Hydrometer reading WAY off! Need help!

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Joeneugs

Joeneugs

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So I brewed my first beer, an Abbey style dubbel. The recipe called for an original gravity of ~1.079 and a final gravity of ~1.018.

I didn't take a hydrometer reading at all before or after pitching the yeast. I just racked to my secondary after 10 days of what seemed like healthy, vigorous fermentation. The airlock began bubbling within hours of pitching the yeast and aerating, and kept bubbling at a rate of about 15 per minute for several days.

I also built up a large yeast starter for this brew using 1 smack pack of Wyeast 1388. 4 liters total, however most of the wort was poured off after cold crashing it.

So I decided to take a hydrometer reading as I was transferring to the secondary, and I got a reading of 1.036. This is way below my target. I tasted the beer, and it seems like there's plenty of alcohol in there. Anybody have any ideas of why I'm getting such a low reading?
 
Sorry. I was targeting an ABV of about 8.1% My hydrometer has a potential ABV scale next to the specific gravity scale and a specific gravity of 1.036 equals to about 4% ABV. Am I getting this all wrong? I sure hope so!
 
1.036 means the beer isn't close to done fermenting. You should have waited to transfer to secondary until you knew the beer was done fermenting. That's all said and done so now wait a few days and check the gravity again. If it is lower than 1.036 then you know the yeast is just taking its time on a big beer. You should expect to see that beer finish in the 1.018 to 1.020 range.
 
He said his target was 1.018.

1.079 is pretty big for a first beer, not that you'd be expected to know that (I barely knew what gravity meant on my first batch). Once you start going over the 1.055 range things get a lot harder on the yeast. But you are ahead of the game by having made a giant starter!

Guessing it's an extract brew? Depending on brand and age, some extract just kinda sucks and won't ferment well. If you brew a few batches using the same extract from the same shop and your FG is always way off, try subbing a pound or two of plain white sugar for the same weight of extract. Sugar is super easy to ferment and will help make up for crappy extract.

What was your fermentation temp? Anything below mid 60's F will be too cold for the yeast to work. Also, did you aerate the wort well? High gravity brews really benefit from lots of oxygen to start off the fermentation.
 
Well that sucks. I knew I should have taken a hydrometer reading before transferring, but I figured 10 days was plenty, especially considering the size of the starter I made.

Most of the yeast seemed to have settled out in the primary, and I left most of it in there thinking it was done fermenting. Will it still have enough yeast to continue with fermentation? Will transferring too early hurt the beer in the long run? I'm bummed about this screw up!
 
Not sure what the fermentation temp was exactly. I had it in my pantry which is usually about 73-74 degrees, but I put it in tub with a couple inches of cool water hoping to bring it down to about 68. Can't be sure though.

I aerated pretty well, I think. I had boiled water in the fermenter to start (for topping up) and shook it well, then added the wort and shook that for a couple minutes. Like I said, I got vigorous bubbling in the airlock within a few hours and it kept up for days. It sure seemed to be fermenting really well.
 
When you take a sample does it taste good? For your first few batches that is all that matters--hell, unless you are entering competitions, that is literally all that ever matters :)

To answer your other question, secondary has kinda gone out of fashion. Unless you are doing something like a barleywine, imperial stout or doppelbock that will age for months to years, just let it hang out in the primary. The gravity will stop at a certain point but more time on the yeast will allow for cleanup of nasty byproducts.

It varies by style but 1 week to 3 months in the primary fermenter are all totally valid and won't hurt the beer. It just might not always get better from waiting that long.
 
I did take a sample, and other than a rough solvent like flavor (that I thought was from the alcohol) it actually tasted pretty good for where its at in the process.

As for not using a secondary, I thought I heard somewhere that leaving the beer on the yeast for long periods of time was bad for the beer because of autolysis?
 
There was a little bit of particulate matter in there. I had quite a bit of trub in the beer in general. Hop flowers and other sediment, but I tried to keep most of that out of my sample.
 
Ha! Thanks for that link. I have been using the online version of How to Brew. I guess I should fork over the $15 bucks for the updated version.
 
Check your gravity again in a couple days. The process of tranferring to the secondary ( although unnecessary ) roused some of the yeast back into suspension and it may bring it down some more.
 
