When to move to secondary

Hey brewers,

I brewed an IPA 7 days ago, fermenting has nearly stopped in primary. I know it has been 7 days and many say the rest of the days after are for clearing and fementation is minimal. Should I be ok to rack beer into secondary for Dry hopping. (1 oz cascade, .5 oz simcoe) for 7 days or should I wait until the 10th - 14th in primary?

brew4allMI said:

Hey brewers,

I brewed an IPA 7 days ago, fermenting has nearly stopped in primary. I know it has been 7 days and many say the rest of the days after are for clearing and fementation is minimal. Should I be ok to rack beer into secondary for Dry hopping. (1 oz cascade, .5 oz simcoe) for 7 days or should I wait until the 10th - 14th in primary?

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The only way to tell is to take a hydrometer reading. If you have consistent numbers 2-3 days apart then you can transfer to secondary. I normally leave in primary for 2-3 weeks then rack.

I always dry hop in primary and have never had an issue. Let it ferment for a week, add hops and let sit for another week or so.

Thanks for the info guys. Just pretty thirsty but want the beer to turn out well. Never heard of dry hopping in Primary... never had any issues with fermentation?

most of us get into the habit of leaving the beer alone for 2 weeks in the primary....I try to brew on a weekend day and two weeks later put it in the bottle or secondary, depending on the beer. Some guys use secondaries and some do not we all have our personal reasons why we do whatever...do what works for you. Just make sure you are done fermenting in primary before you do a damn thing.

PackerfaninSanDiego said:

most of us get into the habit of leaving the beer alone for 2 weeks in the primary....I try to brew on a weekend day and two weeks later put it in the bottle or secondary, depending on the beer. Some guys use secondaries and some do not we all have our personal reasons why we do whatever...do what works for you. Just make sure you are done fermenting in primary before you do a damn thing.

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i agree with doing what works for you. I have brewed a similar IPA but was patient with 2 week primary 5 day secondary dry hop. What are the best ways to test gravity without contamination. I do have a flask and a baster that I sanitize with a dilution of iodine and use to test my OG... I just fear contamination.

brew4allMI said:

Thanks for the info guys. Just pretty thirsty but want the beer to turn out well. Never heard of dry hopping in Primary... never had any issues with fermentation?

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No, fermentation is usually complete or almost complete after a week...most of the time. Search for dry hopping in primary and you'll find a lot of information

brew4allMI said:

i agree with doing what works for you. I have brewed a similar IPA but was patient with 2 week primary 5 day secondary dry hop. What are the best ways to test gravity without contamination. I do have a flask and a baster that I sanitize with a dilution of iodine and use to test my OG... I just fear contamination.

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In my opinion, when your beer is showing signs that it is done fermenting(no bubbles in the airlock) the alcohol should be high enough to kill most things that would cause an infection. I'm not saying don't be carefull, but it shouldn't be a big deal.

I let all my beer sit for at least 2 weeks in primary. From what I have found its almost guaranteed fermentation is done ( check your gravity to be sure ). it also lets more yeast settle out of suspension, less yeast entering the secondary means leas of a chance of getting any off or odd flavors from them.

If you choose to use a secondary, transfer once you have reached stable final gravity. You're not wrong in using a secondary; I did so for my first 8-10 beers and they turned out just fine. A common practice is that unless you are going to mix adjunct ingredients with your brew, to use a "primary only" practice. If it's a lower gravity beer I go two weeks, and if it's a bigger gravity beer I go 3 weeks (regardless, still use a hydrometer for confirmation). I've gone to this, and it's one less transfer to deal with, and the final product is still crystal clear. I was out of town for training, and I have a Bohemian Lager that will have been in the primary for 5 weeks by the time I keg it this Thursday, and as of a week ago I could read a newspaper through it, and detected no off flavors. Not trying to talk you out of a secondary, just giving you options.

I was curious about the same thing, this is my last batch before going all grain and I have a Belgian in the fermenter right now. It's OG is 1060 and I'm curious how important moving to a secondary is. In addition, is their any real issue with just leaving it in for three weeks for safe measure?