Krausen not dropping out

[jritchie111]

I brewed a Founders Dirty Bastard Clone on 2/5/12 and I was going to transfer it to keg today. However, when I opened the pail the Krausen is still present. I tried to do a quick search and find whether I should transfer or let it sit a few more days. Couldn't find a good answer. Most discussions were with week old fermentations to secondary. I checked gravity and got 1.017, in 10 days it has dropped .002 so I am assuming fermentation is pretty much done. any suggestions would be great.

 

[maffewl]

Go with what your hydrometer says. If it has reached a consistent final gravity, it doesn't matter if the krausen took a trip to Disney World.

 

[BrewKnurd]

lemme guess. WLP001/Wyeast 1056/US-05.

 

[BierMuncher]

What kind of yeast? (Please don't just say "dry" or liquid")

Belgian strains are notorious for hanging on forever.

Krausen will...eventually drop. I always wait for the drop because it tells me the yeast is done having fun. Even if the hydrometer reading is at steady-state, it is still active in cleaning up after itself. I'd wait, but if you choose not to and rack it, I doubt you'll be able to tell the difference.

 

[jritchie111]

US-05. I was hoping to see a lower FG. Started 1.067 and currently 1.017, so 6.5 ABV. Should I have pitched two packs here? I am new at this and learning as I go, and reading a lot of HBT.

 

[BierMuncher]

75% attenuation is not too bad...but, I would not let a 1.060+ beer go any less than 3 full weeks in the primary. Four weeks would be even better. Lots of starting sugars and you don't want to package that beer up (bottle or keg) with any extra unfermented sugars.

I'd say make sure your ambient temp is around the 68 degree mark and give it another week.

 

[jritchie111]

Lucky for me the furnace room in my basement sits at 67 degrees. Makes for a good place to ferment. Of so 1.060+ go four weeks. At what OG do I opt for 2 packs of yeast rather then one. Due to my schedule I brew on a whim and don't have the ability to make a starter. That is why I opt for dry yeast too.

 

[BrewKnurd]

At what OG do I opt for 2 packs of yeast rather then one.

http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html for all your yeast pitching needs.

I've had a few WLP001 beers where the krausen stuck around for a week or more after final gravity was reached.

 

[jessup]

i've been having a huge issue with krausens looking really chunky and not dropping. coincidentally i've been using lots of extra irish moss lately. coincidence? i think not. some krausens have never dropped so we just rack from under them. here's one batch @ 3 weeks fully attenuated and no signs of infection whatsoever. it's now 7 weeks still in primary and looks the same. just when you think you know everything...