No airlock bubbles

[Nash]

Hi. This is my second batch of kit cider. I made it 3 days ago but see no bubbles in the airlock yet. I just did a gravity reading. It is the same as my SG. Evidently the yeast did not work. When I sprinkled another yeast package just now, it got really foamy and rose. I stirred it and put the lid back on. Temp is 66F. Any advice please. Thank you.

 

[lumpher]

Did it foam up as soon as you added the new yeast, or did it take a few hours? Sounds like it was almost immediate.

 

[Nash]

Did it foam up as soon as you added the new yeast, or did it take a few hours? Sounds like it was almost immediate.

It was immediately.

 

[fluketamer]

excellent point on the immediate bubbles. the second yeast probably acted as nucleation points to bring the co2 out of solution which means that the original yeast was likely working and either just begun to ferment and thats why no bubbles in airlock or you have a leak and thats most likely.

i have used hundreds of packs of dry yeast and NEVER had a failure .... just jinxed myself .

 

[lumpher]

Yep, I was thinking something to do with surface tension. I've almost exclusively used dry yeast, and never had a failure either.

 

[homebeerbrewer]

First, it's only been three days since your first pitch, it's a good possibility that it started fermenting, but it hasn't started off gassing yet. Sometimes yeast does take a while to show signs of fermentation.

Second, don't rely on the airlock to show signs of fermentation. Buckets don't always seal fully, allowing the CO2 to take the easier route than the airlock.

 

[fluketamer]

Yep, I was thinking something to do with surface tension. I've almost exclusively used dry yeast, and never had a failure either.

hey lumpher,

i see by your join date that we have both been brewing for a long time, i use a lot of dry yeast. i wonder how often dry yeast fails. now that i think of it. i have never proofed bakers yeast and had it fail either. i bet this is not a real thing and most failures are air lock leaks and or impatient brewers. i was going to do a poll and ask how many have had dry yeast failures but after thinking about it its not worth risking offending the yeast gods.

 

[lumpher]

hey lumpher,

i see by your join date that we have both been brewing for a long time, i use a lot of dry yeast. i wonder how often dry yeast fails. now that i think of it. i have never proofed bakers yeast and had it fail either. i bet this is not a real thing and most failures are air lock leaks and or impatient brewers. i was going to do a poll and ask how many have had dry yeast failures but after thinking about it its not worth risking offending the yeast gods.

Yep, probably best to not provoke the yeast gods and start an all-out strike from above. I've had dry yeast shipped to Texas in mid-Summer many times with no issues.

 

[Nash]

excellent point on the immediate bubbles. the second yeast probably acted as nucleation points to bring the co2 out of solution which means that the original yeast was likely working and either just begun to ferment and thats why no bubbles in airlock or you have a leak and thats most likely.

i have used hundreds of packs of dry yeast and NEVER had a failure .... just jinxed myself .

Thanks. My first batch showed bubbles at 2-2.5 days and fermented out at 6 days. Been 3.5 days on this batch. Being new I guess I worry too much. First batch was not aggressive at all. A couple bubbles every 6 seconds. Thanks.

 

[Nash]

Update. It's been 3 days since adding another pack of yeast. Still no air lock bubbles. Just did a gravity reading. No change. Still 1.052 as on the first day I started it. It has been a week. I don't understand why it's not fermenting.

 

[fluketamer]

there’s something in the must killing your yeast the chances of two packs of dry yeaat not working is really really low. what kit is it did the kit come with a yeast stabilizer like potassium metabisulfite and did you add that to the must if so you’re not supposed to add that till bottling or legging. to stabilize the yeast and stop fermentation it’s possible you added a stabilizer by accident

 

[Nash]

there’s something in the must killing your yeast the chances of two packs of dry yeaat not working is really really low. what kit is it did the kit come with a yeast stabilizer like potassium metabisulfite and did you add that to the must if so you’re not supposed to add that till bottling or legging. to stabilize the yeast and stop fermentation it’s possible you added a stabilizer by accident

This is an ABC crafted series kit. Comes with a sweetener pack and flavoring pack to use when you bottle. Only thing in fermentation bucket is sugar, the concentrated juice and water. Temp is 66-68. I ordered some yeast nutrient for future batches.

 

[fluketamer]

This is an ABC crafted series kit. Comes with a sweetener pack and flavoring pack to use when you bottle. Only thing in fermentation bucket is sugar, the concentrated juice and water. Temp is 66-68. I ordered some yeast nutrient for future batches.

i tried one of those kits . the yeast actually says cider yeast with nutrient. i have no idea why two of your yeast packs failed. that seems highly unlikey to me. i thikn its somehting other than the yeast.


and iirc those kits dont come with stabilizer

what did you use for sanitizer? maybe you didnt rinse it out. idk

 

[Nash]

i tried one of those kits . the yeast actually says cider yeast with nutrient. i have no idea why two of your yeast packs failed. that seems highly unlikey to me. i thikn its somehting other than the yeast.


and iirc those kits dont come with stabilizer

what did you use for sanitizer? maybe you didnt rinse it out. idk

I used one step to clean everything. I am going to order star San too. Did everything the same way as my first batch.

 

[Nash]

I ended up dumping this batch today as I could still not get any fermentation. Making a new batch tomorrow. Hopefully the same issue will not happen. Thanks for the replies.