fourth day in and a reading of 1.014

[gplategt]

when my cider gets to 1.000 will framenting stop by itself?

 

[Brewtrog]

It'll be a bit below 1.000, but when there is no sugar left then fermentation will stop, unless you add more sugar (to a point)

 

[gplategt]

ok thanks, how much below 1.000 wil it go? 995

 

[Brewtrog]

My tea wine got down to 0.990, but anything between that and 1.000 really, I think the kit stuff I do generally gets to about 0.998

 

[gplategt]

hay people todays reading was 1006, getting a bubble every 8 Seconds but my hydrometer sais its ok to bottle, i am going to leave it longer untill 1.000 or 995. will it stop then? im going to leave it a couple days in the fv also as its rather cloudy any info on getting it clear would be great also i only have the one fv and intend on putting it into b aottles to carbonate and age in a warm room for a week or two, then into the cold for a week then drink it, have i got that rite? :

 

[gplategt]

make that a bubble every 20 secs

 

[Brewtrog]

The general rule is wait till the hydrometer reading stays the same for a couple of days, personally I tend to leave it a bit longer than that, just to be on the safe side. The cheapest way to let it clear is time, just leaving it should have it clear up soon enough. The normal rule of thumb for carbonating is 2 weeks warm two weeks cold. Make sure you have bottles that can take pressure, you don't want them going pop in the night.

 

[gplategt]

thanks for that, do i still add sugar to the bottles for it to carbonate?
i just took another reading and its at 1.003 so i think it may Stop over night or tomorow fingers are crossed then after that its just the waiting game lol will it be safe to sample when the bubbles stop?
it has only been 5 days im quite happy with the results, if it stops at 995 my cider will be 8.4 : % happy days and nights.

 

[gplategt]

thats it stopped at 1.001 max 1.002, can i move it to somewere a little cooler?for a few days to settle that way its easier for me to bottle? whats the lowest temp it can be know?

 

[gplategt]

well ive moved it 2 the kitchen which is 20 degs c but that will drop over nite i hope i dont ruin it with what ive done or with the temp 2nite

 

[gplategt]

its framenting again lol is that because i moved it ?

 

[Brewtrog]

You may have put some of the yeast back into suspension, but it probably hadn't stopped, as I said it'll take a couple of days for you to know for certain it has stopped, and it should be below 1.000. 5 days is a short ferment, even kits take at least 7 (and they're fast), brewing is a hobby that has a fair element of patience. Yes you will need to add sugar to the bottles, either half or a full teaspoon per bottle, depending on how fizzy you want your cider.

 

[gplategt]

is that to a 2 ltr bottle?

 

[gplategt]

its dropped down to 1.000 today with nm sighns of any bubbles their is pressure tho so its still framenting i think?
the air lock shows sighns of pressure at times and other times it sits level?
also how much sugar per 2ltr bottle?
also lol, why dose it have to drop under 1.000? and if i have to add more yeast how much and why?
im a noob lol

 

[Brewtrog]

Keep checking over the next few days, at a guess it'll keep fermenting for a bit yet.
I've never bottled into 2L bottles, only 500ml/pint bottles, it's one tsp per pint bottle, I don't know if that scales linearly to 2L, so you'll need to find out from someone else. Are the 2L bottles going to be able to stand the pressure? I've heard mixed comments on if normal pop bottles can actually stand bottle conditioning.
It will drop below 1.000 because ethanol has a lower density than water, thus lowering the specific gravity.
You won't need to add more yeast.

 

[gplategt]

thanks brewtrog i checked it today and its stil at 1.000 max 1.001. axd its dropped more pressure i will however keep checking daily the top say 2cms is cleaner than the rest of the cider. it dropped to 18 degs c last nite and for the 1st 5 days was at a steady 22 degs c, would that kill the yeast?

the empty cider bottles lol

 

[Brewtrog]

Maybe give it a day or so, just to make sure. If you want a clear cider, you'll probably be waiting at least a month anyway.
the quoted optimum temp for fermentation is 18-25 degrees, preferably closer to 20, so no it won't kill the yeast, actually low temps will never kill yeast, just send it to sleep. temps higher than 30s will kill yeast though.
Was the cider fizzy or flat cider, if it was a fizzy cider (e.g. Weston's Old Rosie) it should be fine, if it was a flat cider (e.g. Weston's Scrumpy) then you need new bottles.

 

[gplategt]

strongbow bottles lol, do u know what temp will put it to sleep? or is that a how long is a ball of wool question lol. im going 2 put it back in the warmer som fwor a week or two may be the best idea ive ever had lol

 

[Brewtrog]

You'd have to ask someone with more experience if strongbow bottles will be able to handle the pressure (maybe start a new thread). I'm not 100% on what temp will put yeast to sleep enough to stop fermentation, I imagine at highest single figures. Yeah, being in the warm will definitely help it.

 

[ScottM]

Patience is the key with brewing bud. You really need to just leave it well alone and let it do its thing rather than checking it every 10 minutes to see what it's doing. If a brew gets going, you can pretty much chuck it out the way for 10 days and not even think about it. As long as the temp is around 20 and stable, and it's out of sunlight, everything should work out fine, so don't worry. After 10 days take a reading, the next day take another reading and the next day take another. If all 3 readings match, and they are approx the FG that you would expect to see, then it's time to get the brew off the trub. If you plan to bulk mature then transferring to a secondary vessel is your best option, if you want to mature/condition in the bottle then just do so.

Messing around with your brew just opens up all manner of nasties to your beverage.