Long time active in primary

[oguss0311]

I brewed a honey wheat a while ago- pushing three weeks- and its still bubbling every min. or so. I still have left over crusty krausen floating at the top- it just won't sink- even with a gentle swirl of the carboy. I know that honey can take a while to ferment- but I only used like- 2lbs (Id have to go check to be sure). Has anyone else seen crusty krausen float for this long? I typically rack to the secondary once the krausen has fallen to the bottom- but I have never had to wait 3 weeks. I assume that there is still enough fermentation going on to keep this stuff floating- but I'm getting nervous about getting it into the secondary.
Temps for all of this were in the high 60's, low 70's-
I'd love to hear what others have to say-
Thanks!

 

[Yooper]

Have you taken any sg readings lately?

 

[sirsloop]

stop screwing with it... RDWHAHB... it will let you know when its done.

 

[sirsloop]

btw, some of that stuff could be beeswax or beeparts... that tends to float...

 

[Pabst Blue Robot]

Honey takes a long time to ferment out completely. At that temp, I'm not surprised that you're still going with 2 lbs / 5 gal. The floating is probably just bits of krausen suspended by co2 bubbles, though I've found that some yeasts tend to keep the krausen afloat long after the fermentation is finished. Keep on truckin.

 

[DeathBrewer]

I've found that some yeasts tend to keep the krausen afloat long after the fermentation is finished.

especially if they have wheat in them

 

[oguss0311]

Sound advice and pointers- I took a gravity reading an hour ago, and came up with 1.010- Temp was over 60- but thats close enough for me. I just racked it to a secondary- and this leathery floating krausen leftover stuff is interesting- its like caked up, most but firm and does not seem to have any inclination of dropping.
For two pounds of honey- the sip I stole seemed fairly mild............
Thanks for the pointers!

 

[DeathBrewer]

most of that honey ferments out. when did you add it to the boil? you'll get more flavour if you add it at the very end of the boil.

yeah, i think at 3 weeks, you're probably safe. really i wouldn't rack until you're fermentation is finished, tho.

 

[oguss0311]

Right- you know- I had read that, and intended to try it out- but I didnt remeber to- and added the honey as soon as I had a good rolling boil.....(Sigh)....