New here, could use some advice

[lefty23]

Hi everyone, I have been home brewing for about 4 years now (extract mostly) and I have been extremely lucky in that every batch I've brewed has gone extremely well. So about 2 years ago I got heavy into drinking ciders/meads/cysers and decided to make some.

I got 4 gals of fresh cider from an orchard at a farmer's market and 6lbs of honey from a bee farmer. Dissolved the honey in warm water, mixed it all up in a sanitized carboy, added a little nutrient, and pitched a pack of safale 05. It looked great a few hours later and I was very excited.

Last night was 24hrs in and the blow-off valve wasn't audibly gurgling (I stopped using airlocks because they always clog and blow on me) but there was a real nice thick layer of foaming krausen on top. This morning, nothing. It looks like it's done, but that's impossible. I wanted a cool, slow fermentation so I left the door cracked last night and it got pretty cold - did I maybe cold crash it on accident?

Any advice at all would be greatly appreciated.

 

[GrizzlyGremlin]

Could be crashed could be stuck. Switching up the temps can jump start it back up warm it up to mid 70s then back to high sixties if not use a yeast additive. What was the exact yeast?

 

[tyzippers]

You could try warming it up a bit and try gently swirling the carboy to get some yeast back into suspension. How cold was it outside overnight? I doubt you killed the yeast, but if the warming and swirl method doesn't work, you could always pitch another package of yeast. Another thought just occurred. Have you taken a gravity sample just to see where you're at? You're probably right about it not being done, but I always like to cover all the bases no matter how ridiculous it may sound. Hope this helps!

 

[lefty23]

Those were my exact instincts, it's nice to hear you guys thought the same thing. I just got back from rocking the carboy a bit and the blow-off valve started gurgling, which is a good sign. I'm gonna close the door and turn the heat up a bit ( I live in Chicago so it was under 30 last night and only 40 now). Hopefully I won't have to repitch, but if that's the worst case it's not bad. I truly appreciate your help.