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Carbonation problems

Extract/Partial Mash Brewing
#1

I brewed a 5 gal. batch of Dead Ringer IPA, spent 2 weeks in the primary, 2 in the secondary, and then 2 in the bottle. Opened one up yesterday and it wasn’t carbonated at all. Tried one from another case, thinking the primary sugar wasn’t mixed in properly. Still no carbonation.

I’ve seen on other threads people have forgotten to add priming sugar. All though I wouldn’t typically rule this out, I’m certain I didn’t forget to add it, as I can see the left over portion in the bag which I measured the priming sugar out of.

Should I wait longer? Is there anything I can do at this point? Any help would be appreciated.

Sam

#2

What kind of bottles are you using? What did you use for priming? What temp did you have your bottles in before you place in in the fridge?

#3

Patience is your first option. I would wait at least 2 weeks and maybe 3 or 4 more to let the carbonation develop. There is enough yeast in the beer and if you added the primer, there is enough sugar.

Try and wait it out a few more weeks. Good luck.

#4

Thanks guys, I’ll definitely let them sit a little longer. I bottled in 12oz amber bottles, primed with corn sugar, and they’ve been sitting at room temp (approx 65-70F). At this point should they be moved to a fridge or left at room temp?

#5

If there is a concern about lack of carbonation, it is generally preferred to keep the bottle conditioning process at higher than serving temperatures (ie room temperature).

If I was in your position, I would keep the bottles at room temperature (in a nice dark spot) for a few more weeks. If you are so inclined, you can move one bottle to the fridge every week to chill and drink. It should give you an idea on the progress of the carbonation.

#6

take each bottle and flip end for end a few times to get the yeast back into suspension. I do this with and never have a problem with low carbonation.

#7

Next batch, fill a soda bottle. Squeeze the O2 out and screw the cap on. As CO2 is formed the bottle will expand.

Still give the bottles at least 3 weeks to carbonate.

#8

[quote=“Nighthawk”]Next batch, fill a soda bottle. Squeeze the O2 out and screw the cap on. As CO2 is formed the bottle will expand.

[/quote]

This is an awesome idea to see if the carbonation is building. Thanks for sharing.

Randy
McAllen, TX

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