I've used the 1388 yeast a few times and I have consistently found the following :
I ferment my primary at 66*F ambient temp and the 1388 will stall out about halfway through the ferment - meaning when the gravity is about halfway to terminal it just stops. I then take the primary out of the temp controlled area and put it at room temp - about 78*F ambient and give it a swirl and that will invariably kickstart the yeast and finish the ferment. I'm not saying it's the "right" way to do it but it works for me every time. I had a tripel using 1388 stall out at 1.025 and after bringing them temp up it finished at 1.005 and almost 9.5% abv. Did the same thing with a dubbel - stalled at 1.040 and after bringing up the temp it finished at 1.019 and 7.7% abv.
 
You need to warm that yeast up and give it a swirl. I'd bring it up in to the mid 70's, Belgian Yeasts like warm temps.
 
another thing may be your hydrometer. When i first started, my numbers were right on, then they started slipping. After my 2nd off batch, I bought another hydrometer to compare the two. My old one was way off which means my numbers were probably still good and it was the cheap hydrometer. Its a cheap fix to try.
 
Ok, just a gentle swirl right? No aerating or splashing obviously. I'll put it in my garage to warm it up. Do you think this will be enough to kickstart it again? I left most of the trub in the primary.
 
Joeneugs said:
Ok, just a gentle swirl right? No aerating or splashing obviously. I'll put it in my garage to warm it up. Do you think this will be enough to kickstart it again? I left most of the trub in the primary.
Click to expand...

Give it a try - there's plenty of yeast remaining in suspension and that may be just what they need.
 
You're not losing anything by trying, give it a shot and let us know if your gravity drops after 3-4 days.
 
Will do. Thanks everyone for the suggestions! My plan is to warm it up, swirl whatever yeast is left in there around and then check it again in a few days. I'm guessing adding another smack pack of yeast won't help at this point?
 
Joeneugs said:
I'm guessing adding another smack pack of yeast won't help at this point?
Click to expand...

Probably not too much, you'd want to pitch an active starter that was busy eating sugars to get the best results. I'd be willing to bet if you warm it up and rouse the yeast you'll drop a bit.
 
You might check the hydro readings in room temp water. If that is way off then a new hydro is needed.
 
Joeneugs said:
So I brewed my first beer, an Abbey style dubbel. The recipe called for an original gravity of ~1.079 and a final gravity of ~1.018.

I didn't take a hydrometer reading at all before or after pitching the yeast. I just racked to my secondary after 10 days of what seemed like healthy, vigorous fermentation. The airlock began bubbling within hours of pitching the yeast and aerating, and kept bubbling at a rate of about 15 per minute for several days.

I also built up a large yeast starter for this brew using 1 smack pack of Wyeast 1388. 4 liters total, however most of the wort was poured off after cold crashing it.

So I decided to take a hydrometer reading as I was transferring to the secondary, and I got a reading of 1.036. This is way below my target. I tasted the beer, and it seems like there's plenty of alcohol in there. Anybody have any ideas of why I'm getting such a low reading?
Click to expand...


It sounds like you've done the right things for the most part. Making the starter is a big deal. You've shouldn't have transferred to secondary until the beer was within a couple of points of the target gravity. Never transfer to secondary, if you even use secondary, based on time. Transfer based on where the beer is in fermentation.

Assuming the yeast haven't gone dormant due to temperature swings, or something, the beer is still fermenting. Leave it be in the secondary for a week then check the gravity again. If it hasn't moved you'll likely need to pitch another active starter of yeast in there.

Joeneugs said:
Sorry. I was targeting an ABV of about 8.1% My hydrometer has a potential ABV scale next to the specific gravity scale and a specific gravity of 1.036 equals to about 4% ABV. Am I getting this all wrong? I sure hope so!
Click to expand...

The ABV scale on your hydrometer is a differential scale. You subtract the ABV reading at the end from the one at the beginning. You don't read the ABV directly off the hydrometer. If your original gravity was 1.079 and you're at 1.036, your ABV is closer to 6%.
 
Just something no one else mentioned. the CO2 that is in the beer once it is fermented has a habit of sticking to the hydrometer and lifting it up. This will cause a very high reading in some cases. Spin the hydrometer vigorously in the sample to rid it of error causing bubbles. Do it several times and get new readings. Sometimes it helps to let the sample sit for several hours at room temp before attempting a reading if you notice a lot of gas rising in the sample.
 
JKoravos said:
It sounds like you've done the right things for the most part. Making the starter is a big deal. You've shouldn't have transferred to secondary until the beer was within a couple of points of the target gravity. Never transfer to secondary, if you even use secondary, based on time. Transfer based on where the beer is in fermentation.

