Moving from Fermenter to Bottling Bucket

[blueeagles003]

I am currently 13/14 days into fermentation on the second batch of beer I’ve ever made. I’m brewing the Clouds of Haze (hazy/juicy double IPA) by Brewmaster. At this point in the process, the activity in the air lock has slowed down, but has not stopped yet. I am still seeing activity in the air lock, as it is popping up and down roughly every ~ 1 minute. I am going to bottle, not keg, once fermentation is complete. Based on everything I’ve read/heard from others, I understand that I should proceed to moving my beer from the fermenter to the bottling bucket once fermentation ends. Unfortunately, I did not use a hydrometer to get a gravity reading at the start of fermentation. Does anyone have tips for recognizing when fermentation is complete and it’s time to move my beer to the bottling bucket and bottle? Without a hydrometer reading, should I just rely on waiting until the air lock stops popping completely as an indicator that fermentation is complete and it’s time to move the beer to the bottling bucket and bottle? Any advice on best practices for identifying completion of fermentation would be much appreciated!

Other notes: I dry hopped this beer at 2 days into fermentation with 1 oz Amarillo/1 oz Simcoe/1 oz Columbus/1 oz Mosaic. I dry hopped again at 5 days into fermentation with 1 oz Simcoe/2 oz Citra/2 oz Mosaic. I left my beer in the primary fermenter the whole time, I did not use a secondary.

Thanks in advance for any tips/words of wisdom!

 

[Brewer dad]

Is this an extract batch? If so you can pretty well math out the OG.

Airlock activity can be a general indicator, but also keep in mind that it will sometimes continue to bubble for a bit after fermentation is done. I will also look at the beer itself, has the krausen dropped completely?

Always best to err on the side of caution especially in the beginning. Enjoy!

 

[IslandLizard]

Unfortunately, I did not use a hydrometer to get a gravity reading at the start of fermentation.

Not getting a reading at the beginning of fermentation is immaterial to whether your beer is done. It only helps to determine your alcohol % (ABV).

Does anyone have tips for recognizing when fermentation is complete and it’s time to move my beer to the bottling bucket and bottle?

You want to avoid your beer getting exposed to air, as that will oxidize it and in case of hoppy beers, it may kill hop flavor/aroma.
So leave it in the fermenter, with the lid left on!

So, no, don't move it to a bottling bucket until you're ready to actually bottle it.

You could take a sample* today and again 3 or 4 days from now. When both hydrometer readings are the same, your beer is very likely done.

* There are methods to remove a beer sample from a fermenter without opening the lid.

 

[IslandLizard]

At what temperature was your beer fermenting? What yeast did you use? How much did you pitch?

Is the beer in a controlled/stable temperature area, or does the temp fluctuate?

 

[blueeagles003]

Is this an extract batch? If so you can pretty well math out the OG.

Airlock activity can be a general indicator, but also keep in mind that it will sometimes continue to bubble for a bit after fermentation is done. I will also look at the beer itself, has the krausen dropped completely?

Always best to err on the side of caution especially in the beginning. Enjoy!

Yes, this is an extract batch. Good to know that I can try to math it out.

Is this an extract batch? If so you can pretty well math out the OG.

Airlock activity can be a general indicator, but also keep in mind that it will sometimes continue to bubble for a bit after fermentation is done. I will also look at the beer itself, has the krausen dropped completely?

Always best to err on the side of caution especially in the beginning. Enjoy!

Yes, it is an extract batch. I didn’t realize I could math out the OG. I will look into that more.

The airlock is still bubbling today, popping every 1 minute 15 seconds or so (day 16 since brew day). And I am not sure if the krausen has dropped yet because the fermenter is not translucent. Do you recommend I pop the lid and check to see if the foam is gone?

Thanks for the response!

 

[blueeagles003]

Not getting a reading at the beginning of fermentation is immaterial to whether your beer is done. It only helps to determine your alcohol % (ABV).


You want to avoid your beer getting exposed to air, as that will oxidize it and in case of hoppy beers, it may kill hop flavor/aroma.
So leave it in the fermenter, with the lid left on!

So, no, don't move it to a bottling bucket until you're ready to actually bottle it.

You could take a sample* today and again 3 or 4 days from now. When both hydrometer readings are the same, your beer is very likely done.

* There are methods to remove a beer sample from a fermenter without opening the lid.

Thanks for the response! I still haven’t taken it out of the fermenter, but maybe tomorrow I will pop the lid and take a hydrometer reading, and then put the lid back on. That way I can see if the foam has subsided as well.

