Stopped bubbling...

[surferosa]

I made my first biab homebrew on Tuesday, it bubbled away fairly nicely for a couple of days, but never had much of a krausen, and now the airlock seems to have stopped completely... any idea why? Or how I can fix it?

I’m using safbrew t58 yeast, fermenting at 18c

 

[Leon103]

Just don't worry, give it another week or so and take a reading. All perfectly normal

 

[Charles Stanley-Grey]

Exactly what should happen.

http://howtobrew.com/book/section-1/fermentation/re-defining-fermentation

 

[carljbray]

I found when I first started brewing that I couldn't get a good seal on the fermenting bucket lid, and although the airlock stopped bubbling quite early, that was partly because the gases were able to escape through other ways. So you might find that as the fermentation started to slow down that not enough pressure was created to bubble the airlock, even if it was still happening.
You can help to seal the lid by using vaseline, (it shouldn't need to come into contact with the beer), as one option,
Alternatively I got a fermentation tank with a narrower screw top (normally used with wine) and rubber seal, which helped make a good seal

 

[carljbray]

having said that - I wouldn't mess around with the lid now, you want to leave it on there, to keep it sealed, stop stuff getting in, and keep the co2 protective layer in the tank - I'm not an expert by any means, but I had this happen with me at the start also

 

[Clint]

Yeah..resist the urge to fiddle with it.

 

[terrym]

You can help to seal the lid by using vaseline,

Or alternatively four strips of cling film over the FV rim before clipping the lid down

 

[surferosa]

I found when I first started brewing that I couldn't get a good seal on the fermenting bucket lid, and although the airlock stopped bubbling quite early, that was partly because the gases were able to escape through other ways. So you might find that as the fermentation started to slow down that not enough pressure was created to bubble the airlock, even if it was still happening.
You can help to seal the lid by using vaseline, (it shouldn't need to come into contact with the beer), as one option,
Alternatively I got a fermentation tank with a narrower screw top (normally used with wine) and rubber seal, which helped make a good seal

Good point. I use a large glass carboy, and use a bung with a hole for the airlock, I’ve often wondered whether it was totally air tight, perhaps I’ll get a carboy cap, as they look like a better solution.

 

[carljbray]

rubber bung against glass, to be fair, should be pretty good, as long as it's not perished, and jammed well in, but again, a bit of vaseline on it could help ensure a good seal