is there a problem?

[Jah]

the wort went into the primary friday and the next night everything was looking great bubbles and krausen. well i just came home and the krausen looks like it has disolved and there are no more bubbles. is there something wrong?

 

[Parker36]

Krausen is supposed to go down, and bubbling will slow. What was your OG and target FG?

 

[Jah]

0g 1.060 fg 1.010

 

[Parker36]

Might want to take one now and see where it is at. Its not likely to be done yet, but I'm sure its slowing and getting close to FG.

 

[Jah]

even only being in there for 48 hours? is a belgian dubbel.... i was under the impression it would be in the primary for quite a while

 

[Parker36]

You will want it to be there 1-2 weeks if you are then going to move it to secondary, but its good to make sure it hasnt stalled.

 

[Jah]

cool thanks... how will i know exactly if it has stalled? and is there anything i can do if this is the case to save it?

 

[Yooper]

I think it's still fermenting, but the "big" part of the fermentation is about done. You can still leave it for a week or two, and then check the sg as planned.

 

[Parker36]

If its stuck it will stay at the same gravity (somewhere inbetween your OG and FG) for a few consecutive days. This doesn't really happen that often, but if it does to you, just give the carboy a little swirl and you should be good. Also you might want to double check your airlock is on tight.

 

[McKBrew]

You need to take a gravity reading to see where you are at in relation to your FG. If it's stalled, you have a few options depending on the circumstances.

A couple of questions, and possible scenarios. Without knowing everything, I'm trying to cover all the bases here.

What temperature are you fermenting at? If it's in a cold area or has been, all you might need to do is warm it back up to 68-70 deg and see what happens.

If it's an actual stuck fermentation, you will need to pitch more yeast. What was your OG, what type of yeast did you use and did you make a starter? With a Belgian Dubbel if you are within style guidlelines OG would be between 1.062-1.075 and if you used a liquid yeast without starter, a stuck fermentation is a real possibility.

Let us know if any of these situations might apply.

 

[McKBrew]

If its stuck it will stay at the same gravity (somewhere inbetween your OG and FG) for a few consecutive days. This doesn't really happen that often, but if it does to you, just give the carboy a little swirl and you should be good. Also you might want to double check your airlock is on tight.

Also very good advice, which leads me to also ask if you are possibly fermenting in a bucket. Sometimes they don't get a tight seal around the lid, which means all the CO2 is going out the side. No big issues with this, just correct the problem or let it go the way it is.

 

[Jah]

the airlock was a little low on fluid so i added some more vodka and it started burping again. it is churning pretty good and bubbling a little bit. i just got concerned when the krausen was gone. i bet you guys are right and its just getting close to fg. thanks for all of your input