Seeking advice on stuck(?) fermentation

[StophJS]

I'm hoping to get some advice on what to do with my current crew, which I believe might be a stuck fermentation. The brew is the Midwest Ferocious IPA kit :

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/media/downloads/35/Ferocious IPA Instructions.pdf).

I brewed this Wednesday night, and pitched the yeast around 10 PM. The yeast was Safale S-04. In the past I have pitched the yeast dry and sort of mixed it in with my spoon, but this resulted in clumping, so this time I just sprinkled it over the whole wort surface and left it. At the time there was a lot of foam from aeration, so the yeast was sort of sitting on top of that. I popped the lid a half hour later and the yeast was all sitting nicely on top of the wort. Airlock activity began around 4 pm on Thanksgiving. I thought an 18 hour lag time was very unusual for this yeast. By 8 PM on Thursday, I had bubbles every 2 seconds or so. By 10 pm Friday night, the airlock was still pushed up against the lid, but there was no more bubbling whatsoever. Fermentation temperature was in the ball park of 70 the whole time. Am I dealing with a stuck fermentation here? I find it very hard to believe that the yeast would tear through 9.3 lb of LME in just 30 hours or so. I guess at this point, I'm wondering when would be a good time to take a reading to see where I'm at, and potentially pitch some more yeast or something along those lines. Thanks.

 

[Jdaught]

Only way to know is to start taking readings to see if they are fermenting and your just missing it from a bad seal or something. The gravity won't lie. So check it and then again the next day and go from there.

 

[Calder]

You know you got activity. It could be done, or you could have a seal leak.

You can take a sample now if you really want to, but I would recommend leaving it a few days to let it clear a little. Maybe take a reading at the 1-week mark.

Whatever the result, the wort/beer should be OK; it's got alcohol in it and a cover of CO2 to protect it.

 

[Revvy]

Since I don't see a gravity reading, I see nothing to believe your fermentation is stuck...All I see is discussion of an airlock stopping bubbling...

Which only means you're airlock isn't bubbling...it doesn't mean you have a stuck fermentation.

Your HYDROMETER is the only BEST indicator of fermentation activity. Nothing else is accurate or consistent...

Unless you take a gravity reading you don't know what's really going on, not by airlock bubbling or by krausen formation. Neither of those signs are effective, they don't tell you exactly where on the fermentation process you are.

The amount of krausen can vary for whatever reason, it can come quick and depart quickly or it can linger long after fermentation is complete, and it all be normal.

And airlocks sometimes bubble or they don't.

If your airlock was bubbling and stopped---It doesn't mean fermentation has stopped.

If you airlock isn't bubbling, it doesn't mean your fermentation hasn't started....

If your airlock starts bubbling, it really doesn't matter.

If your airlock NEVER bubbles, it doesn't mean anything is wrong or right.

Your airlock is not a fermentation gauge, it is a VALVE to release excess co2. And the peak of fermentation has already wound down, so there's simply no need to vent off any excess co2.

Fermentation is not always "dynamic," just because you don't SEE anything happening, doesn't mean that any-thing's wrong,, and also doesn't mean that the yeast are still not working diligently away, doing what they've been doing for over 4,000 years.

That's why you need to take a gravity reading to know how your fermentation is going, NOT go by airlocks, or size of krausen, or a calendar, the horoscope or the phases of the moon (those things in my mind are equally accurate).

The most important tool you can use is a hydrometer. It's the only way you will truly know when your beer is ready...airlock bubbles and other things are faulty.

The only way to truly know what is going on in your fermenter is with your hydrometer. Like I said here in my blog, which I encourage you to read, Think evaluation before action you sure as HELL wouldn't want a doctor to start cutting on you unless he used the proper diagnostic instuments like x-rays first, right? You wouldn't want him to just take a look in your eyes briefly and say "I'm cutting into your chest first thing in the morning." You would want them to use the right diagnostic tools before the slice and dice, right? You'd cry malpractice, I would hope, if they didn't say they were sending you for an MRI and other things before going in....

Thinking about "doing anything" like repitching, or bottling, or racking, without first taking a hydrometer reading is tantamount to the doctor deciding to cut you open without running any diagnostic tests....Taking one look at you and saying, "Yeah I'm going in." You would really want the doctor to use all means to properly diagnose what's going on?

Sorry but that really is the only answer that is accurate or consistant, the numbers on the little stick. I have had evrey airlock bubbling/non bubbling/slow bubbling/fast bubbling/little krausen/big krausen/slow forming krausen/krausen staying 3 weeks after the hydro showed terminal gravity scenario imaginable in nearly 1,000 gallons of beer, and none of that stuff is as sccurate as 30 seconds with a hydrometer.

 

[StophJS]

Thanks guys, and thanks Revvy for the detailed response. I definitely wasn't going to do anything before actually taking a reading reading. What I wasn't sure about was whether there was a point when it was really too early or dangerous to pop the lid, or whether or not there comes a point when it's too late to repitch. I figure I'll take a reading tomorrow afternoon and see where I'm at.

 

[Calder]

You know you got activity. That means there is both a CO2 blanket and alcohol protecting the wort.

Everything points to it being OK. If it is 'stuck' (and I suspect it is not), waiting a few days will not matter as the beer/wort is well protected.

 

[StophJS]

Just took my gravity reading at 4 days in. Down to just over 1.02 and plenty of yeast floating so there definitely doesn't seem to be any real problem. Already tastes delicious I might add Might fast track this one to the bottle. One little area of my lid rim did seem to be raised from the bucket rim, so all signs point to a bad seal. I'm racking this one to secondary on Wednesday or Saturday for dry hopping anyway so shouldn't be an issue for this brew.

 

[Calder]

Just took my gravity reading at 4 days in. Down to just over 1.02 and plenty of yeast floating so there definitely doesn't seem to be any real problem. Might fast track this one to the bottle. One little area of my lid rim did seem to be raised from the bucket rim, so all signs point to a bad seal. I'm racking this one to secondary on Wednesday or Saturday for dry hopping anyway so shouldn't be an issue for this brew.

Glad to hear beer is doing fine.

After brewing over a couple of hundred brews, I am an advocate of leaving the beer on the yeast for at least a week after it appears to have finished. I think the yeast are still working to improve the beer (remove fusels, and other unwanted esters). Leave it an extra week before moving to secondary. OR, if you are not harvesting the yeast, you could just add the dry-hops to the primary and bottle in a couple of weeks time straight from primary.

 

[StophJS]

Glad to hear beer is doing fine.

After brewing over a couple of hundred brews, I am an advocate of leaving the beer on the yeast for at least a week after it appears to have finished. I think the yeast are still working to improve the beer (remove fusels, and other unwanted esters). Leave it an extra week before moving to secondary. OR, if you are not harvesting the yeast, you could just add the dry-hops to the primary and bottle in a couple of weeks time straight from primary.

Thank you. Judging from what little bit of experience I have and the reading I've done, I think leaving the beer on the yeast for a while is a good idea too. Maybe it's just coincidence, but the one time I've racked to secondary (day 7) out of the several batches I've done is the only time I thought there was some weird stuff going on with the alcohol profile and the brew in general. Don't plan on harvesting the yeast, so maybe I will just end up tossing those hops in primary in a few days.. I was only leaning toward racking because of the dry hopping. Never dry hopped before but I know people still generally rack for it.