What Next?

[wheela426]

Ok,

My beer has stopped fermenting in the primary fermentation bucket. Now, I understand that the point of the 2ndary fermentor is for making the beer more smooth and clearing out some of the sediments. What I don't understand is why people keep it in the 2ndary for 2 weeks? If it's done fermenting what is the advantage of keeping in the 2ndary for 2 weeks?

Also, what happens to the yeast if they have no more sugar to eat? (Sorry for basic questions.)


Thanks,

-Tom

 

[ayrton]

The secondary is used, as you said, for clearing (and aging). The clearing process can take a lot of time, as suspended yeast and other particles don't always come out of solution in the first couple days.

When the yeast run out of sugar, they go dormant and build up on the bottom of your carboy. This sludge can be re-used in future batches, as the yeast cells "wake up" and start reproducing once more sugar is introduced.

 

[mbreen01]

The reason to rack to secondary is that it allows you to take off a considerable amount of trub (sediment) and reduce the risk of off flavors imparted by spent yeast and hop/grain sediment. In this "decanting" step you can greatly clarify your finished product. While some beers completely ferment in a week, many others take much longer to finish. So by racking to secondary in 5-7 days (or when fermentation markedly slows) you take off the trub while still allowing your beer to completely ferment out without worrying about off flavors. General recommendations that I've read are to keep the beer in secondary until the SG is the same over 3 or so days.

Marc.