My fermentation is not starting / no bubblesUpdated an hour ago

Fermentation Not Starting

What it means

After pitching yeast, there’s little to no visible activity within the expected time (usually 6–24 hours).

Common causes

• Yeast viability issues – expired, overheated, or stressed yeast

• Pitching too cold – wort below the yeast’s active temperature range

• Lack of oxygen – yeast can’t reproduce effectively

• Wort too hot at pitching – kills or damages yeast

• Incorrect gravity reading – wort may not be what you think it is

Typical signs

• No airlock bubbling

• No krausen forming

• Gravity unchanged after a day or two

Stuck Fermentation

What it means

Fermentation starts normally but stops prematurely, leaving gravity higher than expected.

Common causes

• Temperature drop – yeast goes dormant

• Under-pitching – not enough yeast to finish the job

• High alcohol levels – yeast becomes stressed in strong beers

• Low nutrients – yeast lacks what it needs for later stages

• Highly flocculent yeast strains – drop out early

Typical signs

• Gravity stops decreasing

• Krausen (foam formation by the yeast in the first day(s) of fermentation) drops early

• Beer tastes overly sweet

• Yeast cake looks compact (yeast settled too soon)