Need help with bottling 1st brew

[NJNAZZ]

It is almost 2 weeks and I still have bubbling in my airlock, I will take a reading tomorrow my question is do I wait till there is no bubbling at all to bottle or bottle when I reach what my FG should be.. even if there is still some activity in airlock.
Brown Ale SG 1.048
FG 1.012
Thank you

 

[FireNightFly]

You will know its done when you have the same hydro reading for 3 days in a row.

 

[Yooper]

The best thing to do is to use the FG readings. Not when you reached the projected FG, but when the FG is stable. What I mean by that is when it's no longer changing over a period of at least three days. If the FG is 1.012 today, and it's still 1.012 on Sunday, it's safe to bottle it.

That said, it may make a better beer if you let it sit a total of 2-3 weeks total before bottling even if the FG is stable. After fermentation is over, the yeast will still be looking for food, and they will digest their own waste products which in effect "cleans up" some of the effects of fermentation. It also allows more time for stuff to drop out of the beer, so that the beer is clearer. If you bottle early, the stuff will still drop out, but it'll drop out in the bottom of your bottles.

A good time to bottle is when the FG has been stable, and the beer is fairly clear without floaties.

 

[janzik]

It is almost 2 weeks and I still have bubbling in my airlock, I will take a reading tomorrow my question is do I wait till there is no bubbling at all to bottle or bottle when I reach what my FG should be.. even if there is still some activity in airlock.
Brown Ale SG 1.048
FG 1.012
Thank you

You may have just unintentionally started a riot (the airlock is a touchy subject for some folks). anywho...

It being in the carboy for 2 weeks is fine. I generally don't even take a reading until 10-14 days after I pitched my yeast, sometimes longer if I'm lazy. If it's not where I think it should be, I'll probably leave it for a few days and take another reading, but lately all my batches have been solid finishers.

Normally I go 10-14 days in the primary, 14 days+ in the secondary (based on my laziness), so I wouldn't worry much about it being in there for a while. In fact, for the first time since my extract days, I just brewed a batch a few weeks ago that I am purposely leaving in the primary for (at least) 3 weeks and then bottling. So, after the krausen dropped, I took a reading (last week) and will take one more before I bottle tomorrow.

What temp did you pitch at and do you have a consistent room temp where the vessel is staying?

How long after you pitched did you see different levels of activity (basic bubbling, full on krausen, etc). If it took (for whatever reason, temperature, yeast viability, etc) a couple days to get going, maybe you've only really been fermenting for 4 or 5 days.

Has the krausen dropped? This is my main indicator to think about doing something next, whether its being lazy and just moving it over to my secondary or taking a reading.

Overall, I think the key is patience plus getting consistent FG readings. Good luck.

 

[NJNAZZ]

I pitched at 70 and it has been at room temp. 68-70 since then. I used a starter and had activity in 4 hrs. and good activity for 4 days before it slowed down. don't know about krausen it is in a brew bucket. Thanks for the responses, I think I will take a reading and leave it in the primary (not doing a secondary) for a third week.
NAZZ