silly question about fermenting

[IreRye]

am i doing it wrong if after i cooled the wort i started fermenting process in the bucket? should i have done it in the carboy?

my intent was to transfer to carboy to 2nd stage.

am i doing this wrong? or is this ok?

 

[mojo_wire]

That's fine. Lots of people do it that way. secondary should always be done in the carboy if you have a bucket/carboy setup.

 

[IreRye]

phew!!
thanks. first time brewing. i keep reading different ways and thought i was doing it wrong.

 

[homebrewdad]

Bucket, better bottle, carboy... doesn't matter at all. Way more important is sanitation, temperature control, pitching enough yeast, etc.

 

[michael_mus]

phew!!
thanks. first time brewing. i keep reading different ways and thought i was doing it wrong.

My first try too so I've been writing it up (easiest to learn by learning to teach for me).

Take a look!

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/my-first-brew-kitchen-notes-385680/

 

[JeepDiver]

That's fine. Lots of people do it that way. secondary should always be done in the carboy if you have a bucket/carboy setup.

Though for 90% of the beers, there is no need to do a secondary

 

[IreRye]

Though for 90% of the beers, there is no need to do a secondary

i'm doing a india black ale.
it recommended a secondary

 

[JeepDiver]

i'm doing a india black ale.
it recommended a secondary

Most commercial recipies recommend a secondary, very few actually need it.

 

[briank]

Most commercial recipies recommend a secondary, very few actually need it.

What if you need to be flexible about timing to bottling? I thought it was a bad idea to keep beer in the primary for too long. Maybe that doesn't make it an absolute need but for those of us with tight schedules it pretty much is a need?

 

[JeepDiver]

What if you need to be flexible about timing to bottling? I thought it was a bad idea to keep beer in the primary for too long. Maybe that doesn't make it an absolute need but for those of us with tight schedules it pretty much is a need?

how much time? 4 weeks in primary is no issue, many do 8 weeks. My ciders stay on the primary for 3-4 months usually, with no issue.

 

[mikeh80]

It was mentioned yesterday that autolysis is rarely a concern for homebrewers due to the fact that we deal with such small volumes. Keep in mind as well that a lot of kit instructions are written up by companies which also sell carboys...

 

[D0ug]

I've left beers in the primary for 2 months with no ill effects, I believe some have gone longer. It will be fine as long as your temps are stable and don't go much over 70*F after the initial active fermentation period.

I think the big concern was yeast autolysis, but that was more of a concern back in the 80's when the yeast viability was not as good. The yeasts available now are healthier, and people have more knowledge about best practices, so you really can't tell the difference between a long primary, and a primary with secondary.

Look around on HBT for threads titled primary vs. secondary. It seems like any difference between the methods in end product are debatable.
Because the difference between the two methods are so hotly debated, it seems to me they don't produce a significant or pronounced impact on the final result. If they did, it wouldn't really be up for debate, most people would be like "Hells ya! It's night and day!" IMO

I have experienced autolysis, but that was from letting my fermentors get too hot, and not from the time in the primary.

Lng story short, I think it will be fine.

 

[sabo38]

I secondary so I can open my primary for a another batch.

 

[briank]

Wow, interesting stuff. I got my concern of leaving it in the primary from reading the complete joy of homebrewing 3rd edition. Guess it lacks some of the latest info (or maybe I haven't read far enough where Charlie discusses the finer points of yeast breakdown).

 

[mikeh80]

Wow, interesting stuff. I got my concern of leaving it in the primary from reading the complete joy of homebrewing 3rd edition. Guess it lacks some of the latest info (or maybe I haven't read far enough where Charlie discusses the finer points of yeast breakdown).

The consensus seems to be that it's more of a concern for commercial brewers due to the weight of that much wort on the yeast. Since 5 gallons only tends to weigh about 35 lbs or so, it's less of a concern for us unless it's left on the cake for crazy amounts of time.

 

[BigFloyd]

I secondary so I can open my primary for a another batch.

Certainly a valid reason. I may be doing that soon to accelerate the pipeline now that I'm getting the keezer build going and need to stock it.