Too much co2

[Brittney M]

so I did a kit chocolate stout on 1/19 at one point racked of yeast and added nibs. Check it out about a week ago (brand new to brewing) and I thought it had gone bad. Smelled pretty funky... a friend finally check it out yesterday and informed me there is A LOT of co2 in it. This conclusion from the extreme burning senstation when you smell it and told me it was not infected as I thought. 1) how does one get too much co2 2) how do I remedy this situation?

Thank you!

 

[Jtvann]

Are you fermenting still or carbonation. By your question, I'm going to assume you don't have advanced gear for spunding.

If you're still fermenting, you do not have too much CO2.

 

[Tobor_8thMan]

If Co2, at this point, seems excessive. What are you fermenting in?

 

[Brittney M]

Fermenting in primary bucket, not carboy. Racked off yeast on 1/29. Not touching it for kegging or bottling until I learn what’s up

 

[Tobor_8thMan]

Wow, 1/29 is quick for self carbonating. After a few weeks in the secondary, yes, carbonation is present.

However, began on 1/19 and racked off on 1/29. This, IMO, is too quick, I give at least 3 weeks primary fermentation, unless I'm rushed, for the yeast to do their job.

 

[BrewInspector]

Nothing's up other than yeast doing what they are supposed to do, eat sugar, produce alcohol and co2.

Stick your head in any bucket of brew and you will get a nose full of co2. CO2 is heavier than air and settles in covering the beer protecting it.

Nothing is wrong or needs to be addressed. Bottle when you get two hydrometer readings the same over a few days. Assuming you don't have a hydrometer, let it go for at least a couple weeks to be sure it is done fermenting before bottling. Which you already have. Transfer to secondary may have been a little premature and may have slowed the process but nothing bad has happened.

 

[Brittney M]

Wow, 1/29 is quick for self carbonating. After a few weeks in the secondary, yes, carbonation is present.

However, began on 1/19 and racked off on 1/29. This, IMO, is too quick, I give at least 3 weeks primary fermentation, unless I'm rushed, for the yeast to do their job.

Honestly it was an extract kit that came with my first brew equip kit ‍ I was just following the directions as they were since I didn’t know any better. At the end of that time though, my fg was at what the directions said, however I guess that doesn’t not actually mean my own batch was done fermenting

 

[Brittney M]

Nothing's up other than yeast doing what they are supposed to do, eat sugar, produce alcohol and co2.

Stick your head in any bucket of brew and you will get a nose full of co2. CO2 is heavier than air and settles in covering the beer protecting it.

Nothing is wrong or needs to be addressed. Bottle when you get two hydrometer readings the same over a few days. Assuming you don't have a hydrometer, let it go for at least a couple weeks to be sure it is done fermenting before bottling. Which you already have. Transfer to secondary may have been a little premature and may have slowed the process but nothing bad has happened.

Do I just bottle it as is or let it keep sitting? Will the co2 disepate or it is what it is?

 

[deadwolfbones]

Wow, 1/29 is quick for self carbonating. After a few weeks in the secondary, yes, carbonation is present.

However, began on 1/19 and racked off on 1/29. This, IMO, is too quick, I give at least 3 weeks primary fermentation, unless I'm rushed, for the yeast to do their job.

Some (most?) beers definitely don't need three weeks in primary. They really only need to stay in until they reach a stable FG.

 

[STMF]

Stick your head in any bucket of brew and you will get a nose full of co2. CO2 is heavier than air and settles in covering the beer protecting it.

That is a myth. That is not how it works, gases mix.

 

[Jag75]

Do I just bottle it as is or let it keep sitting? Will the co2 disepate or it is what it is?

If your FG has been stable for a few days then it's done fermenting. I usually leave my beer in the fermenter for approx 3 weeks. I've racked my beer at 10 days then 10 days later had more fall out of yeast and trub. Just depends on your schedule. I try and be as patient as I can .

 

[BrewInspector]

That is a myth. That is not how it works, gases mix.

Perhaps but not entirely. Mixing is not instant upon opening a bucket. The CO2 produced by yeast in an enclosed space will displace such a significant portion of all other gases that there is nothing much left to mix with.

No not all other gases are lighter than the CO2 but it is heavier than say O2. Otherwise all that purging and similar applications of CO2 to prevent oxidation outside of a fully enclosed system is a total waste. (Not that I do all of that)

 

[BrewInspector]

You can probably bottle at any time now.
Will the CO2 dissipate? Let's hope not. In fact you are going to add more sugar when you bottle which will be used to create more CO2 in the bottle that will be absorbed by the beer. That is exactly what you want to happen. Carbonation.

You are seeing a problem where there is none.

 

[Brittney M]

You can probably bottle at any time now.
Will the CO2 dissipate? Let's hope not. In fact you are going to add more sugar when you bottle which will be used to create more CO2 in the bottle that will be absorbed by the beer. That is exactly what you want to happen. Carbonation.

You are seeing a problem where there is none.

Oops, I guess I didn’t necessarily mean that. Does the burning when you smell it ever change? Or is that something that happens with every brew and is still there when you open a bottle?

 

[BrewInspector]

CO2 does give a burning sensation when inhaled in concentration. The concentration volume will not be the same coming from an individual bottle or glass as it is from 5 gallons in a bucket where it was fermenting.

Unless there are peppery adjuncts you should smell primarily the grains, hops and maybe yeast. You know... Beer. Nothing that really "burns".

 

[isomerization]

OP, anyone that has ever opened a chest freezer ferm chamber and inhaled deeply (during active primary) has probably had something similar.

Have you tasted the sample? Have you take gravity readings over multiple days? These are probably more important indicators to consider.

 

[doug293cz]

Perhaps but not entirely. Mixing is not instant upon opening a bucket. The CO2 produced by yeast in an enclosed space will displace such a significant portion of all other gases that there is nothing much left to mix with.

No not all other gases are lighter than the CO2 but it is heavier than say O2. Otherwise all that purging and similar applications of CO2 to prevent oxidation outside of a fully enclosed system is a total waste. (Not that I do all of that)

Unless CO2 is actively being produced, a CO2 blanket will dissipate in about 15 minutes in completely still air. Watch the video below, Br2 is 3.6 times heavier than CO2, and it completely mixes with the air in about 30 minutes. CO2 is about the same weight as the NO2 shown later in the video, and it mixes much faster than the Br2. If you have any convection going on, the lifetime of the blanket will be measured in seconds.

GCSE Science Revision - Diffusion of Gases - YouTube

Yes, the CO2 produced by fermentation will displace essentially all other gases from an airlocked vessel that doesn't have significant leaks.

Brew on

 

[BrewInspector]

Not disagreeing with you..
I am assuming that the beer is as stated in a bucket and opened for inspection and they took a good whiff from the just opened bucket. They would be inhaling a higher proportion of CO2 than normal air which is what they were asking about.

There are a lot of assumptions in what actually happened. Did they stand around and fan the bucket first? Is there a fan in the room? Had it been sitting open for hours? Did they stick their head in the bucket? Sniff from feet away? Was the lid slowly or rapidly pulled off? Are they smelling the airlock?

I took a simple approach of what I thought was typical with what was explained and asked. You open a bucket, take a reasonably deep smell, nose burns, it's co2. Is this a problem? No.