adding more yeast.....

So I made up my first batch a week ago. A double IPA with an og of 1.084. I pitched the 05 yeast and the airlock was bubbling decently for a few days then slowed to a complete stop.

I've been reading on the site that it could be normal and that isn't my question.

My question is, in 3 days i plan on racking to the secondary fermenter to dry hop. If the new gravity is is still too high, can and should I pitch more yeast? How low should the gravity be dropped to after 10 days? Also what type of yeast would be good to repitch with?

i'm speaking from limited experience but i've never worried about it. i've brewed five batches now and have never had an issue. my second batch only bubbled for three days and it turned out fine. i'm sure some of the OG's on here could give you a better answer, but i wouldn't worry about it.

Once you have a decent amount of alcohol in the beer it is not a simple task to just add more yeast. If you have a stuck ferment (which you probably don't), the easiest way to re-start it is brew a second beer and then move the stuck one onto it's cake.

OG: 1.084, S-05, about 10 days. Depending on the make-up of the wort, you could be anywhere from 1.016 to 1.026. 75% attenuation is 1.021.

I have only ever once had to add additional yeast to finish off a beer, and that was because I had reached the alcohol limit of the original strain. You do not have this problem.

^^^^^this

What was the original gravity and what is the current reading?

My first piece of advice would be to sanitize a stick/spoon and give the entire fermenter a big stir followed by increasing the temp.

I actually brewed up 2 batches on the first day. I took the gravity reading of the first IIPA and it's at 1.012. So the yeast seemed to do good. The second batch I am going to rack into the secondary fermenter in 2 days, so I am going to wait and check the gravity then.

How do I figure out the exact ABV% from the gravity readings? I read somewhere to go OG-FG*133=ABV%.

Should I just follow that equation?

Don't follow the airlock to determine whether your beer is done fermenting. The only way to tell is by gravity readings over the course of 2 or 3 days. You want to make sure it is done fermenting before racking to secondary. Also I would give your IPA a minimum of 14 days in primary, preferably 3 weeks to ensure fermentation is complete. Then you can rack to secondary and dry hop for a week if you choose to do so.

Here is an ABV calculator......http://www.brewersfriend.com/abv-calculator/
There is no need to calculate the ABV in your head when there is free software to do it for you.

hallucinaut said:

I actually brewed up 2 batches on the first day. I took the gravity reading of the first IIPA and it's at 1.012. So the yeast seemed to do good. The second batch I am going to rack into the secondary fermenter in 2 days, so I am going to wait and check the gravity then.

How do I figure out the exact ABV% from the gravity readings? I read somewhere to go OG-FG*133=ABV%.

Should I just follow that equation?

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You have your order of operations reversed. You check the gravity to be sure that you are at final gravity and then you decide if you need to secondary. You never decide to secondary until final gravity is reached.

My question is, in 3 days i plan on racking to the secondary fermenter to dry hop. If the new gravity is is still too high, can and should I pitch more yeast? How low should the gravity be dropped to after 10 days? Also what type of yeast would be good to repitch with?

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You've brewed a "big beer' with on OG of 1.084. I don't think your beer is ready to secondary in 3 days. Maybe in another 10 days. Let the yeast do what they do best. They are laboring in difficult conditions with the high alcohol and they work much slower then.

The only reason why I want to rack to secondary so soon is because I want to get more hops into the beer asap. I didn't put enough hops into the boil for the second batch and I thought dry hopping would be better to do sooner that later, but if it's a good idea to leave it another 10 days, I will.

Can I dry-hop it now, while it's in the primary?

hallucinaut said:

The only reason why I want to rack to secondary so soon is because I want to get more hops into the beer asap. I didn't put enough hops into the boil for the second batch and I thought dry hopping would be better to do sooner that later, but if it's a good idea to leave it another 10 days, I will.

Can I dry-hop it now, while it's in the primary?

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You can dry hop in primary, but primary fermentation should be completed. Also if you dry hop in primary there is no reason to rack into secondary. I would personally leave your big beer in primary for 3 weeks and then rack to secondary for dry hops. Dry hop for 7-10 days.