advice on when to move to 2nd fermentor..

[BeerLuvnGrl]

well our beer has been in the first fermentor for about 7 days.. activity has really slowed down now.. when will i know when i should move it to the carboy?

also any good advice for cleaning that carboy and gettin it sanitized?

thanks!

 

[timdsmith72]

I always wait until the bubbles in the airlock are coming less than 1 per minute...Then wait another 2 days...Then transfer to secondary.

As for cleaning/sanitizing...I fill the carboy up with water and scrub good with carboy brush. Dump that water out and fill again with water and treat with iodophor. Let sit for a few minutes and siphon the solution into another bucket. Once it's in the bucket you can use it to sanitize the rest of your equipment. The siphoning also sanitizes the inside of your racking canes and tubing killing two birds with one stone. I'm sure there are better ways to do it, but.....

 

[ajf]

The way I clean the carboy is to give i good rinse to get all the loose stuff out, then fill with an oxiclean solution (1 tbsp per gal of hot water). Leave it to sit for a few hours (I leave it overnight), then rinse thoroughly and store upside down.

I sanitize just like Tim said, but make sure the bucket holds more than the carboy.

-a.

 

[alemonger]

Generally, I look at secondary as only a clarification step. I'll finish fermenting the beer in the primary 10-14 days, then move to secondary to allow it to settle out a little more for a week or so before bottling. Regarding cleaning the carboy, just fill it with warm water and b-brite or PBW and let it sit overnight. All the junk on the sides will come loose and you'll only need to rinse out. MUCH easier than scrubbing with a brush IMO.

 

[BeerLuvnGrl]

thanks! i appreciate the advice!