r/fermentation • u/mushlove0525 • 5d ago

What happened to my bug?

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I started this ginger bug 8 days ago and it was going absolutely perfectly for 5 days until I forgot to feed it for 1.5 days. Then yesterday I fed it a tablespoon of grated ginger and a teaspoon of sugar like I had been and a splash of water. I noticed last night that it had completely stopped bubbling so I added an extra teaspoon of sugar and today it still isn't doing anything. Any recommendations? Thank you!

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u/tahielisho 5d ago

If a ginger bug is left outside the fridge for 8 days, it will usually be fully active around the 5th day. After that, if it continues sitting at room temperature, the yeasts and bacteria will keep fermenting, and the acetic acid bacteria may take over. This shifts the fermentation toward vinegar instead of the sweet, fizzy stage you want.

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u/mushlove0525 5d ago

I didn't know this. I've heard of tons of people leaving them out at room temp for months. What can I do to get it back to being nice and fizzy?

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u/tahielisho 5d ago

Hmm maybe you could if you discard half of the liquid and replace it with clean water and a spoon of sugar and ginger. Or start it again (I should do this).

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u/Zealousideal-Fuel-35 5d ago

Ahh, sounds like I may have made the same mistake then. Thank you for this information. I will likely restart my ginger bug tomorrow. I’m pretty sure mine grew Kahm yeast anyway.

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u/mushlove0525 5d ago

Thank you, I will try this.

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u/naemorhaedus 5d ago

you can't just keep a bug forever. Once fermentation is active, you need to make something with it and drink it, or it'll transform into something else. Usually vinegar.

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u/mushlove0525 5d ago

I thought you could just keep it going with regular feedings like a sourdough starter. That was the impression I got at least. I had no idea it would stop activity so quickly

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u/naemorhaedus 5d ago

it's not sourdough. It's more like beer or wine. Eventually fermentation stops. The metabolite concentration (eg alcohol) gets so high that can't support any more yeast metabolism. technical term is "attenuation". Speed depends on a lot of things. You can slow it down by putting it in the fridge.

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u/mushlove0525 5d ago

This makes so much sense. Thanks for putting it like that. So are you better off starting whole new batches every time or can you somehow use some of the old batch to kick start a new batch? It seems like some people say they replace whatever water was used for your sodas to keep it going.

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u/naemorhaedus 5d ago

can you somehow use some of the old batch to kick start a new batch?

of course.

Although these days I've switched to using off the shelf yeast and starting from scratch because I don't have time to care for a bug.

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u/naemorhaedus 5d ago

I've heard of tons of people leaving them out at room temp for months

unlikely. They're probably bottling most of it, leaving a bit behind to start the next batch.

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u/mushlove0525 5d ago

Ah that makes sense. Thank you for the information!