First fermintation phase

[loz114]

I have brewed 3 batches of beer now so I'm still very much a beginner at this. Once the wort, sugars have been and mixed and diluted properly, the instruction say it needs about a week in its first fermenting phase after pitching the yeast. I do all this as instructed, but find that my airlock bubbles like any thing for about 2-3 days then just basically stops. I read that if the airlock bubbles once very 15 seconds then it's basically ready for bottling. But as I say, as it stops after 2-3 days, should I leave it there for the wk as the instructions say, or bottle it after no bubbles in the airlock???

 

[mbitton]

Check the gravity. If it's conisitent for 2-3 days I'd say it's good to go.

 

[Golddiggie]

Take gravity readings 2-3 days apart. IF they match then fermentation should be finished. Wouldnt be a bad idea to wait until a week or two has passed since fermentation started before testing the gravity. Also, TASTE the samples. If you detect off flavors, give it more time. All but a couple of issues can be resolved by leaving it along for a bit longer. Start to learn patience with your brews asap. It's one of the easiest things you can do to improve you're brews.

 

[DerekJ]

Airlock activity does not really tell you what is going on with your fermentation. You really should get a hydrometer. A hydrometer will acurately tell you if fermentation is complete if you get the same reading for 3 consecutive days and it is at or near the final gravity for the recipe.

If it has only been fermenting for 2-3 days I wouldn't even bother taking a reading. Even if the fermentation is complete the beer will benefit from some additional time. The yeast will clean up after themselves during this time. You can do some searching on this forum to read discussions about this. Some people do not use a secondary fermentation and do longer (3-4 weeks) in primary. Some people opt for a shorter primary and then secondary. There are pros and cons for each method. You will need to find what works well for you.

As a general guideline starting out I would suggest you try no secondary and a 3 week primary. Get a hydrometer and wait until day 18 to check it. On day 21 check it again and see if it is the same. If it is, go ahead and bottle.

Good luck with your brew and welcome to the hobby.

 

[loz114]

Airlock activity does not really tell you what is going on with your fermentation. You really should get a hydrometer. A hydrometer will acurately tell you if fermentation is complete if you get the same reading for 3 consecutive days and it is at or near the final gravity for the recipe.

If it has only been fermenting for 2-3 days I wouldn't even bother taking a reading. Even if the fermentation is complete the beer will benefit from some additional time. The yeast will clean up after themselves during this time. You can do some searching on this forum to read discussions about this. Some people do not use a secondary fermentation and do longer (3-4 weeks) in primary. Some people opt for a shorter primary and then secondary. There are pros and cons for each method. You will need to find what works well for you.

As a general guideline starting out I would suggest you try no secondary and a 3 week primary. Get a hydrometer and wait until day 18 to check it. On day 21 check it again and see if it is the same. If it is, go ahead and bottle.

Good luck with your brew and welcome to the hobby.

I do have a hydrometer, I'm still learning myself on how to use it more accurately. But I was under the assumption that opening the lid to keep checking the reading wasn't a good thing coz it helps with the risk on contamination with the new air going in?!? So I'm guessing I was wrong there.. And for some reason I was under the impression that the beer had to be bottled as soon as the airlock slows right down..

 

[duboman]

An airlock is a device, not a gauge and it's activity or lack of means nothing.

As suggested, leave the beer alone for 2 weeks, take a gravity on that day and then again in 1-2 more days. If the readings are the same then bottle. As long as your sanitation process is good you won't have any problems

 

[TopherM]

I was under the assumption that opening the lid to keep checking the reading wasn't a good thing coz it helps with the risk on contamination with the new air going in?!?

Carbon Dioxide is heavier than air, so when you open your primary fermentor oxygen is not going to get under the CO2 layer unless you try really hard to make that happen. There's nothing wrong with opening the fermentor to get a hydrometer sample, just make sure your hydrometer and whatever you use to draw a sample are both sanitized.