Toad spit stout stuck!

[jameskilljoy]

I just finished brewing a batch of some toad spit stout and put it in the fermentor on satuday night. On sunday morning the airlock was bubbling faster than any beer I've ever made (almost non-stop). However, by monday morning- no activity at all. Is it that it? Should I rouse it? add more yeast? Just have never seen this before. Any Ideas? Thanks a bunch!

 

[Revvy]

Stopped airlock bubbling doesn't mean a stuck fermentation. It means that there is simply not enough co2 to need to be vented by the airlock. The airlock is a VENT not a fermentation gauge.

Get out of the habit of thinking the airlock is anything other than a vent to release excess co2 and you will be much happier. Your beer/cider/wine/mead will ferment whether or not the airlock bubbles.

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.

So get out of the habit of thinking that an airlock bubble it telling you anything.

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" without taking a hydrometer reading is tantamount to the doctor deciding to cut you open without running any diagnostic tests.

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..

And just because the biggest "push" of fermentation is over where the yeast aren't throwing off a ton of co2 and blipping the airlock, doesn't meant that fermentation isn't still chugging away, just slowly.

So again I ask you, How do you know it's stuck?