No bubbles in airlock

[bmass96]

Hi folks,

I transferred my SMaSH citra wort into my FV last night after a night of no chill.

Everything was fine, normal. Put the airlock on and filled a bit with water, sealed airtight and I haven't seen any bubbles since doing so. I'm a bit worried, should I be!?

I'm using Omega OYL-052 as my yeast and the bag said 100ml for 5 gallons (or 22 litres) so I've used just over 50ml for my 11 litre batch. This is enough, right?!

Any advice!? Any reassurance!?

Cheers,
Ben.

 

[kelper]

My current kit beer did not bubble for the first sixteen hours but I could see the krausen developing. Did you take a peek?

 

[peebee]

I'd worry … but I'm impatient, with a vivid streak of anxiety, ruled by habit and … basically you don't want to think like I do!

Its a liquid yeast, they are all susceptible to age, they are all probably susceptible to marketing exaggeration, and so on. So they often need a bit of time to grow an effective population, and you wont see a lot of activity early on. I put a lot of preparation into my yeast and I've still had to wait 24-36 hours for one recently. Reading some of the reports on this site seems to suggest 48 hours isn't unusual. I'd definitely be suspicious after 48 hours.

If you continue to be worried at this stage, start studying about "starters" and "cell counts" and work out a time consuming technique that is near guaranteed to be predictable (ish!).

 

[Ben034]

Hi folks,

I transferred my SMaSH citra wort into my FV last night after a night of no chill.

Everything was fine, normal. Put the airlock on and filled a bit with water, sealed airtight and I haven't seen any bubbles since doing so. I'm a bit worried, should I be!?

I'm using Omega OYL-052 as my yeast and the bag said 100ml for 5 gallons (or 22 litres) so I've used just over 50ml for my 11 litre batch. This is enough, right?!

Any advice!? Any reassurance!?

Cheers,
Ben.

Depends on the type of FV you are using. Is it a plastic type bucket fermenter?

It may take a day or so to get going (first the yeast need to reproduce) before they start consuming the sugars in the wort and giving off gases.

Also, never trust airlock bubbles as a sign of active fermentation. Even the best fermenter is prone to leaking as lids bend / expand or contract. If you want to have a look you should see a krausen on top of the wort once it's going. Another indicator would be a rise in temperature in the fermenter compared to outside the fermenter. If you're still not sure after 3 days or so, you could take a hydrometer sample to check. If you have pitched enough yeast, the chance of no fermentation at all is very unlikely!

 

[Leon103]

Just chill. Doubt your fv is 100% air tight

 

[bmass96]

Just chill. Doubt your fv is 100% air tight

If that's the case, I'm alright to take the lid off and reseal then I take it?

 

[GerritT]

If that's the case, I'm alright to take the lid off and reseal then I take it?

STOP

No need to take the lid of. Yet. If you have an 11 liter brew and a 23 liter fermenter, bubbly things might take longer to start than in a 15 liter fermenter. Takes more time to get the overpressure.
Secondly, those fancy expensive hoity-toity yeasts are slooow. Dry yeasts are 2 or 3 times as fast at the start.

But don't take lids off just because... why? What do you expect or want to see? Krausen? And what if you have a bit of Krausen but no bubbles? Because taking the lid off slows the bubble-forming again...

So: wait 24 hours. Give it time.

 

[bmass96]

STOP

No need to take the lid of. Yet. If you have an 11 liter brew and a 23 liter fermenter, bubbly things might take longer to start than in a 15 liter fermenter. Takes more time to get the overpressure.
Secondly, those fancy expensive hoity-toity yeasts are slooow. Dry yeasts are 2 or 3 times as fast at the start.

But don't take lids off just because... why? What do you expect or want to see? Krausen? And what if you have a bit of Krausen but no bubbles? Because taking the lid off slows the bubble-forming again...

So: wait 24 hours. Give it time.

Okay, will do. I have only used dry yeasts before to be fair. My previous brew with a dry yeast (same 11 litre, in the plastic 19 litre FV) started bubbling the same night.

Also, it's been approx 22.5hrs in the FV. Shall I just continue waiting?

