WYeast 3944 - No airlock activity after 48 hours

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
clairecunn83

clairecunn83

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 30, 2014
Messages
129
Reaction score
48
Location
San Antonio
I'm stumped! I brewed AHS's Belgian Double Wit AG recipe this past Sunday, made a very healthy and large starter, pitched into a 70F well aerated wort..................and nothing is happening. No airlock activity, and we're going on about 60 hours since pitching.

I mean, that starter was love-drunk happy! I don't get it.

I did immediately put the fermentation bucket in a non-iced water-bath, so thinking it might have been too cool, I removed it after 24 hours and have been letting it warm up to room temp, which it's been quite warm here in TX this week. Still nothing.

I gave it a stir this morning. I smelled some alcohol coming out of the batch (def could've been psychosomatic wishful thinking), so that was a little uplifting. But no real sign of krausen or bubbling when stirred.

Is it me? Or this yeast strain? It'll be 72 hours this evening...should I RDWHAHB? From what I've read about this yeast, it's super active with a huge krausen. Not for me, yet :confused:
 
How did you oxygenate the wort?, stir plate or intermediate shaking on the starter?.
 
Wow that is a pretty big OG, Justed checked out the recipe. Probably needed a fair amount of 02.
 
I would take a gravity reading if you have not already. Sometimes looks can be deceiving and the yeast may have done at least a little something. If nothing has changed and you are still within the 72 hour frame I would consider re pitching yeast as your last resort. It has happened to all of us at some point.
 
Does your fermenter have a good seal? co2 could be escaping through a loose lid or stopper. Is your fermenter clear to where you can see if the wort is churning?

For the record, I pitched some wyeast 3944 on Sunday too. I did underpitch and it took a longer than usual time to start bubbling.
 
thekraken said:
Does your fermenter have a good seal? co2 could be escaping through a loose lid or stopper. Is your fermenter clear to where you can see if the wort is churning?

For the record, I pitched some wyeast 3944 on Sunday too. I did underpitch and it took a longer than usual time to start bubbling.
Click to expand...

Fermenter does actually have a very good seal. It's an Austin Homebrew bucket; they're pretty awesome. I always see airlock activity.
 
A oldie but goodie post from Revvy .










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.
__________________
 
Good reminder. I was going to take a reading, but I didn't have time to sanitize my hydrometer as I was rushing to get to work. Will do so this evening.
 
I've the same bucket you do. It's pretty good, but all bucket seals will fail eventually, or it least in my experience. It may be that simply removing and reseating the lid could make it start bubbling, or maybe the seal's kaput. Doesn't matter really during active primary fermentation though, as the positive internal CO2 pressure will keep anything out.

What I'm saying is that just because the airlock's not bubbling, doesn't mean there's no fermentation going on.

Have you visually inspected the wort? Can you see any bubbles or krausen? If nothing else, take a hydro reading, as has been suggested, and report back.

Or maybe you're just experiencing an infuriatingly-long lag time.
 
clairecunn83 said:
Good reminder. I was going to take a reading, but I didn't have time to sanitize my hydrometer as I was rushing to get to work. Will do so this evening.
Click to expand...


Relay back how that hydro sample taste as well. Going to brew a wit next week and I have never used that yeast strain.
 
I used a Wyeast London Ale yeast the other week on a porter and it showed literally NO activity in the airlock. I popped the lid after about a week and there were only tiny bubbles in the wort coming up and no sign that there was signficant krausen but when I checked the gravity it had fully attenuated.

So to sum it up, don't panic, it's probably doing SOMETHING, just wait a few days and check the gravity.
 
nuber said:
I used a Wyeast London Ale yeast the other week on a porter and it showed literally NO activity in the airlock. I popped the lid after about a week and there were only tiny bubbles in the wort coming up and no sign that there was signficant krausen but when I checked the gravity it had fully attenuated.

So to sum it up, don't panic, it's probably doing SOMETHING, just wait a few days and check the gravity.
Click to expand...

Hearing this makes me hopeful :ban:
 
So, I've been thinking...the only thing different this time around from my previous batches is that this particular bucket I'm using is brand new. I've never used it; it could possibly have an air leak somewhere or not have as tight a seal. Hmmmm.

At any rate, hydro reading this evening....
 
Heh. Glad it turned out. Went through the same thing when I first started brewing. Second batch wouldn't bubble the airlock at all, and it confused the hell out of me. Eventually you learn to ignore the airlock.
 
Why would a batch not vent co2? The yeast still has to be producing co2 correct? If you do have an active (closed) fermentation, and your airlock is showing no activity, that must mean you have an air leak some where... right?
 
thekraken said:
Why would a batch not vent co2? The yeast still has to be producing co2 correct? If you do have an active (closed) fermentation, and your airlock is showing no activity, that must mean you have an air leak some where... right?
Click to expand...


There must not be a good seal on this bucket. It's new; first batch in it. It's just surprising because I have another of the same brand bucket, and the seal is impressive.

Also, I went into this batch thinking I was going to have this huge krausen and need a blow off tube, etc. so, to get none of that really threw me off! I like fermenting in a bucket because of the headspace and cleaning ease, but they don't have as good a seal as a carboy, and you do fly blind since you can't see through it to see any action.
 
Not only did the yeast do their job, they did it very well! By next year you will be talking someone else off the dreaded nothing is happening ledge.
 
Hi everyone,

Just used 3944 for a brew on Saturday. I was also surprised how tame this yeast has been so far in my fermenters. Based on the damaged it did to my 1.5 L starter (krausen pouring out everywhere!) I was expecting this thing to spring into action like Hussein Bolt. It surprisingly took around 18-20 hours to get rolling, and even now only one blow off tube has some debris coming through, and that only because it's a bit more full than my second carboy.
 

Similar threads

catdaddy6676
Ever been fooled by a lackluster starter?
Replies
0
Views
99
catdaddy6676
catdaddy6676
Tony B
My babies are growing up
Replies
1
Views
301
catdaddy6676
catdaddy6676
H
Imperial Juice Yeast
Replies
1
Views
465
day_trippr
day_trippr
_Keven
No activity after 12 hours using a yeast starter
Replies
15
Views
1K
_Keven
_Keven
H
Yeast starter not starting
Replies
16
Views
1K
HB2112
H

Latest posts

Back
Top