Is my fermentation finished?

[Ryan11]

I brewed a blonde ale 10 days ago. The OG was 1.046 and my estimated FG was 1.009. I took a reading today because I wanted to start cold crashing. My reading was 1.008 but there was a little less than a 1/2 inch of krausen still on top. Does this mean I should let it go for a few more days? Or is it done and I can start cold crashing. I mean i'm getting a bubble in the air lock every 10-15 seconds.

 

[AJBrew710]

If it's still bubbling that frequently, I would leave it alone. But don't put too much stock in the airlock when it starts to slow down. The best way would be to check the hydrometer in another couple days and see if it's still 1.008. If it hasn't changed, then you should be fine.

 

[wfowlks]

The bubbling doesnt mean that its fermenting, all that means is that CO2 is being released from suspension. If you take another reading tomorrow or the day after and its still 1.008, its done. But at 1.008 I would say its more than likely done. What kind of yeast did you use? It will also matter if you did all grain, what temp you mashed at, as the sugars form different length chains at different temps.

 

[dgr]

Was it closer to 5/16" or 3/8"

What's your SG tomorrow? Same = crash. Different = wait. Waiting = suxor

 

[unionrdr]

Some krausens can be stubborn & hang around. See if it settles. If it doesn't,a little swirl with a sanitized spoon might break it up. If the FG is the same in 2-3 days,you could rack from underneith it.

 

[Ryan11]

This was an all grain batch that I mashed at 151 degrees and batch sparged at 168 degrees. My calculated effeciency was about 74%. I used the WLP001 cali yeast and used a good starter. Fermented it at 65 degrees for 10 days. I'm leaving town tomorrow and wanted to cold crash it and put some gelatin in there while i'm away.

 

[AnOldUR]

Kegging = Crash Away
Bottling = Wait til you're sure it's done

 

[Ryan11]

Yeah my plan was to cold crash with gelatin for the next 4-5 days and then keg when I get back. I'll take one more reading today and if it hasn't changed I'll go ahead with cold crashing. If anyone else has some advice please let me know.