Adding Oxygen after fermentation begins

[Kepler57]

I just brewed a Trippel Ale (6 gallon batch) and i racked it to the primary fermenter (6.5 gallon bucket w/ airlock) and added a Wyeast Activator pack of Belgian Abbey Ale yeast (1214). However i have a feeling that i did not get enough oxygen to dissolve in the wort before sealing the fermenter. It was sealed at 1am on March 26th. The fermentation was slow to begin and remains sluggish.

I am planning on racking to a secondary fermenter in 4-8 days. Would it be beneficial to open the fermenter and stir it to add oxygen? Would this compromise the fermentation in terms of adding bacteria?

Has anyone tried this. Is this a common practice?

Thanks for the help.

~ Mike

[BillyBock]

Kepler: You definitely don't want to add oxygen after fermentation has begun. You'll irreversibly mar your beer with oxdized flavors. Don't rely on the airlock to tell you how the ferment is going. With buckets, the lids don't always seal well and you'll get CO2 escaping through the seam as well as the air lock when the ferment is otherwise fine. Shine a flashlight against the plastic and look for the shadow of the liquid level. You should also see the shadow of the foam covering on top or krausen sticking to the side of the bucket. Another approach is to carefully peek inside while holding your breath--look for the krausen on top of the beer. If it's not there, then look for CO2 bubbles escaping. However, if you feel you must do something, pitch more yeast, not more oxygen at this stage.

v/r
Bill