gwashingk

Recipes 

Is it ok to leave the hydrometer floating in the carboy for a couple days/weeks? Will it give an accurate reading the whole time?

ArcaneXor

Recipes 

No, because kraeusen will stick to it and mess with the reading. Plus it's difficult to get it out without breaking it if you just let it free-float in a carboy.

__________________
The Fiesty(sic) Goat Brewery est. 2007 & Clusterfuggle Experimental Ales est. 2009
Planned: Fat Man Brown Porter (Pro-Am #2), WLP 351 Hefeweizen, WLP 860 Munich Helles
Primary: Centennial Falcon IPA (Pro-Am #1), sLambic I
Secondary: Flanders Red
Kegged:Himmel un Ääd Kölsch #8, Farmhouse Session Saison Pilot Batch, Chocolate Milk Stout, Pale Ale, Chili Smoked Porter, Berliner Weisse w/ Brett #3

jmprdood

Recipes 

I may just be OCD, but I don't want anything left in my beer but the yeast doing its work.

Lots of people "thief" samples for SG readings - I just sanitize and float my hydrometer in my fermenter (plastic bukets are very nice for this - obviously carboys are a different story).

My advice is to NOT leave the hydro in your fermenter.

__________________
If you're stupid, you have to be tough.

dukesbb37

Recipes 

sanitize a little bit of fishing line and tie it to the hydrometer. then just "reel" your hydrometer back when your done.

gwashingk

Recipes 

fishing line! that's great, thanks!

corn

Recipes 

this may be common knowledge, but I have discovered that the outer cylinder of your auto siphon can be used as a thief sampler.

remove the cane portion use the outer cylinder only. sanatize, then place bottom of tube under the surface of the beer. in a quick motion work the tube straight up and down. on the down stroke beer will come into the tube, and on the way up the check will close trapping the beer inside

gwashingk

Recipes 

No, I had no idea about that. Another great bit of info, thanks!

Jamminjoenapo

Recipes 

Spend the 12 bucks or so on the fermtech thief. It fits a hydrometer in it and fits through all my carboys. One if the best things I've bought. Also great for getting samples. It is essentially a large bottling wand.

badbrew

Recipes 

I think I may try the fishing line thing because I hate wasting beer and don't feel like drinking flat beer all the time either. But I don't think I am going to leave it in the fermenter though.