Magical 1.020 FG

Hey guys,

I dont know what it is but all of my homebrews always end with a 1.020 fg even if the recipes
call for 1.015, 1.014 etc..

Ive done about 7 and every single one of them have stopped at 1.020. Most of them are higher gravity (1.080 sg) thaT call for double pitching. Fermintation temps usually range from 68-72(I livein ga)

Any idea? I never hit my recommended fg for each recipe

Hey I live in GA too, Atlanta. Dunno, maybe it could be your boil, are you doing extract only, partial mash, steeping grains, all grain?

Are your temps consistent?

1.080 down to 1.020 is 75%AA. That is pretty standard attenuation. If you are using extract it is unlikely you will get much higher attenuation without sugar additions. If you are brewing all grain try mashing lower. Good luck.

I'm stuck at that number as well with a 1.070. I feel your pain. With an OG that high and an FG high as well it makes the difference between a stony brew and an average brew. I assume you are using extract as well cuz this is the common problem I have found. I would love some insight on how to conquer this issue. Besides AG at this point.

By my calculation you have it at a 7.8% ABV. I likey!

From 1.080 to 20? I'd be pretty happy with that. If it was 1.054~60 OG I'd be bummed.

have you been using the same yeast every time? if so, try a more attenuative strain. for high og beers, you need to pitch lots of yeast cells, and aerate the wort really good. using a yeast nutrient can help too. I'm guessing you are doing extract brews, and they are famous for stopping about 1.020. you could try a different brand of extract, as some are more fermentable than others. sometimes adding a pound of honey or table sugar can get the fg to go lower, but don't use too much sugar. it'll thin the beer out as well as dry it.

That's I pretty good fermentation. Is this a boil with hop additions or just hopped extract kits? Maybe try aerating the wort. How long are you leaving it in the fermentor? I'd atleast leave it for 2 weeks. *cheers*

Or maybe try doing a yeast starter to have more yeast cells and check your yeast strain that it can handle that high of alcohol content. Yeast will die after a certain abv.

extract or all grain? same yeast?

dannylerch said:

Hey I live in GA too, Atlanta. Dunno, maybe it could be your boil, are you doing extract only, partial mash, steeping grains, all grain?

Are your temps consistent?

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Nice. I'm over in St. Simons.

All have been extracts. I don't use a cooling cooler but the temps at max fermentation usually just get up to 72 and then settle at around 68-70.

mike024 said:

I'm stuck at that number as well with a 1.070. I feel your pain. With an OG that high and an FG high as well it makes the difference between a stony brew and an average brew. I assume you are using extract as well cuz this is the common problem I have found. I would love some insight on how to conquer this issue. Besides AG at this point.

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Correct. All have been extract and all have stopped at 1.020

Friedclutch said:

From 1.080 to 20? I'd be pretty happy with that. If it was 1.054~60 OG I'd be bummed.

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Yeah I'm not bummed. Just never hit the target of what the FG is suppose to be so looking into what the issue is.

Hogarthe said:

have you been using the same yeast every time? if so, try a more attenuative strain. for high og beers, you need to pitch lots of yeast cells, and aerate the wort really good. using a yeast nutrient can help too. I'm guessing you are doing extract brews, and they are famous for stopping about 1.020. you could try a different brand of extract, as some are more fermentable than others. sometimes adding a pound of honey or table sugar can get the fg to go lower, but don't use too much sugar. it'll thin the beer out as well as dry it.

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No. Each kit has called for a different strain each time. The recent batch I believe used white labs belgian golden ale (wlp570). Another is there english ale(wlp002) and british ale (wlp005)

Used the yeast nutrient. And correct about using extract. I might look into adding the sugar. This doesn't effect taste?

derbycitybrewer said:

That's I pretty good fermentation. Is this a boil with hop additions or just hopped extract kits? Maybe try aerating the wort. How long are you leaving it in the fermentor? I'd atleast leave it for 2 weeks. *cheers*

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"just hopped extract kits?"- Aerating seems to be in check when I have done them. And also right about leaving for 2 weeks. 2 of the batches I actually left longer.

CBMbrewer said:

extract or all grain? same yeast?

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Extract. Different each time.

unionrdr said:

With an OG of 1.080,it'll take a hell of a lot longer than a mear 2 weeks. More like 6 weeks. Big beers need to age longer too. With plenty of aeration & a lot of yeast. Temps should also be constant & within range to keep the yeast from stalling out.

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Hey

Yea two weeks is just the primary. I also watch co2 for activity and then do a check for 3 days. It never changes so I figure its done?

unionrdr said:

Don't count on the airlock to tell you the beers done fermenting. when the fast bubbling slows or stops,that just means initial fermentation is over. It'll then creep slowly & eneventfully down to FG. Then give it another 3-7 days clean up & settle out clear or slightly misty. Always use a hydrometer to be sure the beer is done fermenting.
I also think that if the beer ferments out in 2 weeks,then that 1.080 OG must be wort & water not mixing evenly. I don't think I've seen or heard of a 1.080 batch finishing in 2 weeks flat.