 

[blueeagles003]

At what temperature was your beer fermenting? What yeast did you use? How much did you pitch?

Is the beer in a controlled/stable temperature area, or does the temp fluctuate?

The beer has been fermenting at 68F-72F the whole time. I use Cali Yeast (Cellar Science) 12 g. The beer has been in a stable temperature area, where no sunlight gets in.

 

[IslandLizard]

The airlock is still bubbling today, popping every 1 minute 15 seconds or so (day 16 since brew day). And I am not sure if the krausen has dropped yet because the fermenter is not translucent. Do you recommend I pop the lid and check to see if the foam is gone?

Thanks for the response! I still haven’t taken it out of the fermenter, but maybe tomorrow I will pop the lid and take a hydrometer reading, and then put the lid back on. That way I can see if the foam has subsided as well.

If there is still airlock activity she's still fermenting. Best to leave the lid on for a few days after all airlock activity has ceased, because the yeast needs some time to condition the beer too (cleaning up), which is very important. During that time the yeast will slowly precipitate to the bottom, leaving a clear, or in your case, a slight hazy beer behind.

IOW Once she's done with fermenting (no more bubbling), let her condition for 2 days before taking a sample:

* There are methods to remove a beer sample from a fermenter without opening the lid.

It involves a 2'-2.5' long skinny piece of vinyl tubing, snaked through the airlock hole after temporarily removing the airlock.
You then perform a "suck-siphon" (you can look it up in our forums in association with my handle) into a beaker. Train yourself first with some water in a bucket on how to do that before committing the method to your beer.
Key is, you don't want any beer flowing back into your fermenter, because your mouth has touched it!

 

[Brewer dad]

Yes, this is an extract batch. Good to know that I can try to math it out.



Yes, it is an extract batch. I didn’t realize I could math out the OG. I will look into that more.

The airlock is still bubbling today, popping every 1 minute 15 seconds or so (day 16 since brew day). And I am not sure if the krausen has dropped yet because the fermenter is not translucent. Do you recommend I pop the lid and check to see if the foam is gone?

Thanks for the response!

I believe dry extract is 1.045 and liquid is 1.035. So 9 and 7 points per pound in 5 gal batch respectively.

What did you do for yeast? Single dry yeast packet or something like US05? It’s very likely done, only thing that really might give me hesitation is if you had a significant lag time between when you pitched the yeast and when you had fermentation activity. Like I said you’ll see some bubbles even after it’s done, especially higher gravity beers.

One thing I did when I was getting started was keep my bottles in six pack sleeves inside of a plastic bin while they conditioned. Gave me some peace of mind in case of bottle bombs. You’re definitely smart being conscientious.

 

[mac_1103]

I believe dry extract is 1.045 and liquid is 1.035. So 9 and 7 points per pound in 5 gal batch respectively.

Seems like a rather confusing way of explaining this to a beginner. It varies some, but most DME is ~43-46 PPG (gravity Points per Pound per Gallon); LME is ~34-36 PPG. Math away. Or just use a free recipe builder.

 

[Brewer dad]

Seems like a rather confusing way of explaining this to a beginner. It varies some, but most DME is ~43-46 PPG (gravity Points per Pound per Gallon); LME is ~34-36 PPG. Math away. Or just use a free recipe builder.

That’s how I did it when I was new and it was easy enough. Especially if you’re just trying to backtrack your OG. Sure recipe builders are great but they can also be confusing if you’re not familiar.

Either way @blueeagles003 hope your beer turns out great!

 

[BRbarfanTimmy]

I brew extract recipes exclusively. Depending on the recipe, temp, and yeast the fermentation times vary quite a bit. If there is one thing I've learned from this forum and from my local shop, it's to be patient. Agree that if there is airlock activity things are still happening. Many of the recipes call for 1-2 weeks of fermentation before bottling, so don't listen to them. I wait until all activity is over and then wait some more, maybe a week at least. For sure I've bottled some too soon, and while I haven't had any issues (knock on wood), a few ended up pretty cloudy or with excessive sediment. I just bottled a blond ale that went five weeks just to be safe. Good luck!

 

[Snuffy]

If you haven't already, try the fizz drops. You may lose a little control over the volumes of CO2 because they're just a standard dose, but they work fine as long as you've allowed fermentation to completely finish. One per pint and 2 per 750ml. Lets you skip that whole priming sugar mixing transfer and just bottle straight from the spigot on the bucket. <plink> Fill. Cap. Done. Minimal air exposure.
And they're tasty too!