? The kit says to ferment for 7-14 days, and everyone here recommends at least 3, maybe 4 weeks. If the fermentation has appeared to have stopped after 16 days and I left it in the keg for a full 21 days, could the batch go south? Or is it better to be safe than sorry? Thanks.

The longest I have gone in primary is 6 weeks but I usually aim for 3. Either way, the beer turns out great. I think kits tend to recommend shorter ferm periods because they know that people have no patience and it turns them over faster, this they sell more kits.

 

[dannylerch]

bleme, I think you nailed it on the head. I think they also recommend a secondary because most non beer enthusiasts probably feel icky seeing a little rice cake in their brew.

 

[Ogri]

bleme, I think you nailed it on the head. I think they also recommend a secondary because most non beer enthusiasts probably feel icky seeing a little rice cake in their brew.

Well, that and someone, somewhere, along the line can make some more cash on a carboy for doing secondary in.

 

[jerrodm]

Well, that and someone, somewhere, along the line can make some more cash on a carboy for doing secondary in.

I'm not sure it's really anything as sinister as that. More likely, it's just inertia--from what I gather, up until four or five years ago racking to a secondary was standard practice for almost all homebrewers, and was recommended by Papazian, Palmer and others. There are numerous threads about this so there's no need to rehash the whole thing but, suffice it to say, over time the weight of opinion among many HBers has shifted to a long primary/no secondary schedule. I suspect that HB shops simply haven't changed their standard advised protocols because it hasn't been THAT long since a secondary was considered de rigeur.

I myself still secondary most beers because I get better clarity that way (and because that's the way I've done it for almost a decade!), but I know I'm probably in the minority at this point. At any rate, I don't think the secondary instruction is some nefarious plot by LHBS's...it's just an artifact from a time when standard practices were different.

 

[doubletapbrewing]

Will the way dry yeast was stored affect the time it takes for it to start fermenting? I kept my packet in the fridge for the most part but had it out for about a day after I received my kit and a few hours before I brewed.

 

[Progger]

Don't worry if your brew takes up to 3 days to show signs fermenting.
Especially if you used liquid yeast and didn't make a big starter and oxygenate.
It is also worth noting that no bubbles in the air lock does not mean it isn't fermenting.

If at 3 days nothing seems to of happened then take a gravity reading to make sure you haven't missed the fermentation.
It is preferable to have a brew start fermenting as soon as possible
If you follow correct and advised procedures then I say most brews see activity in 6 to 18 hours. If this doesn't happen then it doesn't mean you've done anything wrong. You may just not be seeing it or it's taking it's time.

It is quite common for new brewers to get worried after 24 hours to 48 hours.
They get told to wait and then realise that the advice was correct.

First brew, and worried - Home Brew Forums

Yea, as far as I know, there could be nothing wrong with a batch with no apparent activity after 3 days. However, as you say, it is better to have it started way sooner so no wild yeast of bacteria start fermenting before the brewing pitched yeast. Since, it´s impossible to keep every bacteria/and or/wild yeast away when cooling and poring wort into a fermenter when brewing at home.

 

[Ogri]

Will the way dry yeast was stored affect the time it takes for it to start fermenting? I kept my packet in the fridge for the most part but had it out for about a day after I received my kit and a few hours before I brewed.

Yes, to a certain extent. It's definitely a better idea to keep your dried yeast in a cool/cold dark place if you are storing for extended periods before using than to, as an extreme example, let it get exposed to direct sunlight and higher temperatures on multiple occasions. How much this will affect the lag period, or overall viability, I can't be sure.

I wouldn't have thought your example would be particularly detrimental to the yeast health as, when you think about it, the instructions often state that to re-hydrate the yeast you need to "pour the contents of the packet into water at about 100*f", so warm/hot room temps for a short length of time wouldn't really adversely affect the yeast condition, either.

 

[Mickeymoose]

I panicked after 24 hours of no activity. So the first thing I did was jump on this forum, I knew the answer would be here. I started to look at this thread, started to look for a substitute yeast, (LBHS sold me last Londan Ale and it was expired). By the time I found what substitute yeast I was going to use, and read halfway through this thread, fermentation took off. So once again it holds true, RDWHAHB! It ended up taking about 36 hours before I noticed visible activity. Not ideal I suppose, but bubbling like crazy now. So if you are looking for advice on what to do with no signs of activity, just wait, it will come.

