New brewer ?

[powersmo]

Hi all. New to the forums and attempted my first brew a week ago this past Tuesday. I got a kit for a gift with all the stuff you would mostly need to brew a first time LME ale. Read all the instructions (a first for me I might add) and did my best to follow them. Had a slight boil over but only lost a few ounces since I was expecting it and got it off the heat ASAP. Went thru everything and got the wort cooled down and in the fermenter (bucket not carboy) and the yeast pitched at recommended temps range. However, I have yet to see any real activity. There has been the occasional burble in the airlock but not anything that I would have expected. I pulled the airlock out of the top and peered into the bucket and saw what I took to be a krousen ring around the bucket but not a large or thick one. I was thinking that I would let it stay in the bucket for the full two weeks as recommend and then go ahead and bottle it and see what happens after that.

What do you experienced folks think about this and what do you recommend? Also, perhaps a dumb question but I did not leave the cap on the airlock at the beginning and about day two or three of the fermenting process I put it on because I didn't see and activity. Could this have contributed to the lack of activity? Does the cap being on or off really even matter? Thanks for any input you provide.

 

[BrewerinBR]

Welcome to HBT, and congrats on your first brew.
1. Air lock activity is not a sign of fermentation, the krousen ring is.

2. Best way to measure fermentation is with a hydrometer and measuring the gravity when it goes into the bucket and after fermentation to know that the yeast have completed their mission.

3. 14 days should be good, depends on style, yeast and temperature.
(i prefer 21 days)

4. The cap should be on your air lock.

 

[Jimbodaman]

So I assume it's a 5 gallon batch and you pitched a whole thing of dry yeast and aerated well. With those assumptions you will be fine I'd put the lid back on and wait 2 weeks yeast like to be left alone.

Bubbling airlocks, especially with a bucket are not a good indicator of fermentation, you may not have a great seal and CO2 is escaping around the airlock. I sometimes have very dull fermentation's ie very little airlock activity and a weak krausen, the beer has always turned out fine.

If you must know how it's doing take a gravity reading although i HATE messing with my beer, so much more potential for infection, oxidation. Patience is often the most difficult aspect for new brewers. Good luck and Brew on!

 

[kh54s10]

It sounds like all is well. Let it go for a minimum of 10 days. I only go as short as 2 weeks if I am in need of more beer. I usually go 21 days, that way I am pretty well assured it has finished.

The lack of activity in the airlock could be, that you missed the highest amount, there is co2 leaking around the top on the bucket, or just a slow,steady ferment.

Not having the top on the airlock should not be a concern. Mostly for keeping insects out.

The amount of krausen produced can vary greatly from recipe to recipe and also from yeast type to yeast type.

 

[GHBWNY]

Ditto all the above, plus

1. Did you aerate the wort well (work up a good froth) before pitching the yeast?
2. Is the seal tight around your lid/airlock?
3. Do you keep inspecting it by removing the lid/airlock?

The cap on the airlock is vented, so it's there primarily to keep larger debris out. On or off shouldn't make a difference in what's going on inside.

As some have intimated, airlock activity is not a gauge for level of fermentation activity. A hydrometer is a must for determining whether or not your beer is finished fermenting. If it's not and you bottle it, you are setting yourself up for bottle bombs. I let ferm ride a minimum of 3 weeks, take an FG reading, then take another a couple days later. If they are the same, ferm is done and it can be safely bottled. If in the event FG #2 is different (lower) than FG #1, let it go until you get two #s that are the same.

 

[Homercidal]

Bucket make good fermentors, especially because they are cheap, are easily cleaned, and easy to carry. Possibly the biggest downside for new brewers is that they tend to leak. Like, all of them! It's disconcerting when you expect the airlock to bubble and it doesn't.

Don't fret. If you are extremely curious (and I was for many batches) then just pop the lid a little bit and peek. If you brewed a kit and pitched yeast then it's almost certainly going to town right now.

Best bet is to set your mind at ease by taking a quick look, then leave it alone for about 2 weeks. You really should use a hydrometer at some point to verify the sugars have gotten eaten and the gravity is where you expect it. This will prevent bottle bombs after bottling.

Also note that fermenting warmer than 70 might make a batch ferment vigorously and end in a couple of days. Fermenting cooler, like 62-65 might make the yeast go slower. Hence the recommendation to check in two weeks. There a few variables to this, but 2 weeks should be good for any normal beer. Big, strong beers might take a while longer.

Oh, and don't worry about the cap. It's just there to keep bugs out and keep the inside part from popping out.. You should probably have it on if you have it, but otherwise it's probably fine if the airlock is still all together. (And it should be since there wasn't any bubbling to push it out!)

RDWHAHB!

 

[kcoect]

I'm just going to mention this because nobody else has, whatever you do, once you take a sample of your beer to measure with a Hydrometer, either drink the sample or dump it, do NOT pour it back into your bucket and contaminate your precious beer