Constantly getting lower than expected OG and FG! Whats going wrong?

I there, I'm fairly new to brewing, having only brewed 9 batches. I'm consistently getting lower og and fg readings, on average .012 off on both. I've tested my hydrometer with water and it reads an even 1.000. What could I be doing incorrectly? For instance just brewed a ruination ipa clone, target og was 1.070 I showed 1.060 target fg was 1.012 I showed 1.004. I can't figure this out! Please help!

If it's always wrong it's probably broken. 1.004 is really low. What yeast did you use?

over pitching yeast possibly. more info is needed what was the ratio of the yeast used to wort?

@ vegan I used wlp002 that I made a starter with. I can't figure this out, unless like you said my equip is faulty. Guess I might need a new hydrometer to rule that out.

4traindays said:

@ vegan I used wlp002 that I made a starter with. I can't figure this out, unless like you said my equip is faulty. Guess I might need a new hydrometer to rule that out.

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You said that your hydrometer reads 1 in water, but at what temp? And, is it the same temp as your wort when you take the reading? My hydrometer reads 1 as well, but not at the 68 degrees it's calibrated to. Mine is actually zeroed at 72 when tested. Also, are your volumes right?

I tested it at 60', that what is calibrated to. Yes that is what I test the wort at as well. As an experiment I tested it's reading at 60 degrees and at 75 degrees. The difference in reading was about an extra .002. Is this accurate? Would my boil size make a difference? Meaning if the recipe says boil 2.5 but I boil 3.5 then top off, could that influence my readings? Just realized that even my 2.5 gallon boils were off about the same amount as my 3.5 boils.

It's not your hydrometer, it's your process.

Consistently low OG means your mash efficiency is probably off from what you expect. Are you mashing or using extract?

If you're all-grain, your low FG could be because you're mashing too low. Need more info on your recipes.

I am an extract brewer with steeping grains. Where could my process be going wrong? Thanks

4traindays said:

I am an extract brewer with steeping grains. Where could my process be going wrong? Thanks

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Well, if you're boiling 2.5 gallons, then topping off, it's hard to get an accurate reading because it may not be mixed well for the first reading. As far as the last reading, that does seem pretty low, but not sure why. I would get another hydrometer just to verify the first one.

You could get a cheap refractometer off ebay for 20 bucks shipped too. opticalfactory sells good ones for 20.95 shipped.

Could this be the issue? So I start with 3.5 gallons of water to boil, after 60 minutes I end with about 3, then top off with an additional 2. So that totals 5.5 gallons. Is this my problem?