Whats happening...can someone please explain ?

[Rango]

Hi all,

Can someone please explain to me what is happening to my brew ?? ..In simplistic terms. This is the story so far ...

Ive got a wilko Real ale kit, at first i thought i had added the yeast too early and killed it because i couldn't get the temperature of the FV down to 20 degrees. I was told to be patient (nothing happened for over 24 hours).

Then all of a sudden the airlock bubbled away(like some mad scientists lab) for about 36 hours... then it stopped again. so after some advice i was going to leave it for about 6-10 days before barrel/bottling. At ten day the bubbling started again ( although not as mad, but constant) and is still going, The instructions on the box say 4-6 days in FV... mine has been in 15 days now and the bubbles show no sign of stopping.

The temperature of the FV was at 24 degrees and has now dropped to about 20-22 degrees. The bubbles in the airlock are at the moment every 2-3 mins.

I am prepared to wait..... i just wondered what is going on? what is the chemistry/physics behind this?

thanks Rango

[Mr. Dripping]

Fermentation has phases.
Lag phase - yeast are effectively growing in numbers to get ready to ferment the wort.
Active fermentation / high krausen - the yeast are metabolising the sugar and producing lots of CO2, causing the airlock to bubble furiously.
Stationary phase - most of the fermentation is complete and the yeast starts to flocculate, some of the more complex sugars are still fermenting slowly and airlock activity is reduced.

[Manngold]

Hi Rango. I had a similar situation with my first kit. And it pretty much is as the previous post states. The advice I got, was to just leave it for three weeks in the FV and then bottle/barrel. I have don that for every brew so far (on brew number 7), and nothing has gone wrong. I say just leave three weeks. Take a final gravity reading on day 21, and bottle / barrel that day.

[timbo41]

this is all good brother Rango. the trouble with kit instructions is they are written by ad men...rarely brewers. Search jims for any advice....its never let me down. I would add to mangolds advice....learn to trust your hydrometer...or things can go titsy

[Harmergeddon]

Golden rule of brewing from one of the cheapo kits is to throw away the instructions. If you haven't already read it then read through this http://www.howtobrew.com/intro.html
Masses and masses of great info on kit brewing right through to all grain.