[deepsouth]

here is a not so pale wheat ale that i brewed and fermented with white labs 320 american hefe.....

i had to change the water bottle out about 24 hours in and it bubbled like mad....  i made a starter into a 1.060+ beer




this one is obviously fermenting, but i can't catch the first bubble....

i used two packets of safale us-05 in a 1.080+ beer.




these orange caps "click" on these better bottles and you can grab the hose and not pull them off, but if you wiggle the cap, there is some "play".


i've used this same blow off deal on three beers with no ill effects, but i've never had one not bubble when it ferments.


ideas?


thanks in advance.

[majorvices]

Do  yourself a favor and don;t stress about bubbles. If you pitched enough yeast and are fermenting at the correct temps your should be fine. Bubbles really only mean Co2 is coming out of solution. You probably have a leak in your set up somewhere, or your are close to being finished. If you have visual confirmation of fermentation - no worries. Let it go its course and take a hydro reading at the proper time.

[deepsouth]

but will it be safe to let these beers sit until i keg them in about three or so weeks?    once it stops and the co2 goes, would i then be exposed to contamination?


i'm cool with my pitching amounts and i'm fermenting at the very low end of the recommendations and everything visually is "same as it ever was, same as it ever was" (talking heads i digress).... 

future contamination and oxidation worries me since i brewed these for my not yet belated 40th birthday party and i'll be PI$$ED if i screw these up and i have to try to have a birthday party with beer available from mississippi.

[rbclay]

but will it be safe to let these beers sit until i keg them in about three or so weeks?    once it stops and the co2 goes, would i then be exposed to contamination?
 
since CO2 is heavier than air you shouldn't worry. when you remove the airlock, you'll still have a blanket of co2 on your beer. i would remove the blow-off tube and put an airlock on it. you'll probably get some bubbling and that will make you feel better! i like the universal carboy bung (http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/universal-carboy-bung-drilled.html) that you can put an airlock in rather than the orange caps myself.

[deepsouth]

but will it be safe to let these beers sit until i keg them in about three or so weeks?    once it stops and the co2 goes, would i then be exposed to contamination?
 
since CO2 is heavier than air you shouldn't worry. when you remove the airlock, you'll still have a blanket of co2 on your beer. i would remove the blow-off tube and put an airlock on it. you'll probably get some bubbling and that will make you feel better! i like the universal carboy bung (http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/universal-carboy-bung-drilled.html) that you can put an airlock in rather than the orange caps myself.

i have some of those.   i'll switch to that one.  i hope i have two of them.  i didn't know those fit into a better bottle.

[rbclay]

sorry- i don't know if they fit better bottles- i have glass carboys. but they do say "universal"...

[deepsouth]

hahahaha.  yeah, they don't fit better bottles!  it's all good.  i did find a different bigger rubber stopper that i must have picked up somewhere.  i put it on the pale wheat and i'll hope the wine shop has another one for an inflated price for the other beer.

thanks.

cheers.

[majorvices]

Yeah,. when fermenattion slows just fit it with an airlock (or fit one know if there is no blow over). You will be fine. That said, Co2 will mix with o2 eventually if there is a leak somewhere. But the beer will be pushing Co2 out for quite some time.

[deepsouth]

Yeah,. when fermenattion slows just fit it with an airlock (or fit one know if there is no blow over). You will be fine. That said, Co2 will mix with o2 eventually if there is a leak somewhere. But the beer will be pushing Co2 out for quite some time.

last night i found a single rubber stopper for a BB and i put that on the pale wheat beer and put an airlock on it and it is still bubbling after a week!

i'll probably give the dipa another couple days before i fit it with an airlock.

thanks!

oh yeah.....  barrel aged dipa bottled one week ago today.   i'll be shooting one your way for criticism.

[deepsouth]

this morning, the pale wheat ale that i brewed eight days ago and put an airlock on, had a clogged airlock.  took it off and put the blow-off back on. 

also hearing a few bubbles off the ipa.


i'm fermenting these on the low end.  do i need to increase the temps toward the end to clean the beer up?

[majorvices]

How steady is your fermentation temp? Its the rare ale indeed that isn't done after 8 days, let alone has a blow off at day eight! That sounds to like the fermentation stalled at some point, the temp rose and it started again. Rather than listening to the bubbles in the other beer I recommend taking a hydrometer reading.

[deepsouth]

How steady is your fermentation temp? Its the rare ale indeed that isn't done after 8 days, let alone has a blow off at day eight! That sounds to like the fermentation stalled at some point, the temp rose and it started again. Rather than listening to the bubbles in the other beer I recommend taking a hydrometer reading.

i can do that tonight for sure.  my fermentation temps have been steady & solid throughout.  i ferment in a freezer with external temp control and i'm ocd and check the temp about every couple hours while i'm at home via therm. i stuck inside the freezers.

[majorvices]

Maybe I missed it, but did you pitch enough yeast? Underpitching can sometimes do this. Or, what strain of yeast are you using?

[deepsouth]

Maybe I missed it, but did you pitch enough yeast? Underpitching can sometimes do this. Or, what strain of yeast are you using?

that's up top...  wlp320 w/ starter on the pale wheat and two packs of us-05 on the dipa.  according to calculations, both beer should have been more than adequately pitched.

[deepsouth]

ok, i took a gravity reading this morning on the pale wheat ale and it said it was still 11 brix?  i'm going to take another sample this afternoon and check it with a hydrometer.