Three questions-two brews

Brewed for the first time Nov. 14th [Amer. amber ale]. Tapped
a 5l keg yesterday, nice color, good flavor but carbonation seemed
a bit low and the head only lasted 1-2 minutes. Is that a result of low
carb. or that it is an ale? I certainly made some mistakes along the
way but reasonably happy with the result.

Dec. 13th I brewed a BPA, My ferm. temps have been 63/68-
night/day times. Iwas planning a 3 week primary but I still have
ferm. going. Bubbles still coming 15-20 seconds at 64 degrees.

Should I start to warm up my ferm. temps or leave it alone?

Should I plan for a longer primary?

This is my second brew so I’m still trying to get a feel for things.

[quote=“AL_Richard”]Brewed for the first time Nov. 14th [Amer. amber ale]. Tapped
a 5l keg yesterday, nice color, good flavor but carbonation seemed
a bit low and the head only lasted 1-2 minutes. Is that a result of low
carb. or that it is an ale? I certainly made some mistakes along the
way but reasonably happy with the result.

Dec. 13th I brewed a BPA, My ferm. temps have been 63/68-
night/day times. Iwas planning a 3 week primary but I still have
ferm. going. Bubbles still coming 15-20 seconds at 64 degrees.

Should I start to warm up my ferm. temps or leave it alone?

Should I plan for a longer primary?

This is my second brew so I’m still trying to get a feel for things.[/quote]

Extract brews often have less foam than you might expect. It has to do with a loss of protein when the extract is made.

The bubbles in the BPA could very likely just be dissolved CO2 coming out of solution and have nothing to do with fermentation. The only way to know if it’s still fermenting is to take gravity readings over several days. If the gravity doesn’t change, it’s done fermenting. A 3 week primary is generally a good length. Let the beer, not the calendar, make the schedule for you, though.

Thanks Denny, that’s some info I’ll be able to take forward. Much appreciated.