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Hey. Thanks.

Yea what I meant to get across with the 3 day check is I would check the gravity for 3 straight days and if I didn't have any change I would assume it was done. Then I would secondary it for another 2 weeks then bottle. I would check one last time before priming for bottling and would still be the same fg

are you making starters for these beers?

also, have you tested different brands of extract? maybe try adding some of it late, it helps some people

unionrdr said:

With an OG of 1.080,it'll take a hell of a lot longer than a mear 2 weeks. More like 6 weeks.

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unionrdr said:

I also think that if the beer ferments out in 2 weeks,then that 1.080 OG must be wort & water not mixing evenly. I don't think I've seen or heard of a 1.080 batch finishing in 2 weeks flat.

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have you ever brewed a big beer? no beer should ever take 6 weeks to ferment. i've never had a 1.080+ beer take even 2 weeks to reach FG, in fact my last one took 2 days. longer to condition, yes; longer to ferment, not necessarily

After checking the accuracy of my hydrometer in boiled water that was cooled to 59, I realized that it is off. Brew that I thought was stuck at 1.020 is in fact 1.018. I suggest for other noobs like myself to check that thing and save yourself some stress.

That's not terrible. If you're not happy with it pitch more yeast.

dcp27 said:

are you making starters for these beers?

also, have you tested different brands of extract? maybe try adding some of it late, it helps some people

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No , haven't made a starter. Just pitching from the tubes and aerating the heck out of it. Most have started active fermentation though within 12 hours.

Never tested different extracts. I just purchase what the recipe states to purchase. You mean adding late in the boil when I had the hops?

mike024 said:

After checking the accuracy of my hydrometer in boiled water that was cooled to 59, I realized that it is off. Brew that I thought was stuck at 1.020 is in fact 1.018. I suggest for other noobs like myself to check that thing and save yourself some stress.

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Never even thought of the hydrometer being off. Not sure if that will be it though since my OG is always on cue for what it needs to be. Thanks though for the tip

ahefner33 said:

Never tested different extracts. I just purchase what the recipe states to purchase. You mean adding late in the boil when I had the hops?

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yes, you could add it later when you do the hops or wait til flameout (only needs enough to be sterilized). its common to add extract late in the boil, it reduces kettle caramelization and keeps the color closer to expected.

dcp27 said:

yes, you could add it later when you do the hops or wait til flameout (only needs enough to be sterilized). its common to add extract late in the boil, it reduces kettle caramelization and keeps the color closer to expected.

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Ahh really. Never knew that. So would I add all the malt extracts when the boil is finished or half beginning, other half at end?

ahefner33 said:

Ahh really. Never knew that. So would I add all the malt extracts when the boil is finished or half beginning, other half at end?

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I add about 1/3 up front, and the rest at the end. 50/50 is also pretty common.

I only do all grain now, but from what I understand it's very common for extract brewers to stall at 1.020 because you have no control over the fermentable's in the extract.

Try minimashing(partial mash) I do that now if I have extract lying around that I want to use to make a beer. It's essentially the same thing as steeping your grains, you're just adding a couple pounds of base malt to the specialty grains, whereby you can add a mix of simple sugars from the mash to the wort.

Also, try adding like .5lb of sugar to your extract addtions, that may help dry it out.

masterfool101 said:

I add about 1/3 up front, and the rest at the end. 50/50 is also pretty common.

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Maybe I've found my issue!

So guys. Is there some guides or videos I can watch that have the more effective ways of extract or mini mash brewing? Up until now I have always just followed the instructions for all the recipes I have bought and realize alot of the comments here have been saying "pretty common" for alot of things I wasn't doing. So could some of you recommend me the most common and efficient practices?

Thanks in advance

Do an experiment. Make the exact same batch and supplement 10% of the grain/DME/LME with corn sugar. Watch how low it goes.

Whoever was talking about taking a long time to ferment. I made a Russian Imperial that started at 1.140 and went down to a 1.030 in less than 72hrs. Two more days later it was at 1.028 & I transferred it. Pitch a Ron of good yeast on it and they get they're work done fast.

Jay1 said:

Whoever was talking about taking a long time to ferment. I made a Russian Imperial that started at 1.140 and went down to a 1.030 in less than 72hrs. Two more days later it was at 1.028 & I transferred it. Pitch a Ron of good yeast on it and they get they're work done fast.

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Wow. 1.140? How was it?

Jay1 said:

Whoever was talking about taking a long time to ferment. I made a Russian Imperial that started at 1.140 and went down to a 1.030 in less than 72hrs.

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Yeah, I had a 1.100 RIS that was at 1.022 three days later, and that's where it was after a couple weeks as well. Definitely possible to ferment big beers quickly. Of course, I also had a tripel that did indeed take a couple weeks to get to FG. Every time I get to thinking I know how a fermentation will go, the yeast decide to show me I don't really know anything.

ahefner33 said:

Wow. 1.140? How was it?

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Its still in secondary. Im gonna split it into two 3 gal carbon soon and put one of them on wood chips.