Fermentation Stopped Early?

[George7]

I'm currently brewing a bitter, I started it on the 23rd, and it suggests 4-6 days for fermentation. It also suggested a temperature of 18-20 degrees C for fermentation, so I decided I'd put it next to my home server in another room, rather than the airing cupboard. I left it there until the evening of the 24th, which is when I realised where I'd put it was too warm, it was generally about 24 degrees, so I moved it to the other side of the room, away from the server. Temperature in this part was 20-21, all good, or so I thought. I've just checked it this morning and fermentation appears to have stopped. I'm slightly worried that I've 'shocked' the yeast with the temperature change (despite it being about 3-4 degrees and in the same room). I'm wondering what I should do about it? Leave it in the cooler place and hope fermentation restarts? Or is fermentation still possibly happening, just slowly? The temperature of the brew itself is 21 degrees at the moment, and I've had it wrapped in a duvet overnight to mitigate the heating turning off. The gravity reading is 1140 at the moment, it started at about 1380 and when it's finished, it should be 1014. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[pabloj13]

I'm currently brewing a bitter, I started it on the 23rd, and it suggests 4-6 days for fermentation. It also suggested a temperature of 18-20 degrees C for fermentation, so I decided I'd put it next to my home server in another room, rather than the airing cupboard. I left it there until the evening of the 24th, which is when I realised where I'd put it was too warm, it was generally about 24 degrees, so I moved it to the other side of the room, away from the server. Temperature in this part was 20-21, all good, or so I thought. I've just checked it this morning and fermentation appears to have stopped. I'm slightly worried that I've 'shocked' the yeast with the temperature change (despite it being about 3-4 degrees and in the same room). I'm wondering what I should do about it? Leave it in the cooler place and hope fermentation restarts? Or is fermentation still possibly happening, just slowly? The gravity reading is 1140 at the moment, it started at about 1380 and when it's finished, it should be 1014. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

I don't understand your gravity readings at all.

 

[brussum]

Something is askew with your readings. Is that a typo or are you perhaps looking at the wrong scale on your hydrometer?

 

[pabloj13]

I'm guessing you're just shifting your readings over one decimal place on accident. Being a bitter, starting at 1.038 would make sense. If you're at 1.014, you should wait another day and if it is stable at 1.014 you can bottle any time. That being said, it important to note that the temps they are referring to for fermentation temps are the temperature of the wort, NOT the temp of the room. Fermentation temps can run 5 degrees C above ambient temp. You might get some pretty unpleasant flavors fermenting at 24, but that damage is done. With most ale yeast it's better to stay on the low end of the recommended range.

 

[George7]

I'm almost definitely misreading the hydrometer. I've posted an image below of the instructions, and where my beer currently is on the hydrometer. If anyone could please enlighten me as to how I've misread it, that'd be very much appreciated. I'm still in a hungover state and unable to concentrate on much

For reference, it started off in the red section, marked 'Start Beer' and I think it's supposed to end up in the yellow section marked 'Bottle'.

 

[pabloj13]

Yeah, you're just missing a zero. Reading 38 on that scale means 1.038. So you're at 1.014 now and likely done, but it's best to make sure your readings are stable for a few days before bottling.

 

[brussum]

The reading in your picture is 1.016. The hydrometer only shows the last two digits as the 1.0xx is implied or understood. You are likely done with a 1.014 reading. Just take a second reading a day or two later to see if there's a decrease (meaning that fermentation is still going slowly). If the readings are the same, then fermentation has stopped.

 

[George7]

Thanks, that makes a lot of sense, learning all the time! Will take a reading tomorrow, and the day after to be sure, then bottle on Saturday if there's no change. I'm a lot less worried now, as I assumed it was still quite far from its final gravity! This is my 2nd homebrew ever, and I don't want to bugger it up

Thanks all!