Topping off

Hello. I am starting my first brew tomorrow, a Brewers Best American Cream Ale. I have a few questions about topping off. When I put the wort into the primary, a 6.5 gal. bucket, should I top off to 5 or 5.5 gallons? I was thinking (and the directions say 5), but I have heard people topping off to 5.5 gallons. Other than the oblivious of having a full 5 gal. to transfer to secondary, what are the advantages and disadvantages?

Secondly, If I top off the primary to 5 gallons, when I transfer to the secondary (5 gal glass carboy), should I top off to the neck, or just go with what I get?

I have learned a lot from this forum and appreciate so many people offering their knowledge and experiences. Keep up the good work! :rockin:

I always did 5.5 of COLD water.
Air in the Secondary Fermenter is a no-no but I have never topped off after the Primary Cold Break.

I always got a enough degassing of the secondary to fill the secondary with CO2 rather than air, but I imagine that enough head space could cause a problem.

I would go with the 5.5 Gal

Brewer's Best kits have ingredients for a 5 gallon batch. I wouldn't top it off any more than that, especially on one of your first batches. It'll throw off your gravity (hydrometer) readings. Taking gravity readings on your first few batches helps you understand the process, IMO.

I wouldn't top off in the secondary either. Just siphon as much as you can without taking a lot of the trub with it. You'll still get 45-48 bottles worth of beer out of it. To me, it's not worth messing with topping off in order to get a few more.

plumtired said:

Hello. I am starting my first brew tomorrow, a Brewers Best American Cream Ale. I have a few questions about topping off. When I put the wort into the primary, a 6.5 gal. bucket, should I top off to 5 or 5.5 gallons? I was thinking (and the directions say 5), but I have heard people topping off to 5.5 gallons. Other than the oblivious of having a full 5 gal. to transfer to secondary, what are the advantages and disadvantages?

Secondly, If I top off the primary to 5 gallons, when I transfer to the secondary (5 gal glass carboy), should I top off to the neck, or just go with what I get?

I have learned a lot from this forum and appreciate so many people offering their knowledge and experiences. Keep up the good work! :rockin:

Click to expand...

Hi plumtired,




I'm a new brewer also having just finished my secong btch not long ago (it's all done and I'm drinking it!).

When I made my first recipe it was pure extract and called for 5 gals. That's all I used. I didn't use a secondary fermenter (clearing tank) for that brew. Came out fine.

My second brew was a partial grain using extract and specialty grains and added hops. I used a secondary on that one. I topped off only to 5 gals also as the directions said. I would be worried about watering the brew down and screwing up my readings by adding more water to the top off. I would think (but really don't know) that a bigger batch would start in the brew kettle?

Anyway when I racked to secondary (a 5 gallon carboy) I didn't top off and don't recommend topping off. The brew filled my carboy just to the top of where it starts to curve. way below the neck. If you click on my link (Redeagle) you can see it. That beer came out even better than the first!

Good luck and happy brewing!!

Tommy

My disclaimer is that I am a complete noob, my first batch is still in secondary.

I did a partial grain, and actually filled the primary to the 6 gallon line. I had an OG of 1.040, right on target per the directions.

4 days in the primary, I was down to 1.020, after a week when I racked it I was at 1.012, all seem right on target.

I took a pitcher of what was left in the primary at the one-week mark and tasted it. It didn't seem watered down to me at all. I liked knowing I had enough to fill the secondary as well as take taste and hydrometer samples.

That's my extremely limited experience. I'll be doing my second brew on Monday, and I think I'll be doing the same.

The point of topping off is to limit oxygen exposure. For example, if you drink a glass out of a bottle of wine, put a cork in it and leave it out for a week or two it starts turning into vinegar. Now if beer is more sensitive to oxygen exposure than wine, it would seem like a really good idea to top up, but this is coming from a beer newbie.

Cheers,
Doug