 

[Ostomo517]

I panicked after 24 hours of no activity. So the first thing I did was jump on this forum, I knew the answer would be here. I started to look at this thread, started to look for a substitute yeast, (LBHS sold me last Londan Ale and it was expired). By the time I found what substitute yeast I was going to use, and read halfway through this thread, fermentation took off. So once again it holds true, RDWHAHB! It ended up taking about 36 hours before I noticed visible activity. Not ideal I suppose, but bubbling like crazy now. So if you are looking for advice on what to do with no signs of activity, just wait, it will come.

Since joining this group RDWHAHB has become my all saving mantra, I would be a brewing ball of stress without it!

 

[vic_and_krystal]

I started my irish stout last night and no activity noted in my airlock yet. Got my fermenter down to 70degrees, and keepin it there. I have talked to a few people that have said that sometimes it will not even bubble... My last batch which was my first bubbled like crazy up until the last few days.. All of my wine is on a constant bubble.. Does it have something to do with the all grain recipe verses the extract I used last time? Thanks

 

[schokie]

Probably not. Maybe your bucket isn't completely sealed. Perhaps your airlock wasn't inserted tight enough. Doesn't matter, I'm sure you'll still have beer.

I'm cold crashing an extract stout right now that had NO airlock activity the entire fermentation, but still fermented completely with lots of krausen residue on the sides of the bucket.

I have different airlock activity experiences with each batch, even among repeat brewings of the same recipe. Most of the time it has nothing to so with your ingredients, process, or yeast, but with just how airtight your primary fermenter is.

RDWHAHB.

 

[Xanatos903]

Probably not. Maybe your bucket isn't completely sealed. Perhaps your airlock wasn't inserted tight enough. Doesn't matter, I'm sure you'll still have beer.

I'm cold crashing an extract stout right now that had NO airlock activity the entire fermentation, but still fermented completely with lots of krausen residue on the sides of the bucket.

I have different airlock activity experiences with each batch, even among repeat brewings of the same recipe. Most of the time it has nothing to so with your ingredients, process, or yeast, but with just how airtight your primary fermenter is.

RDWHAHB.

Exactly. My stout that I brewed a month or so ago had little airlock activity. A bubble once every few minutes, but that's it. The Boston Red I've got has no airlock activity whatsoever, but it's got a healthy krausen on top of the beer.

And it's only been one night, schokie. Check tomorrow for krausen, and take a gravity reading if you feel comfortable doing so.

 

[Bigloww]

Don't worry if your brew takes up to 3 days to show signs fermenting.
Especially if you used liquid yeast and didn't make a big starter and oxygenate.
It is also worth noting that no bubbles in the air lock does not mean it isn't fermenting.

If at 3 days nothing seems to of happened then take a gravity reading to make sure you haven't missed the fermentation.
It is preferable to have a brew start fermenting as soon as possible
If you follow correct and advised procedures then I say most brews see activity in 6 to 18 hours. If this doesn't happen then it doesn't mean you've done anything wrong. You may just not be seeing it or it's taking it's time.

It is quite common for new brewers to get worried after 24 hours to 48 hours.
They get told to wait and then realise that the advice was correct.

First brew, and worried - Home Brew Forums

O.K. so it has been almost 72 hours (about 68 to be exact) and nothing from the airlock yet. I know. I read that the airlock bubbles are worthless for the most part, but I am a newbie and can't understand logic...

This is my 2nd batch. 1st is about 10 days old. 1st batch is an American Pale Ale and took about 36-48 hours to start bubbling and it did quite heavy for about 4-5 days. This batch is a American Light Ale. They both used the same yeast. Danstar Nottingham Ale Yeast. Both were pitched about the same temp in the bucket (around 74) and stored at around 69 degrees. It got quite cold here in Chicago so the last 2 days the temp on the both batches dropped to around 65 but holding..

Should I open it up now a do a gravity reading and see or wait another day? Don't want to open and risk contamination unless I absolutely need to. I did a OG reading before I closed her up and it was 1.034.. The recomended Final gravity reading is 1.008-1.011..

