Fermentation ?'s: Even noobs can probably answer these noob ?'s

[kevinjo23]

Hey guys, I'm about 4 days into my first homebrew project and I have a few questions for those who have done this before...

My fermentation took off like a rocket, almost 26 bubbles per minute at the 12 hour mark, then 17 bubbles per minute at the 24 hour mark. This was strange to me because I'm fermenting at ~61degF (yeast temp range is 59-74); I thought colder temps meant slower fermentation. I guess I had some robust yeast. Well, after 36 hours, my airlock had completely stopped bubbling. I had to take a look in my non-glass fermenter to see what it looked like. I popped open the top of my fermentor to get a glimpse (I know this is not good for contamination, but I just had to get a peak). I saw a quarter inch thick green, ooz-like surface covering to the beer. The ooz was actually bubbling a little bit, so I believe that the fermentation process had not yet completed. I took a SG reading and it was at 1.015 (the finished product should be at 1.012). So, I'm leaving the stuff to ferment a little longer.

My questions...
1) Is this green ooze normal?

2) When do I know that the fermentation is completely complete? when the green surface is completely gone? when the expected finishing gravity is hit?

3) I'm thinking about moving this beer to a secondary "conditioning" carboy to free up the primary bucket, but I have no clue when to do this. I am thinking that this fermentation must be complete on day 6. Is this an ideal time to move to a secondary? I know that I don't have to move to a secondary but I'd like to experiment as much as I can with this first batch.

Thanks in advance for the help!

 

[iron_city_ap]

What style of beer is it? Could be the green ooze is just hop residue in your wort. Fermentation isn't complete until you get a steady gravity reading over a couple day period. Most people say 3 days is good. Check the gravity on day 6, and then again on day 7 and go from there. After that, let it sit in the secondary for a good 2 weeks just to give the yeast time to clean up things a bit before you bottle.

 

[JLem]

1). Yes the "ooze" is normal and a sign of a good fermentation. It's called krausen.
2) it's done when the SG is steady for a few days - the krausen will fall and bubbling will stop but the only sure sign of a finishes fermentation is an unchanging SG
3) Don't rush it. I would leave it in the primary for at least 2 weeks. I wouldn't move it if you don't have to or have reason to. If you want to start another brew, get another fermentation bucket or wait.

 

[lumpher]

i'm with iron on this 1. the green is probably hop oil. i always let it sit in the fermenter for 3 weeks minimum, unless it's meant to be short, like a hefeweizen or ipa's. moving it out of the fermenter moves it off most of the yeast, so it can't properly finish fermenting. don't believe anheuser busch with their "born on" dates. real beer takes weeks, sometimes months, to be ready. i take 3 readings 2 days apart. when they're all the same, i keg

 

[trevorc13]

Yeah I agree that the green ooze is probably just hops and kreusen. It'll settle back into the beer, and look like flat beer. By this time you can take another sg reading. It should be close to your intended fg. Test again over the next two to three days and then rack to your secondary

 

[kevinjo23]

Thanks guys for the quick response. I am hoping the SG readings level off soon, I am getting anxious with this first batch! I'm trying to be patient, but this is tough. I hope my patience increases with brewing experience.

btw, I am brewing the "Brewer's Best Witbier"...kind of a Blue Moon clone.

 

[TANSTAAFB]

Leave it in the primary for 3-4 weeks...the yeastie beasties have a lot of other little jobs to do once the most vigorous fermentation has finished.

Too much experimentation all at once is not a good thing. Right now you should be working on good sanitation habits and nailing down your process. If you fiddle too much you won't know what made good/ bad beer and what was just fiddling. Later on you can change 1, MAYBE 2 things a brew to see if it makes a difference.

Its REALLY hard to screw up beer. I got totally pissed w/ my FIL our first brew day, did a ton of stuff wrong, beer was awesome (mostly b/c WE MADE BEER, HOLY CRAP)...though it did kinda taste like nanners

Get another primary fermenter...its gonna happen sooner rather than later so don't fight it!!!

RDWHAHB and welcome to your new addiction

 

[kevinjo23]

TAN,

Michigan has its ups and downs, but for brewing purposes, I'm pretty happy to be in MI. I've heard that the nanner taste is quite common for first-time homebrewers in the southern portions of the U.S. because of the heat. My house temps during the winter is perfect for fermenting!