Stopped bubbling

[Neil1987]

First brew so a little unsure I'm doing a mj gold lager it says wait ten days until the airlock has stopped bubbling i made the kit on tuesday night and past 2 days it's been bubbling away fine but check on it today and theres no activity from the airlock is this normal on day 3?

 

[Tanglefoot]

Airlocks are not the most reliable indicator, the top to your fv could be leaking co2.

Did you take a starting gravity, is there a krausen ( or a scummy ring on fv ) ?

What temperature has it been kept at ? If it's been cold the yeast may need rousing - this just happened to my current brew.
If thats the case best initial option is to warm up the fv if you have the means ( I use a simple brew belt with fv in an insulated box ) . It can help to gently agitate the wort. I gave my fv a very slight tilt which was enough with the rise in temperature to get the airlock bubbling away fiercely within a few hours.

Sounds like everything will be fine tbh if you just leave it alone and give it a couple of weeks.

 

[Neil1987]

I heard it bubble a bit there so it must just have slowed down to every 5 mins or so it's been kept at a steady 20.5degree give it take 1

 

[dwhite60]

It's probably fine.

If you don't have a hydrometer you really need to get one. Indispensable tool for the home brewer.

General rule for brewing times seems to be 2, 2, 2. Two weeks in fermenter, two weeks to carbonate, two weeks to condition. This is what I follow and it works for me. I do find most beers are better after six weeks in the bottle so that would be 2,2,4. I'm always in them after four weeks in the bottle. Interesting to see how the flavor changes with time.

 

[GerritT]

Yes, hydrometer is a bit of a must. One of the few things every beginner should have and learn to use.

 

[terrym]

@Neil1987
The lid on your FV is probably leaking. It looks sealed but it isn't. As a soon as CO2 production rate falls from the initial stages of the fermentation it then just passes through the leaking lid seal which is the path of least resistance. Its quite common. No intervention is necessary, no need to raise the temeperature, 21*C is fine, indeed for some including me it might be too high. Anyway just leave it alone until day 12 or 13 in, then be guided by your hydrometer i.e. when the SG bottoms out you can go ahead and bottle.
More here
Basic beginners guide to brewing your own beer from a kit - The HomeBrew Forum

 

[Neil1987]

@Neil1987
The lid on your FV is probably leaking. It looks sealed but it isn't. As a soon as CO2 production rate falls from the initial stages of the fermentation it then just passes through the leaking lid seal which is the path of least resistance. Its quite common. No intervention is necessary, no need to raise the temeperature, 21*C is fine, indeed for some including me it might be too high. Anyway just leave it alone until day 12 or 13 in, then be guided by your hydrometer i.e. when the SG bottoms out you can go ahead and bottle.
More here
Basic beginners guide to brewing your own beer from a kit - The HomeBrew Forum

My concern is I may be getting a wrong temperature reading as my TV is in a shed but in a small box with a 1.6kw heater under it with an inkbird taped to the side with a sponge over the top full fv is covered in insulation but when he box heats up front heater it could be heating probe quicker giving me a false reading ideal temp range was 20 to 25 I feel tempted to turn heat up a bit to make sure

 

[terrym]

I think a 1.6kw heater should be more than enough!! I would have thought an old tungsten type light bulb, say 100w, would be better, I have a 50w heater in my water bath and it will keep my set up at 19*C even when the garage drops below 5*C. And 25*C is too warm imo . 20*C is better. Most ale years will perform quite happily down to about 18*C, some lower.

 

[cushyno]

Great advice from @terrym all round, as usual. Nothing to add on what Terry says.

 

[Neil1987]

I think a 1.6kw heater should be more than enough!! I would have thought an old tungsten type light bulb, say 100w, would be better, I have a 50w heater in my water bath and it will keep my set up at 19*C even when the garage drops below 5*C. And 25*C is too warm imo . 20*C is better. Most ale years will perform quite happily down to about 18*C, some lower.

Only thing I had think ill get a brew belt for next one tho

 

[Neil1987]

4 days in is it looking ok? First time unsure

 

[GerritT]

4 days in is it looking ok? First time unsure

Looking splendid

 

[Neil1987]

Braw I'll wait till next weekend and give it a check with hydrometer

 

[Neil1987]

Checked it with hydrometer its sitting and.1.016 fg to be around 1.006 just short of a week gone so still not done but progress I put tape around the seal on the lid to try and stop air escaping thru the lid if its leaking

 

[parpot]

personally I never check my brews until after 14 days, the less the FV is opened the better the last thing you want is an infection!

 

[Neil1987]

personally I never check my brews until after 14 days, the less the FV is opened the better the last thing you want is an infection!

First brew it just got the better of me especially with no airlock activity but now I've seen it's not too far away and it didnt taste awful I'ts out my mind at ease

 

[Neil1987]

I just took another hydrometer m
reading and its stuck at 1.016 that was 2 days ago it was at the same its ment to finish around 1.006 I recorded an og of 1.044 ment to be 4.4%

 

[foxbat]

I just took another hydrometer m
reading and its stuck at 1.016 that was 2 days ago it was at the same its ment to finish around 1.006 I recorded an og of 1.044 ment to be 4.4%

If the tightwads only gave you a 5g pack of yeast then that's a strong possibility why it's stuck. It's a good idea to discard those tiny sachets and use something strong and reliable like a pack of Nottingham yeast instead. Anyway...

It's currently sitting at 3.7% ABV and isn't likely to change any more. If you want to lift the ABV to 4.4% and you've got 23 litres in the FV then you'd need to add about 920g of white sugar by my calculations (anybody want to check that?). It would be better if you could dissolve the sugar in some boiling water and let it cool before adding to the FV. The yeast will completely convert the sugar to alcohol and your FG will fall back to 1.016.

 

[Neil1987]

If the tightwads only gave you a 5g pack of yeast then that's a strong possibility why it's stuck. It's a good idea to discard those tiny sachets and use something strong and reliable like a pack of Nottingham yeast instead. Anyway...

It's currently sitting at 3.7% ABV and isn't likely to change any more. If you want to lift the ABV to 4.4% and you've got 23 litres in the FV then you'd need to add about 920g of white sugar by my calculations (anybody want to check that?). It would be better if you could dissolve the sugar in some boiling water and let it cool before adding to the FV. The yeast will completely convert the sugar to alcohol and your FG will fall back to 1.016.

It dosnt taste sweet and wasnt to bad tasting so was just going to go with it not concerned over the abv as such just trying to work out what went wrong for next time I did substitute all the sugar for spraymalt unsure if that would affect gravity or not