 

[bleme]

I would peek inside and see if you have krausen floating. My guess is that your bucket just doesn't seal well enough to need the airlock.

 

[Upthewazzu]

I would peek inside and see if you have krausen floating. My guess is that your bucket just doesn't seal well enough to need the airlock.

I've found that using a flashlight is a better method than opening up the bucket. Turn the lights off, stick a flashlight up to the side of the bucket (towards the top), and you will be able to see exactly what's going on in there without risking infection.

 

[Bigloww]

Thanks for the replies guys.. I did the flashlight thing last night and it looked like there was about an inch of foamy stuff on the sides of the bucket above the beer line, so assume it is doing it's thing.. I will take a gravity reading in a couple days to see what's what.. Thanks again..

 

[brevity]

I'm on my second brew and can vouch for this thread. The first brew was so crazy it required a blow-off tube within the first 8 hours. I was really freaking out when my second brew was showing no signs of fermentation after 16 hours, especially when people mention how strong/fast US-05 is. Low and behold, by the 24 hour mark I had a small layer of foam and now, 3 days later, it's going quite strong.

 

[Lbillotto]

I probably already know the answer, but wanted some opinions anyway. Brewed a batch of rye pale ale.OG as supposed to be saw fermentation within five hours. Temps were as required until we left the house for a medical issue. I came home to find my inlays were cold and jacked up the temp. Fermentation room was. Comp,eye mess and the temp appeared To have spiked around high 70s. Besides the mess it looks fine and fermentation is continuing. Not sure how long the temp was sustained. I'm guessing it should be okay, but how worried should I be about off flavors

 

[Ogri]

Temps were as required until we left the house for a medical issue. I came home to find my inlays were cold and jacked up the temp. Fermentation room was. Comp,eye mess and the temp appeared To have spiked around high 70s. ........................................................................... Not sure how long the temp was sustained. I'm guessing it should be okay, but how worried should I be about off flavors

The shorter the amount of time that fermentation temps were elevated to high 70's, the less off flavours should have developed. Getting them back down to where they should be as soon as, it seems like, you did probably helped and keeping them there until the first, vigorous, stage of fermentation, winds down, then raising them again to low/mid 70's will help the yeast stay active enough to clear up fermentation by-products, such as some of the off flavours and aromas produced in the first couple of days of fermentation.

What yeast were you using? Some yeasts thrive and do better at higher temps, others do better down at the lower end of their listed temp range.

 

[Hawkfanz]

First time homebrewing and I'm hooked. Made the Hop Head IPA on Saturday and all went well but pretty sure I messed the yeast part up. I followed the directions for rehydrating the yeast but swirled it in the measuring glass instead of stirring before pitching into the primary (read bad advice). Later that night I cleaned the measuring cup and realized it had the creamy looking white layer on bottom still. Probably yeast? I'm afraid a lot didn't get in. It's been 60 hours with no airlock activity. I get another yeast delivered tomorrow (72hours) and star san delivered tomorrow or Thursday (96hours). Should I add more yeast Wednesday without doing a hydrometer test (I'm out of sanitizer) or wait till 96 hours when I have everything to really see what's going on before I repitch? Thanks!

 

[nickmv]

Saw this thread mentioned on the front page of HBT, and thought to myself "if I ever have a beer that takes even TWELVE hours to start bubbling, then I musta really messed something up"

Amazing how your views change over the years with brewing, once you develop all processes fully (ie. stir plate starters)

 

[progmac]

Saw this thread mentioned on the front page of HBT, and thought to myself "if I ever have a beer that takes even TWELVE hours to start bubbling, then I musta really messed something up"

Amazing how your views change over the years with brewing, once you develop all processes fully (ie. stir plate starters)

Yeah, I don't think you're the target market of this thread

 

[nickmv]

Yeah, I don't think you're the target market of this thread

Oh def not. I accidentally went to the main HBT page instead of the forums, and saw this thread advertised on the front page. Made me have a moment....

 

[progmac]

Oh def not. I accidentally went to the main HBT page instead of the forums, and saw this thread advertised on the front page. Made me have a moment....

That's exactly how i ended up here. HbT sure knows how to sell the content we give it!