First brew. Removing bucket lid?

I just brewed my first batch on Monday (July 4) using the brew share enjoy kit. It came with the block party ale. Ive got everything in the bucket and the airlock started bubbling after about 12 hours. I checked on it last night (July 6) and it is still pushing the water to one side of the air lock but im not seeing any bubbles unless i touch the lid.

I did purchase the gravity kit as well and have read that I need to take a hydrometer reading. Is it ok to remove the bucket lid to do this? Should I do it now or wait some time?

I have it in the shower in my shop. Temps probably in the low 70s which I see now may be to high. My next batch will have a swamp cooler or a water bath.

I think it is a bit too early to check a gravity. Only about 72 hours or so? As you will hear(see?) on this forum, airlock activity is not a great indicator of what is going on, especially in a bucket. Give it some more time and check a gravity after a full week (or longer).
Agree with getting a swamp cooler for your next brew. A Must.

1 Like

The forum search function works rather well. Just type in “swamp cooler”.

I usually wait at least 10 days to take the first SG reading. I don’t plan to bottle beers until they have been in the primary for three weeks so I’m in no hurry. I’ll take a second reading about day 15 to 18. Quite often the first SG is the same as the second indicating FG has been reached.

I agree with @voodoo_donut and @flars Don’t rush it. Given your warm fermentation you’ll want the yeast to clean up after themselves a bit.

I seldom take a gravity reading until I’m ready to package, which for me is kegging. Usually 3 weeks at the earliest unless I’m rushing a quick ale to the glass or feel like something isn’t right with a batch. If you’ve used good process and pitched the proper amount of yeast you really should just stay out of the way and let the yeast do their work.

1 Like

Agree with most of the above. If you done everthing right, it will have fermented to its desired final gravity (and eliminated undesireable byproducts), usually in two (ale) or three (lagers and strong ales) weeks. No reason, other than curiosity, to check prior to packaging, really, unless you believe there is a problem. As I said, if you done everything right and have good yeast, there shouldn’t be a problem. Be aware: if you Do open your bucket, oxegon will enter, to some extent (always a bad thing)
My personal M.O. is… 1) ferment 2) keg 3) gravity reading from first keg tapping

I generally sanitize a hydrometer and drop it in the keg prior to closing it up.

New brewer (first post) with almost the exact same question - I brewed my first batch on October 8th, which was the same Block Party Amber that came in the brew share enjoy kit. My fermenter bucket had bubbling in the airlock for the first 1-2 days, then it subsided and I’ve just left it alone for the two weeks or so since then.

It’s been 12 days at this point, and I was planning to bottle this weekend on day 14 or 15. Should I remove the lid and take an SG reading with my hydrometer for these last few days to make sure it’s holding steady, or keep it closed and just take a FG reading this weekend when I go to bottle? Assuming that it’s close to the recommended FG I should be good to bottle, but I wasn’t sure if I needed a few days of readings prior to make sure it’s no longer changing.

While you’re probably fine to bottle, I would take the readings to be sure. Make sure you sanitize your hands, the hydrometer, any beer thief you’re using to get beer, and the bucket lid before you proceed, and there’s almost no risk to the beer. On the other hand, if you bottle without being sure the fermentation is done, there’s a small risk of catastrophic bottle failure. Which can be really really bad.

Take two hydrometer readings. The further they are apart in days will give you more accuracy if the fermentation is still going, but very slowly. I usually wait three weeks before considering bottling. At three weeks almost all suspended particles have dropped out. The beer in the bottle has very little sediment after conditioning by adding the extra time in the primary…

uberculture and flars - thanks for the quick feedback!

I’ll be sure to sanitize anything coming in contact with the brew, including myself! Sounds like I should be ready by this weekend, but I’ll take multiple readings in the event that it does need another week.

Ok - so I checked it today and looks like I’m at SG = 1.015, from an OG = 1.048 after two weeks. That would put me right around an ABV of 4.25-4.35%, which falls in line with an amber. Sanitized the theif, lid and my hands. I’ll check again in a day or two when ready to bottle this weekend to be sure.

I tried a drink of the sample, and it tastes like a beer too! I’l probably get used to it, but it’s pretty exciting for my first brew.