Assuming the yeast haven't gone dormant due to temperature swings, or something, the beer is still fermenting. Leave it be in the secondary for a week then check the gravity again. If it hasn't moved you'll likely need to pitch another active starter of yeast in there.



The ABV scale on your hydrometer is a differential scale. You subtract the ABV reading at the end from the one at the beginning. You don't read the ABV directly off the hydrometer. If your original gravity was 1.079 and you're at 1.036, your ABV is closer to 6%.
Click to expand...


Wow, I'm learning a lot from this thread. So in other words, since I didn't take a hydrometer reading before pitching the yeast, I really have no way of knowing if this is completely finished fermenting or not.

My recipe said that the OG should be ~1.079, but who knows if this is what it actually was. If it was higher than this, My FG of 1.036 might be closer to full attenuation than I think. Could this be true?
 
Joeneugs said:
Wow, I'm learning a lot from this thread. So in other words, since I didn't take a hydrometer reading before pitching the yeast, I really have no way of knowing if this is completely finished fermenting or not.

My recipe said that the OG should be ~1.079, but who knows if this is what it actually was. If it was higher than this, My FG of 1.036 might be closer to full attenuation than I think. Could this be true?
Click to expand...


1.036 is still too high. A big beer, even with a lactose (read 'sweetening, and FG raising') infused milk stout will still finish in the low 1.020s or better.

Rouse the yeast, then let it sit 2 more weeks - it was a very big beer. And it may really need to sit 4-6 more weeks to taste good...

that - and TEST your hydrometer. Plain water, 60F, should sit at 1.000
 
when you say 1.036 for FG is too low and your target is like 1.018 or whatever it is...what you mean is too high. the sg is dropping throughout fermentation (toward 1.0, the SG of water).
 
JKoravos said:
It sounds like you've done the right things for the most part. Making the starter is a big deal. You've shouldn't have transferred to secondary until the beer was within a couple of points of the target gravity. Never transfer to secondary, if you even use secondary, based on time. Transfer based on where the beer is in fermentation.

Assuming the yeast haven't gone dormant due to temperature swings, or something, the beer is still fermenting. Leave it be in the secondary for a week then check the gravity again. If it hasn't moved you'll likely need to pitch another active starter of yeast in there.



The ABV scale on your hydrometer is a differential scale. You subtract the ABV reading at the end from the one at the beginning. You don't read the ABV directly off the hydrometer. If your original gravity was 1.079 and you're at 1.036, your ABV is closer to 6%.
Click to expand...

Hang Glider said:
1.036 is still too high. A big beer, even with a lactose (read 'sweetening, and FG raising') infused milk stout will still finish in the low 1.020s or better.

Rouse the yeast, then let it sit 2 more weeks - it was a very big beer. And it may really need to sit 4-6 more weeks to taste good...

that - and TEST your hydrometer. Plain water, 60F, should sit at 1.000
Click to expand...

Yeah, I tested the hydrometer like you said, and it read perfectly. So I guess I'll just have to be patient.
 
baystatebrew said:
when you say 1.036 for FG is too low and your target is like 1.018 or whatever it is...what you mean is too high. the sg is dropping throughout fermentation (toward 1.0, the SG of water).
Click to expand...

Yes thank you! I was confused about how to measure the gravity. I was gauging everything on the potential ABV scale (falling back on something that I can quantify) Newb mistake.
 
Easy mistake. try this for something to quantify:

dissolved sugars makes the water "thicker" - giving you a gravity higher than water.

yeasties eat the sugar, adding alcohol - moving your gravity back down toward plain water.
 
Hey guys, I have an update!

I waited six days and just took another hydrometer reading, and I got 1.012!!!
This is a good .006 below my target! Is it possible for it to drop that much in one week in the secondary? 1.036 to 1.012 seems like a huge drop. Anyway, I'm feeling pretty good now. The beer even tastes pretty good at this point. I'm planning on leaving it alone for another week or two and then bottle.
 
Nice! Was it at roughly the same temp (both in the fermenter and in your hydrometer flask)? I guess it's possible the yeast was just slow as hell to get started. I don't want to freak you out, but the other possibility is it got infected and wild yeast and/or bacteria ate the remaining sugar. Did you by chance taste the hydrometer sample? If it was clean and not sour you are in the clear.
 
It's certainly possible, remember the yeast don't work on your schedule, the do their thing when THEY want to! I'm guessing that the transfer to secondary roused up enough yeast to get them active again.
 

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