I also realise I need to get to grips with patience

 

[GerritT]

Well, leave it for another night, and think what you might be able to do tomorrow morning if there still are no bubbles.

By then you have some reasons to open the lid (a bit). It's a lager so bottom fermenting, and I don't know what that looks like on the upper side. I guess you should see foam, whitish with specs of brown. If you don't see that, you could pitch the other half of the yeast, for instance. The lid is off already so it would not be more risky. Make sure the yeast is 20º or ambient.

Measure gravity? Possibility but I don't know if that's a clever thing, never done that so early in this part of the process. Hopefully other members here have suggestions.

 

[Dutto]

Take it easy!!

It may be over SIX WEEKS before it is anywhere near ready to drink and here you are measuring progress in hours! The brew has been underway for less than 3% of the time required so if you keep worrying then by the time it's ready to drink you will probably be in a straight-jacket!

I've had many brews where the only sign of fermentation is a build up of trub and the appearance of a krausen. I would start to worry if, after two weeks:

• Removal of the lid of the FV came with a huge whiff of vinegar or old socks. or,
• The SG was the same as when I started the brew.

 

[bmass96]

Well, leave it for another night, and think what you might be able to do tomorrow morning if there still are no bubbles.

By then you have some reasons to open the lid (a bit). It's a lager so bottom fermenting, and I don't know what that looks like on the upper side. I guess you should see foam, whitish with specs of brown. If you don't see that, you could pitch the other half of the yeast, for instance. The lid is off already so it would not be more risky. Make sure the yeast is 20º or ambient.

Measure gravity? Possibility but I don't know if that's a clever thing, never done that so early in this part of the process. Hopefully other members here have suggestions.

This one is a session IPA. I will leave it another night and see where the land lies.

This is also the first time I've left the wort overnight to chill too - when I got to transfer to the FV it didn't smell too clever either but I guess that's to be expected? I sealed with a lid and covered the lid with clingfilm too to be sure.

 

[bmass96]

Take it easy!!

It may be over SIX WEEKS before it is anywhere near ready to drink and here you are measuring progress in hours! The brew has been underway for less than 3% of the time required so if you keep worrying then by the time it's ready to drink you will probably be in a straight-jacket!

I've had many brews where the only sign of fermentation is a build up of trub and the appearance of a krausen. I would start to worry if, after two weeks:

• Removal of the lid of the FV came with a huge whiff of vinegar or old socks. or,
• The SG was the same as when I started the brew.

Yeah, well I did notice a smell I've not had with any other brew - this was after leaving the wort to cool overnight. First time I've done no chill. I did seal the kettle with the sanitised lid and clingfilm mind...

 

[GerritT]

No chill should work, a lot of people do it, nothing inherently wrong. But, you know, hsit happens. Wait it out a few days then.

 

[Popey]

I've been fretting about my first AG brew - an Erdinger clone. There has been no airlock activity since I pitched the yeast just over 72 hours ago. The batch size is about 17l in a 23l FV...There is, however, a lovely smell in the fermenting fridge and there is also a krausen line above the wort. Anyway, I checked the lid on the FV and it was pretty loose - so I'm now fairly certain that fermentation is happening and now that the lid has been screwed down, I am expecting to see some airlock action in due course. I'll take a hydrometer sample at the weekend and see how it's doing. Thankfully, the sage advice offered above looks to be sound and my fingers crossed are crossed for a successful fermentation

 

[An Ankoù]

Suggest you take it out of the fridge and let it get warm if you want some of the esters that are present in Erdinger.

 

[Popey]

Suggest you take it out of the fridge and let it get warm if you want some of the esters that are present in Erdinger.

So, I checked again this evening and again there was no airlock activity. So i decided to take a sample to get a hydrometer reading. The OG was 1054 and 4 days later it's down to 1024. The target gravity is 1009, so a little way to go yet and I'll take another sample on Monday. As far as the esters are concerned, it seems like it's doing quite nicely at 21 degrees C, which is in the middle of the recommended temperature range for this particular yeast (Mangrove Jack Bavarian Yeast M20). SO, things are going well at the moment.