First beer and maybe having some problems....

It is most likely fermentation is reaching the last gravity points, just wait 3-4 days then take a gravity read to figure it has reached its FG.


Edit: To know fermentation is done you need to take several gravity reads,when gravity dosen´t go any lower and is about your target FG then is done.

 

Sounds pretty normal to me. Opinions vary, but I'd give it another week or two. (But it's your first batch, so I know that ain't happenin'! )

 

Buy a hydrometer and wait a couple weeks. Then use the hydrometer to take a gravity reading. Repeat in 3 days. If the gravity is unchanged between those readings, and in the neighborhood of what you expected, it's done. At that point, you can bottle, or leave the beer in the fermenter for another week or so, to help clean up off-flavors.

 

A 'normal' beer will most likely be done after a week. Two weeks is almost a certainty. Three is even better. If you don't have a hydrometer, don't sweat it - patience is a good enough substitute in the meantime.

That said, you'll learn much about the process if you take gravity readings from time to time.

 

Try to control that temperature (on your next batch). Yeast like to be held at a pretty constant temperature so work on that for your next batch.

 

+1 to this. As it is your first beer, homebrewing patience is not something you have yet had the time to develop. But it will definitely pay off because (1) (as Vikeman states) giving it two (or three) weeks in the fermenter will give the yeast some time to clean up some of the inevitable off flavors that are present right after primary fermentation, and (2) your will more reliably reach FG by waiting.

Given your description, it sounds like you had a successful, vigorous initial stage of fermentation. Hopefully your final-gravity reading will bear this out.

 

Agreement with all of the above posts. I have a hydrometer that I used obsessively with my first few batches. Now I just wait 2.5 weeks, take a reading on the Wednesday before bottling weekend, then again on Friday before bottling, just to make sure it's consistent. If it's not (hasn't happened yet), bottling gets pushed back.

If I'm opening the bucket to dry hop, I'll take a reading, but that's usually around the 2-week mark anyway and generally just assume I'll do the bottling at 3 weeks.

I just did a mild with 1.030 OG. It only krausened for ~14 hours. Your only problem is you're new and impatient. It's where we all start. Sanitize well and stick to what the kit said and you're 99% there.

 

Your only problem is you can't wait to taste your finished beer!

Like everyone above says, be as generous with giving it time as you can. You need to make sure fermentation is finished, and ideally you want to let it sit on the yeast beyond that to get the best-tasting results.

 

What were your expectations going into brew-day about how your fermentation would proceed?

 

Sounds like you had/have a successful fermentation - congrats!. On medium/lower gravity beers it should reach terminal gravity within days, but then needs time to condition. Another 7 days in primary will ensure the yeast has time to clean up after itself. No need for secondary, just transfer to bottling bucket, prime, bottle, and cap. Then wait at least two weeks before cracking open the first one - wait another two weeks before drinking them off if you can, because it will only get better.

 

Here, this should help:



By the way, your beer is proceeding as normal. Take a breath, your fine.

 

Standard noob hyperventilation syndrome, you get over it after a while. Step back, take a deep breath, and leave your beer alone. Always give your beer two weeks to do its thing before even considering the idea of messing with it*. Bubbling of the airlock is meaningless and should be ignored. I have one fermenter that doesn't seal perfectly so it never bubbles, one that doesn't fit in the freezer with a standard airlock, and one that doesn't even require an airlock at all (different lid design), so I NEVER see them bubble. Also, they're in a freezer with a controller, so the lid is closed at all times. Bubbling is of no importance. Patience is.

*this really shouldn't be cut down by much. You could theoretically get away with shorter fermentation times on some beers, but if you get in the habit of a two week minimum, you will be better off. For standard, non-complicated, moderate ABV beers, you can however set up a two week turnaround time, which theoretically allows you to brew every weekend if you so choose (with two batches fermenting at once, obviously). It is acceptable to check the gravity (with sanitized wine thief) on day 11, then re-check it on day 14 to make sure it's done fermenting, but it usually will be.

 

Here's a link to a handy ABV calculator which you can use to figure out your ABV based on hydrometer readings:

http://www.brewersfriend.com/abv-calculator/

 

Did your recipe give you an Original Gravity (OG) and a Final Gravity (FG) estimate? You missed your chance to take an actual OG reading since fermentation is now essentially completed, but you can assume that you were close to the expected OG if you didn't deviate from the recipe. You can use the recipe's expected OG and whatever your FG reading on your new hydrometer when you receive it to be able to calculate the ABV.

If you are planning to bottle you should take your two FG readings for comparison purposes before you mix any priming sugar into your beer in the bottling bucket. If you bottle too early before fermentation is done (this is one big reason for the patience that everyone above has recommended) then you'll take a chance of having too much CO2 in the bottles and potentially end up with gushers when you pop the cap.

Also, be sure to measure the quantity of your beer as closely as you can before bottling. If your recipe is for a 5-gallon batch but you only ended up with 4 gallons due to not allowing extra water that disappeared during the boiling process then your recipe's suggested amount of priming sugar should be adjusted proportionally downward.

However, if your recipe says the FG should be 1.020 (for example) and your reading is 1.030 and you did end up short in the number of gallons then the FG reads high because of a less liquid to beer ingredient ratio, thus the beer is 'thicker' that desired. In this case you could add water (gently stir it into the beer without splashing which aerates the beer too much) to get it well mixed and then take a final final FG reading to see if you then have hit the recipe's FG.

Or, you can leave it alone and have a beer with a higher alcohol level. That's up to you and how close you want your beer to become what the recipe is designed to produce.

Keep giving us updates or questions. We'll get you thru this and advance you thru your new hobby.