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Newbie questions?

Northern Brewer General
#1

Hello all and happy Wednesday. I have a few questions in regards to my first ever batch of home brewed beer. first off it has been fermenting since friday evening so 4-5 days, and it seems like there is no activity in the airlock. I have it (american wheat) in a dark place and temp is always between 63 - 68 degrees. my gut tells me not to worry and just let it sit and test it sometime next week. not knowing about hydrometers i didnt take an initial reading. is that correct, should i let it sit and test next week then 3 days later to make sure fermentation is done? also when i boiled i soaked extract in warm water then poured in boiling water. i thought i had everything out of container, but after extract container sat for awile and i was done with boil i realized there was about a 1/4" of extract still in container. my question is will this screw my batch or just make it taste a little different then intended? also can i break the air lock (open container) to test without harming the batch? or is there a certain amount of time i should wait before opening that container?

thanks in advance for the help

#2

Congrats on the first batch.

Let your beer sit 2-3 weeks and then take a reading to make sure it is done. Airlock activity is not necessarily a good indicator of fermentation activity. Yeast needs extra time to clean up after itself so letting it sit is a good thing. The little bit of extract left in the bottle isn’t going to change anything. Obviously you don’t want to keep opening and closing the fermentor but opening it up to take a reading and then re-sealing it shouldn’t cause any kind of issues.

#3

Welcome to the hobby!

Don’t worry, everything is probably just fine. I’ve had a couple beers I never even saw bubble that turned out fine.

A little lost extract is no big deal. That small an ammount shouldn’t even be noticeable.

Don’t worry about exposing it while pulling a sample. Avoid leaving it open overnight or anything, but take the time you need to pull your sample to test.

#4

Save that extract for a starter

#5

damn too late. good to know for next time

#6

thanks again for the help, good to know that my first batch is probably fine. now i’m just toying with the notion of racking half with fruit in a secondary and bottling half. and what am i going to make next. :mrgreen:

#7

Next time using the wort to put in your extract bottle. Shake it up, add it back, and continue to boil. No lost extract.

#8

Sanitize well around the rim of your bucket or carboy before opening. The hydrometer sample is for tasting after your SG reading. Don’t pour it back into the fermentor.

#9

Congrats. You are now a brewer. Have fun, don’t worry and make more beer and read more about making beer - so many great brewers are here ready to comment. I was in your shoes 8 years ago and now regularly brew 10 gallon all grain batches that my friends and BJCP judges confirm are just as good as commercial brands (and for my friends - preferred over them)!

You have entered the most interesting hobby I (and many others here) feel exists.

:cheers:

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