Hi all,
I have a wilko real ale on the go in the FV after a slow start the air lock began to bubble furiously for a day or so, then nothing for nearly
a week.. i asked for some advice on here and was told to be patient... it has now started to bubble every 2 mins or so
thing is, its still bubbling after nearly 5 weeks the bubbles are now every 5-6 mins.
do i refrigerate it now to stop it ?? do i let it carry on ???? Is there any harm in leaving it ???
ta
Advice please...
-
neilmcca
Re: Advice please...
U have had it in the FV for 5 weeks ??
get it bottled / kegged !
trust me, its done.
the longest i leave a brew fermenting is 2 weeks, ignore air-lock activity, use a hydrometer if u want (i never bother).
get it bottled / kegged !
trust me, its done.
the longest i leave a brew fermenting is 2 weeks, ignore air-lock activity, use a hydrometer if u want (i never bother).
-
Kev888
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Re: Advice please...
Depending on the type of fermenter, sometimes gas escapes around the lid so the bubbling of an airlock can be a bit misleading. It can also bubble if the FV is changing temperature and the air inside is contracting or expanding, or if the fermenter has been moved, squashed etc.
Normally the primary fermentation will be largely over within a week or so, say two weeks to be safe. But cool temperatures can slow it down and variable temperature (or other things that make the yeast unhappy) can cause it to stall prematurely, sometimes to start again later sometimes not. The best way to see how its going IMO is to use a (carefully sanitised) hydrometer to see whats happening to the gravity - as sugars are turned to alcohol the gravity should fall, when it has (a) fallen by a reasonable amount and (b) stopped falling between measurements taken a couple of days apart its a very strong indication that things are about finished as they should be.
You don't normally need to 'stop' beer - it ceases when all the fermentable sugars are consumed, but the yeast remain alive for quite some time and help to condition the beer in a number of ways. That is why at bottling or kegging you can add a bit more fermentable sugar or malt extract and this will cause just enough of an extra fermentation to 'prime' the beer, giving it some carbonation. Cooling can help to speed settling/clearing after the primary fermentation though. (BTW some commercial brewers do cool to stop the beer temporarily 'just' before primary fermentation ends, and later let it warm up and resume in the keg instead of priming - but its hard to judge that so I wouldn't advise you try it).
Leaving it in the fermenter for more than say 3 or so weeks is unusual; some of them don't seal very well so chances of infection increase with time, and also the beer sitting on old yeast can cause flavour problems from 'Autolysis' if it goes on for too long, especially if warm. It will 'probably be okay but I personally start to get twitchy if its still in there after say 4 weeks. (Conversely, bottling before its finished can make little bottle bombs, as it continues to produce too much CO2 afterwards...)
Ideally I'd suggest testing the gravity with a hydrometer (being very careful to sanitise anything that touches the beer) and then assuming its about right bottling/kegging it asap. Or failing that just taste a bit (again observing sanitation) and if it seems beery (rather than sugary or infected) bottle it.
Cheers
kev
Normally the primary fermentation will be largely over within a week or so, say two weeks to be safe. But cool temperatures can slow it down and variable temperature (or other things that make the yeast unhappy) can cause it to stall prematurely, sometimes to start again later sometimes not. The best way to see how its going IMO is to use a (carefully sanitised) hydrometer to see whats happening to the gravity - as sugars are turned to alcohol the gravity should fall, when it has (a) fallen by a reasonable amount and (b) stopped falling between measurements taken a couple of days apart its a very strong indication that things are about finished as they should be.
You don't normally need to 'stop' beer - it ceases when all the fermentable sugars are consumed, but the yeast remain alive for quite some time and help to condition the beer in a number of ways. That is why at bottling or kegging you can add a bit more fermentable sugar or malt extract and this will cause just enough of an extra fermentation to 'prime' the beer, giving it some carbonation. Cooling can help to speed settling/clearing after the primary fermentation though. (BTW some commercial brewers do cool to stop the beer temporarily 'just' before primary fermentation ends, and later let it warm up and resume in the keg instead of priming - but its hard to judge that so I wouldn't advise you try it).
Leaving it in the fermenter for more than say 3 or so weeks is unusual; some of them don't seal very well so chances of infection increase with time, and also the beer sitting on old yeast can cause flavour problems from 'Autolysis' if it goes on for too long, especially if warm. It will 'probably be okay but I personally start to get twitchy if its still in there after say 4 weeks. (Conversely, bottling before its finished can make little bottle bombs, as it continues to produce too much CO2 afterwards...)
Ideally I'd suggest testing the gravity with a hydrometer (being very careful to sanitise anything that touches the beer) and then assuming its about right bottling/kegging it asap. Or failing that just taste a bit (again observing sanitation) and if it seems beery (rather than sugary or infected) bottle it.
Cheers
kev
Kev
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Rango
Re: Advice please...
Thank you for your replies... I've bottled it......i'm going to leave it now for a while now.... fingers crossed