i'm doing my first beer kit

[scotty]

it s american lager.
i have a dedicated refrigerator and a ranco control for it so my temperature control is not a problem.
my confusion comes from the instructions.

first of all it said to put the beer under lock imidiately-- i did this. it is in the refer at 50 degrees F in a sealed fermenrer with an air lock.

i always thought that some time not being in the anerobic condition was good because it allowed the yeast to propigate the liquid-

well now im reading the next step which is to come when fermentation ceases.


transfer to a carboy under lock and do temperature changes slowly to get the temp down into the35-40 degF range.

all this is under my control but


WHAT I DONT UNDERSTAND IS

the transfet to the carboy--
1-- do they mean rack off the lees or actually transfer the entire amount of liquid including the yeast that has settled to the bottom? THE INSTRUCTIONS SAY TRANSFER

ok i found an answer on northern brewers website

Two-Stage Fermentation - Some say that there is an extra ingredient when making big beers: time. In general, the bigger and more alcoholic the beer, the longer it takes to be ready. When you are aging the beer before bottling for more than a month or so, it is important to rack the beer off the yeast and other sediment that falls to the bottom of your primary fermentation, otherwise you will wind up with undesirable off-flavors. The transferring and extra time also result in a clearer beer. The period of aging after racking the beer off the sediment but before bottling is called secondary fermentation, and it is best accomplished by using a 5 gallon glass carboy or Better Bottle as a storage vessel. Our extract kits all contain detailed instructions on secondary fermentation.

I still dont agree with puting any yeast populated fermentable liquid under lock without first allowing the yeast to populate the liquid. BUT I NEVER MADE BEER BEFORE

[scotty]

I checked the fermenter bucket this morning and again this evening. the refer is holding a nice 50 to 51 degrees F. BUT BUT there is absolutely no bubbling in the air lock/ i have never tried using a plastic bucket with a snap on lid for an air locked fermenter. i guess i wil have to open it in a couple of days to see if there is any activity--this is why i wanted a screw top bucket.
i didnt like the one i got from kRAUSE and i cant find a 6 or 7 gallon screw top that is normally shaped--

round.

[Azframer]

An air Lock is a device also called a bubbler. It allows Co2 to escape without letting oxygen in. Google Air Lock and you will see what it looks like. You can make one pretty easy by using a bucket with sealed lid 1/4 silicone hose and a clear plastic bottle with lid. Drill a hole in your fermenter lid slightly smaller than your hose. Drill 2 holes in the cap of clear plastic bottle one slightly smaller than hose and the other it does not matter the size it will just be letting pressure out of bottle. Stick the hose about a inch into the fermenter lid and then run it into the plastic bottle with about 2" of water in it. Make sure hose is about a inch below the water so it bubbles.

[scotty]

i have about 12 air locks--that is not my concern.

[Azframer]

Well it could have been the yeast then, I don't really know what to tell you I have only been studying likker. And I don't know the full process you went through to get where you are.pitch temp? PH level? Temp to low to soon? Yeast has got to be able to go at low temp? what yeast did you use? What was grain bill?

[Dnderhead]

maybe i can help, for most beer kits the secondary ferment is not so much of a ferment as it is clearing the beer,
so rack from the primary into the secondary leaving as much trub behind as you can,as little or no co2 is produced
this should be in a carboy with little to no air space.

even after it has "cleared" then you rack it into bottles ,there is still some yeast left in it,so you can just add some sugar/bottle and it will ferment in the bottle
making it carbonated.
(all grain is a bit diferant)

[scotty]

Right now i'm beginning to think that this plastic bucket is definitely not air tight and thats why the air lock is not bubbling--
so i will give it a coupe of days then snap the cover off to visually inspect for activity.

i re activated the kits ale yeast before i pitched it-- the instructions said to cool the wort to 65 degrees before pitching which i did. he only temp deviation i made was when i had the remote ranco stat set for 50 degrees as the instructions said but i did not convert it to a cooling stat first. the temp in the refer went to 70 for a short while-- the ranco needs to be internally switched from heating to cooling.


the reason why i dont take the cover off right now is that i am weak and need someone else to do it/

i have made dozens of batches of wine and dont feel that i made any mistakes that would have killed the yeast.
im banking on the bucket not being a good seal.


at any rate if it is not fermenting i will post more info and for now say thanks for the replys.


it is an extract kit and i believe an idiots delight but maybe i did something idiotic--

thanks again guys

[Grumpy]

have a few of those snap lid buckets myself and they leak like buggery

use to rack off before fermentation was complete say 3/4 or so

then more co2 was produced to protect in the second bucket so you don't have to worry about air space/infection

went to kegs and now don't bother with racking

[Azframer]

Right now i'm beginning to think that this plastic bucket is definitely not air tight and thats why the air lock is not bubbling--
so i will give it a coupe of days then snap the cover off to visually inspect for activity.

Get some cling wrap or plastic wrap and wrap it around the bucket to seal it to see if bubbler starts showing any signs of going. Or shipping tape. Then you will know where you stand with the lid and bucket combo.

[scotty]

I just orderd a 6 gallon bucket with a screw on top in case i try beer again. ill get this bucket back into my wine making tools inventory as soon as i rack the beer. it is just a bit confusing because im so new with the beer thing..

btw i also just ordered 2 5 liter barrels. they are on sale-- i hope they are good.

http://www.oakbarrelsltd.com/5-liter-black-steel.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[Dnderhead]

did you not rack to clear your wine? beer much the same,for small batches I use the same equipment.a primary,then rack into a carboy or closed fermenter.
the difference? wine you rack several times to git rid of all trub/yeast, beer once as you want it cleared but a bit of yeast if your going to bottle condition.,
some use conical fermenter witch replace both.but you still use the same equipment.i did not fiend the transition from a ferment for distilling to beer /wine
hard as it just added a few more steps.i do have a filter but it is not worth using on small batches.

[scotty]

I agree DH i just want a screw top fermenter bucket that seals properly. another problem is that just opening the snap on top any time i want to inspect is not an option. sooo if the airlock will bubble as on a sealed container then i could at least see the activity.

[rangaz]

I think you're stressing too much, just chill, sit back and enjoy a drink while the yeast does its work.
The temps all seem fine and if you're not seeing bubbles, I would say that the vessel is a bit leaky and that temp is on the low end for an ale, making it a slow ferment.
Most ale yeasts ferment at higher temp like 18-24 deg C (sorry for metric) and will take about 5 days to finish primary. I usually ferment for 7 days at 18C, rack the beer off the yeast cake and then let the beer clear and mature for 1-2 weeks. At a lower temp it will probably take about 10 days for primary.
As for not oxygenating the wort before locking it, I would guess they are trying to idiot proof the instructions to minimise risk of infection. I do it for every batch.
Good luck

[scotty]

I think you have it there--i did oxygenate-- i figure anything that was boiled needs to be oxygenated-- over stress well i dont have any nerves-- was self employed a good part of my life. However i will agree i am a bit anxious to see if something is happening.

Btw these instructions call for holding the temps around 50 degrees F9 10 degrees C for two weks then rack off lees an again reducing the temp 2 degreesF a day till down to 38F3 degrees C-etc etc.


BTW I APPRECIATE ALL THE INPUTS