Starting gravity question

Weizenheimer · 09-05-2008, 04:18 PM

I just brewed a copper ale from a kit but the starting gravity is off what it is supposed to be. On the box it says 1.042-1.046. My reading was 1.050. Does this mean I boiled too much water out or not enough? Should I consider making any adjustments even though fermentation is kicking along nicely?

**Orfy** · 09-05-2008, 04:21 PM

Nah leave it.
You may not have mixed it properly.

What volume did you end up with?
What was the sample temperature?

**TheJadedDog** · 09-05-2008, 05:42 PM

Several things can cause your gravity reading to be off slightly, especially with extract. If you ended up with under 5 gallons, if you did not get your wort mixed in with your top off water well enough (this happens to me all the time), if your sample temperature was not 60 degrees.

A few gravity points isn't much to worry about anyway.

Weizenheimer · 09-05-2008, 07:39 PM

I did a full boil starting with 6 gallons for an hour. I presume that would leave me with about 5 gallons but it is hard to tell with all the froth on the top of the primary. The sample was taken around 75-80 degrees.

**Orfy** · 09-05-2008, 08:03 PM

If the volume is different then the gravity will be different.