No airlock activity but...

Hey!

I just brewed my first batch as well!

You may have more luck posting in the homebrewing forum!

Cheers!

 

Looks right. If there was no activity it would look like the wort you poured in. If their is foam it means you have fermentation. You'll have to double check the lid and airlock gromet because it's not sealed all the way.

Next batch RDWHAHB.

 

I agree with this GetMeAnIPA. What is the room temp where the fermentor is located and the yeast that you are using?

P.S. Welcome to the BA site and to this great hobby.

 

I am experiencing the same problem on a 5 gal batch of German Bock,I can't find the leak,but will pull blow-hose tomorrow and try something different cause I know Lid has rubber seal & its tight,will see if I can fix it,cause mine has lots of Krausen also,,Larry

 

For both of you, if you have krausen, then fermentation is occuring. It may not be overly active because your yeast may be old and needing to generate enough new cells to get going stronger, or you may be fermenting at or outside of the low end of the ideal temp range for your yeast. If you can, take a look at the date stamp on the yeast package, or check for the yeast type and its ideal temp range and compare to the room temp where your fermentor is located. Either way, as long as you have krausen, something is happening and you just need to give it time to finish up. After the krausen seems to have quit growing/bubbling, it likely will sink. Then you can take a gravity reading to see whether the beer has reached the expected final gravity. Decide from that info what your next step might be. (Wait longer or package.)

 

Unless its 1318, then it maintains a thick ass krausen until you knock it down with hops... sweet sweet hops.

 

Not sure if you have any thermometers on your fermenters, but you can pick up adhesive ones from Adventures in Homebrewing, Walmart, Amazon, etc. This is a quick way to check if you are within a proper temperature range. These helped a ton when I started brewing.

 

^ please do this. I like these because the resolution is just a little bit better. I put these on anything my bear goes into as far as buckets, carboys, and kegs are concerned.

 

As an after thought: who cares if you have a leak? It's really not a big deal. You could slap some foil over a carboy opening and ferment like that. And be just fine as long as the krausen didn't push it off.

 

Do you find this takes an accurate measurement of the ambient temp or the wort temp during fermentation?

 

If you're worried your yeast aren't active enough, or that what you have may be old. You have free reign to shake the Jesus out of the carboy for the first day or so. GIve them what they what when you pitch them, and also during active fermentation. Oxygen. Also. If you have dried yeast, or bakers yeast. Throw some in the boil. Yeast also like nutrients with their sugars, and don't mind being cannibals.
That and temperature. I'd get thermometers for your fermentation, and also one for your brewing needs. I keep it analog. Analog doesn't mind getting wet.

 

It takes an accurate reading of the beer temperature. If you look up a photo of them, the thermometer gives you a range within 2 degrees (i.e. 68-70).

 

I want to see you put a bear in a carboy.