slow fermentation or...

[Clint]

Thanks D. I think I'll bung it in the pb as I'm fed up with it now and need to get something else on..it'll get a fortnight in the house then get banished to the shed for bad behaviour!

Cheers

Clint

 

[Clint]

....got back pressure again this morning and bubbles if I adjust the blow off tube......

 

[Dutto]

....got back pressure again this morning and bubbles if I adjust the blow off tube......

Great. Leave it alone then. :thumb:

I check on a daily basis to ensure that the bubble tube is submerged no more than about 5mm.

I use a clear glass bottle so that I can see what is happening at the business end of the tube and consider the fermentation to be completed when:

o On a perfectly sealed FV (one of life's rarities!) the last "bubble" hangs at the exit of the tube for hours on end.

o On an FV that isn't perfectly sealed (i.e. 95% of the time) the water level inside the tube eases back to where it is level with the outside.

I still take a hydrometer reading of course! :thumb:

 

[BrannBrew]

This all seems to familiar with how my latest batch has gone. It's stopped at around 1020 and started at 1052. Been taking readings last few days (2 weeks since brewday) with a steady temp of 18-19. Hasn't changed even if there was some bubbles in the air lock yesterday they arnt today.

Thinking of giving it to Saturday morning and kegging it.

Strange as it's the first brew that has done this and I thought brewday went the best so far.

 

[terrym]

This all seems to familiar with how my latest batch has gone. It's stopped at around 1020 and started at 1052. Been taking readings last few days (2 weeks since brewday) with a steady temp of 18-19. Hasn't changed even if there was some bubbles in the air lock yesterday they arnt today.

Thinking of giving it to Saturday morning and kegging it.

Strange as it's the first brew that has done this and I thought brewday went the best so far.

As I mentioned in another thread I had a Sundew fermentation grind to a halt at about 1.020 after two days from OG 1.048. I had originally changed the kit yeast to a 10g Harris ale yeast I had, so probably should have not bothered. Two attempts to restart with fresh yeast, kit yeast and a GV12, plus stirring and yeast nutrient made hardly any difference. It finished bubbling at about day 12/13 had 17days in the FV in total and was bottled on Sunday last nearly clear at 1.018.

 

[Clint]

Quick update. ..this is still bubbling!

 

[Clint]

I wonder how long this is going to continue. .? It's doing a bubble every 3 seconds or so....

 

[Dutto]

......... It's doing a bubble every 3 seconds or so....

That is serious fermentation so either the original yeast has kicked in again or something else is creating the bubbles.

I would plump for the original yeast getting active again ... :thumb:

... especially if there is no aroma of vinegar or rotten eggs coming out of the air-lock. :nono: :nono:

With regard to " ... how long this is going to continue?" the answer is "As long as it takes!" :whistle: :whistle:

Enjoy! :thumb:

 

[Clint]

Just got in from work and checked...it's going even more now...a bubble every second. Hopefully it will get a move on..

Cheers

Clint

...smells like beer!

 

[Clint]

This is still bubbling,got a steady 22°c temp...would increasing if a bit more get it to finish?

Cheers

Clint

 

[Dutto]

This is still bubbling,got a steady 22°c temp...would increasing if a bit more get it to finish?

Cheers

Clint

WOW! By my calculation that's about five weeks!

Are there any off-smells coming from the air-lock to indicate that something other than a normal fermentation is under way?

If not, then increasing the temperature will depend on the tolerance of the yeast you used and your own nerve! :whistle:

Take a read of this article ...

http://www.brewmart.com.au/brewmart-shop/PDF/ITEMS/the optimum temperature for yeast growth.pdf

You may then decide to increase the temperature to 24 degrees for a couple of days to see what happens.

After that, if it's not going mad with the bubbles, I reckon it will be time to lift the lid and if it smells and looks good, take another SG. :thumb:

 

[terrym]

Have you stuck a hydrometer in it?

 

[Clint]

The blow off bottle smells like beer...I've cracked the lid for a peek..there's a bit of patchy froth on the surface and intermittent pin head bubbles. I'll do a hydrometer reading later when I get up. Yes it's going on a bit!

Cheers

Clint

 

[Clint]

Ha! Now sitting at 1012. Tastes absolutely fantastic!

 

[Dutto]

Being a devout pessimist I'd read that SG at 1.014. :whistle:

However, I would still consider transferring it into a pressure barrel with 50g of sugar, carbonate it for two weeks at 22 degrees and then stick it on a cool dark shelf until the end of May.

This being on the basis that:

o It may ferment a bit more and my PB has a pressure relief system.

o It may take a long time to clear, but it's protected from infection in a PB.

I'd bet money that by the end of May it will taste even better! :thumb:

 

[Clint]

Yes....I stand corrected....1014 it is..must be the excitement! I'll give it another day or so. Today there is important business to attend to......drink samples around the town this afternoon. Sounds like a good idea but we all know about those. ....

Cheers

Clint

 

[terrym]

I think the single yeast cell that woke up again all those weeks ago has done a fantastic job :thumb:

 

[Pirate_Pete]

Blimey, you lot are a bit too technical for me. Hydrometers and airlocks, whatever next.

I bottled a Coopers Amber Ale this morning. Three weeks in the FV. No airlock and not a hydrometer within 20 metres of it.

Enjoy your pub crawl Clint.

 

[Clint]

You are such a rogue Pete! Pub crawl.....can't decide what's for tea...kebab or Indian? It's a tough one! Attempting to iron a shirt atm. ..and get it down to 500 chpsi (cat hairs per square inch).

Cheers

Clint

 

[JapanBrew]

1.014 seems fine to me. Every beer will have its own FG based on a ton of factors.
My temp prob on my system is off then factoring in the heat loss in the hoses during recirculation, my beers were hitting low, low numbers. Had one hit 1.002.