Brew UK Forum | General Brewing Discussions
Question from a novice
Hi Guys,
Apologies in advance for all you wise brewers out there calming the nerves of new kids on the block.
I made my first ever home brew on Sunday night (Coopers English bitter with brew enhancer 2). I was very pedantic in my sterilisation, I added the yeast at about 27 degrees, and the lid has a good seal. The temperature has been constant between 22 and 24 degrees which should be ideal.
The thing is, my air lock has not bubbled - even now which is 96 hours later. There were quite a few bubbles inside the fermenter when I initially put the lid on due to my stirring, and I suppose there was a fairly decent "head" on it the last few days, but that has substantially died down over the last 24 hours.
Could it just be that this brew doesn't produce much cO2, or could it be that I have cocked up somewhere?
I would love to have just sussed this out myself without bothering you all... but I managed to smash my hydrometer on Sunday naturally!
My plan is to just bottle it this Sunday and hope for the best, but any advice would be highly appreciated!
Responses
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hi Mate,
Welome to the forum
I would leave as is and get a hydrometer.
It won't do any harm. If you bottle to early the bottles could blow!
Did you get a hydromtere reading when you added you yeat?
regards
Lawrence
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hi adamp, welcome to the forum.
What kind of fermenting bin are you using? I used to use one of the Youngs 25L buckets with an airlock on the lid. Not once did I see a bubble go through that airlock. My reckoning is that the lid was not completely airtight even when closed shut. Didn't spoil the brew at all.
On the subject of hydrometers, I did about 15-20 brews before I owned one of those. My general rule of thumb was to just leave the thing fermenting away for 2 weeks, then bottle or barrel. 2 weeks may be a bit excessive, but it worked for me, and still does. I rarely ever take hydrometer readings during primary fermentation.
Hope this helps.
-Barry
Fermenting: Marston's Pedigree
Conditioning (Bottles): Warsteiner Lager Clone
Drinking (King Keg): Fullers London Pride
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
HI there. Put a couple of layers of gaffer tape over the hole in the lid of the fermenter and push the airlock through, or find another way to seal it into the lid. If there is the slightest leak around the airlock you won't get any bubbles. At the temperatures you are using it should be all fermented in 3 to 4 days, but get a new hydrometer. The other way is to wait until it's clear in the Fermenter, which is what will be happening to Bazza's brews (where does he get the patience?). That way you save a lot of muck settling in the bottom of the barrel.
Planning: - To get some more brews on now the weather's a bit cooler
Fermenting: - Ginger Beer experiment
Conditioning: - A normal bitter with Styrians
Drinking: - All of it!!
E-mail: arnyfris@gmail.com
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Yes, good advice above. I can only add that bottling this weekend could lead to disaster - as already mentioned. If you're not getting a replacement hydrometer, then leave it in the FV for another week - definitely won't do it any harm as Barry has been doing
(with grateful thanks to the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and slightly adapted)
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
Yep wait a while longer, sonsiboy had the same problem (as do others) with the air lock not bubbling away. He fixed it here (read reply 8 ) http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/no-bubbles-through-airlock#post-7228 but to be honest thats just a lil extreme!
I smash a hydro every other month and if its not the hydrometer its the thermometer! I would wait till you have another and make sure that the fg is constant for 2 days until bottling, I believe Tony had a nasty ginger beer explosion..... in his FACE!
Plannin'-
Loads a beer after an upgrade!
nathbrew@gmail.com
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Yup .... rather not go there again. Next time I do ginger beer (if there is a next time!), I think I'll knobble the little yeasties and do a flat one! Ginger beer is famous for exploding!
(with grateful thanks to the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and slightly adapted)
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hey gents, thanks for all the advice.
I'm sure it has fermented and will be fine once I bottle it (which I now won't do for another week or so!). It's just kind of frustrating especially seeing as I took so much care in following all the instructions carefully. The FV is a brand new Coopers one (the one in the starter kit). Maybe it's just a bit of a dud and it won't ever seal quite perfectly.
Do you reckon it's the grommet or the lid itself that could be the problem? I think next batch I'll either try gaffer taping the base of the air-lock or cover it with clingfilm and poke a hole through for the airlock once I see some action.
If I bottle it 2 weeks after sealing the FV it shouldn't have spoiled by then should it?
Cheers guys!
Oh and PS: Hydrometer will definitely be ordered with my next kit!
Posted 1 year ago by Member
I wouldn't worry about it adamp, it's not necessary to have an airtight seal in the FV as the yeast produce a nice cosy little CO2 blanket and tuck it up under their chins. It's nice seeing the bubble I admit but I have a couple of cheapo FVs (not supplied by this fine establishment) that won't seal... I'm inclined to believe it's the (cheese) grommet rather than the rim. A lot of people only loosely put the lid on anyway.
Seems like you've dong a grand job!
(with grateful thanks to the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and slightly adapted)
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Cheers Tony!
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