Too much headspace/what to do?

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by Scope4Beer, Dec 31, 2018.

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  1. Scope4Beer

    Scope4Beer Zealot (677) Sep 28, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Trader

    Yesterday I did a CO2 transfer for my stout from fermenter to secondary, which contained 0.5 gal of maple syrup and a vanilla tincture. I collected 5.1 gal of wort initially into the fermenter and pitched WLP002 English Ale to have lower attenuation (hit my target of 1.025 after fermentation) and have it floc as much as possible to minimize secondary fermentation of the maple syrup and retain some flavor. I figured I'd have a little under 5 gal of beer to transfer, so adding the 0.5 gal of syrup I'd be a little over 5 gal in total. Also figuring some fermentation of the syrup, I thought it safest to use my 6.5 gal carboy as a secondary rather than a 5 gal carboy to have some headspace. I ended up having a total of 4.8-4.9 gal of liquid in total in the carboy after transfer, leaving me 1.6-1.7 gal of headspace. There's inevitably some CO2 that bubbles through the beer for about 5 sec once transfer is complete, but I didn't bother to purge the headspace with CO2. As of this morning (12 hrs after transfer), there's no signs of secondary fermentation. The carboy is sitting in my basement that's probably 60-62F. Should I:
    1. Let it ride and not worry
    2. Purge the headspace with CO2
    3. Force CO2 through the beer itself to better purge the headspace
    4. Move the carboy to someplace warmer to see if some fermentation occurs
    TIA
     
    #1 Scope4Beer, Dec 31, 2018
  2. GormBrewhouse

    GormBrewhouse Pooh-Bah (2,111) Jun 24, 2015 Vermont
    Pooh-Bah

    ride baby ride
     
    #2 GormBrewhouse, Dec 31, 2018
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  3. JackHorzempa

    JackHorzempa Grand Pooh-Bah (3,375) Dec 15, 2005 Pennsylvania
    Society Pooh-Bah

    Another vote for #1: let it ride.

    Although #4 wouldn't hurt and perhaps it would indeed 'expedite' the fermentation of the maple syrup addition.

    Cheers!
     
    #3 JackHorzempa, Dec 31, 2018
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  4. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    I'd expect all of the sugars from the maple syrup to ferment, regardless of yeast strain, assuming the yeast is healthy and not bumping up against its ABV tolerance.

    Always prudent when adding fermentables to secondary.

    WLP002 can work at 60-62, but of course will work faster at higher temps. For half a gallon of maple syrup, I wouldn't hesitate to bump the temp up a bit (if I were in a hurry).
     
    #4 VikeMan, Dec 31, 2018
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  5. MostlyNorwegian

    MostlyNorwegian Pooh-Bah (2,236) Feb 5, 2013 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah

    Ignore it, and let it finish. Your yeast will figure out what to do, which is to seek out the sugar in the syrup and put it to use, and that will take care of the headspace. Depending on where you are in the gravity race to final. You can also cap it off and start getting some that c02 back into solution.
     
    #5 MostlyNorwegian, Dec 31, 2018
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  6. Scope4Beer

    Scope4Beer Zealot (677) Sep 28, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Trader

    Thanks for the responses. I decided to let it ride and by the following day there was some slight activity in the airlock, so no worries about too much oxygen in the headspace anymore.
     
    #6 Scope4Beer, Jan 1, 2019
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  7. deadwolfbones

    deadwolfbones Pundit (795) Jun 21, 2014 Oregon

    I routinely primary 3 gal batches in a 7.5 gal fermenter and I've never had oxidation issues. I know it's a bit different with extended aging/secondary, but yeah, you're gonna be fine.
     
    #7 deadwolfbones, Jan 2, 2019
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