secondary Fermentation

[thedude00]

I just finished racking my first brew last night. It looks like it is still Fermenting bubbles still in the airlock. Is this normal in a Secondary?

Heres a look

 

[JJL]

Yep. You will likely have bubbles in the airlock for weeks if you want to wait that long to bottle. If you are concerned about fermentation not being finished, take a hydrometer reading in a week or two before you bottle it.

 

[thedude00]

So take a hydrometer if it stays the same its good to bottle? Does everything from the pic look good to you guys. Sorry for so many question.

 

[Pappers_]

Dude, I think its unusual to have krausen like you do in the secondary. The only times I get krausen in the secondary are if I've racking it onto fruit, which gets the yeast going again as they eat their way through the sugar.

I suspect you racked sooner than you might have, but who knows. No harm, the beer will just keep fermenting. Let the krausen fall, check the hydrometer, etc. As a guideline, I'd wait a minimum of 3 weeks from your brew day before thinking about bottling.

It will be fine!

 

[halite]

Everything looks fine, the only thing is that it appears to have quite a lot of fermentation going on (based on the frothy head). I would tend to see little or no fermentation when I move to secondary.

How long did you leave it in primary, and did you take a hydrometer reading before moving to secondary?

 

[PuNk]

This quote is from this thread.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/vs-pro-con-analysis-109318/

Clearing: Racking to Secondary Vs. Long Primary
To Secondary:
Pros:

* Results in really clear beer
* If all you have available is a bucket and a 5 gallon carboy, racking the beer to secondary can free up a fermenter for a new batch. Can you say “pipeline?”
* Sounds really cool when you're explaining it to your non homebrewer friends. “Yeah man, today I racked 5 gallons of Russian Imperial Stout to secondary. I'm hoping it turns out nicely.” They might not have any idea what you're talking about, but it does sound cool
* Reduces the risk of autolysis if you're planning on bulk aging for a very long time
* If you're going to add fruit to your beer, now is the time


Cons:

* Anytime you rack your beer, you risk oxidation, no matter how careful you are. If you're very careful, you can minimize the risk, but it's still >0
* Anytime you rack your beer, you risk infection. You can minimize this as well by carefully sanitizing all your siphon gear and your secondary vessel, but it's still >0
* It requires another vessel. You have to purchase one, which costs money. You have to clean it, which costs time. And you have to sanitize it, which costs sanitizer and time.


Or Not to Secondary:
Pros:

* Only requires 1 fermentation vessel. Fewer fermenters means less cleaning
* Has pretty much the same effect as using a secondary if you're patient enough to wait a month or so
* Much less effort required. Just leave it alone for a long time
* Many styles of beer are meant to be a bit cloudy
* With something dark like a stout, who cares if it's clear? It's not like you can tell
* No additional risk of oxidation or infection


Cons:

* You can't add fruit. Well, you can, but you want to wait at least a week or so before you do. I probably wouldn't
* Too long of a primary can result in autolysis. This isn't even really a concern unless we're talking >6 months in primary

 

[thedude00]

Everything looks fine, the only thing is that it appears to have quite a lot of fermentation going on (based on the frothy head). I would tend to see little or no fermentation when I move to secondary.

How long did you leave it in primary, and did you take a hydrometer reading before moving to secondary?

It was in primary for 7 days the bubbles where at one bubble every min or so. So i thought it was done.

Me taking it out of primary to soon will that mess up my beer

 

[JJL]

Don't panic. You didn't mess up your beer. It's not that unusual to still have "foam" on top of the beer. It could mean that you racked before the fermentation was complete, but 7 days on an ale, especially with honey is should be plenty. The only other variables are temp in your brew room and SG. Cold temps, like around 60F, can slow fermentation. SG's above 1.060 can take longer to finish. Either way, leave it in the secondary for a couple of weeks and take a hydro reading. If your hydro reading is within the acceptable FG range for the beer, go ahead and prime and bottle. When in doubt, use your hydrometer. At this point, you just want to avoid making bottle bombs.

 

[thedude00]

Don't panic. You didn't mess up your beer. It's not that unusual to still have "foam" on top of the beer. It could mean that you racked before the fermentation was complete, but 7 days on an ale, especially with honey is should be plenty. The only other variables are temp in your brew room and SG. Cold temps, like around 60F, can slow fermentation. SG's above 1.060 can take longer to finish. Either way, leave it in the secondary for a couple of weeks and take a hydro reading. If your hydro reading is within the acceptable FG range for the beer, go ahead and prime and bottle. When in doubt, use your hydrometer. At this point, you just want to avoid making bottle bombs.

Thanks for the great info . I feel a lot better about about my beer not being messed up. I need to start using my hydrometer more. When i brewed i didnt not have me hydrometer test tube so i didnt test. I will make it a point to test more offen. Thanks again

 

[halite]

I will make it a point to test more offen. Thanks again

That is the real key, you could have a leak in your feremter seal that means that the CO2 is escaping elsewhere and so really you should rely on your hydrometer all of the time and only use airlock activity as an indication.

 

[Pappers_]

Don't panic. You didn't mess up your beer. It's not that unusual to still have "foam" on top of the beer. It could mean that you racked before the fermentation was complete, but 7 days on an ale, especially with honey is should be plenty. The only other variables are temp in your brew room and SG. Cold temps, like around 60F, can slow fermentation. SG's above 1.060 can take longer to finish. Either way, leave it in the secondary for a couple of weeks and take a hydro reading. If your hydro reading is within the acceptable FG range for the beer, go ahead and prime and bottle. When in doubt, use your hydrometer. At this point, you just want to avoid making bottle bombs.

I disagree on three points:

1. It is unusual to have krauen in the secondary. Generally, you want to wait to rack to secondary until after primary fermentation is complete - i.e. no more krausen.
2. 7 days for an ale is about the earliest primary fermentation might be completed
3. Do no bottle when the hdyrometer reading is within your FG range - bottle when fermentation is absolutely, completely done - and even then, letting it sit in the secondary for a few weeks will only make your beer better