I've been brewing my water kefir for nearly 2 months. Previously the water was very bubbly. I've been using an 8 litre continuous brew jar. A few days ago I decided to clean the jar so I removed the grains and after cleaning I returned a quarter of the original kefir liquid and filled the rest with sugar water and returned the grains.
Since that day the water has no bubbles at all. I'm in a warm tropical climate. It's 82f temperature or 28c. It's been 3 days since I cleaned the jar. If I tap the jar there are no bubbles.
Have my grains become inactive or dormant?
Also I noticed when I returned the grains to the fresh sugar water the grains made the water go cloudy. Is this a sign of too much yeast?
I have been using only white sugar so last night I added a teaspoon of molasses, 2 unsulphered prunes, a chunk of ginger and 1/4 tsp of baking soda. This morning there is no change. I've also added a slice of lemon with peel as I read it can help balance the pH if there's too much yeast.
I have backup grains in the fridge. Should I remove the current grains and put them in the fridge for a rest and use my fridge grains instead? Is there anything else I can do to get the grains to become active and make bubbles again?
Even before I cleaned the jar noticed my second ferment was much less fizzy then previously. I think the grains have been slowing down for a while.
Any advice is appreciated.