Too soon to take out of primary?

This is my first brew and it is a Brewer's Best Milk Stout. The directions said after pitching the yeast to let it ferment 5 to 7 days, after the 3rd day visual signs of fermenting slowed to nearly a halt....by the end of that day it was completely stopped. I know that just because the air lock isn't bubbling that it doesn't mean the yeast isn't doing it's thing, but I also know that its best to transfer to secondary when fermenting is slowed but not completely stopped. I gave it another day (the 5th day) and I transferred to secondary.

My concern is that I took it off of the yeast cake too soon and I may not get the best quality beer I can. I have read that the yeast will run out of sugars to eat and then start consuming other byproducts they put off giving the beer a better taste. It's my first batch so I am not going to be too overly bothered by a small mistake but I just want to know if it is best to let it sit in the primary longer even if the directions say otherwise?

Many people skip the secondary for most beers and leave it in primary for how ever long it takes for fermentation to complete.

I don't know of anyone on HBT who has recommended racking while fermentation is still underway, although I have seen that advice rarely in other places.

The beer kit instructions for fermentation are not the best practice for the typical homebrewer, they are good for moving kits though.


A hydrometer is the best way to determine when fermentation is complete. If the gravity is stable for a few days it is ready for the next step, be that bottling/kegging, or racking over for other processes (fruiting, extended bulk aging, etc..)


I'm sure it will be fine. Welcome to HBT and the hobby!

First, RDWHAGB (have a good brew since being a first batch I don't expect you have any home brew). Second, moving to secondary is for the most part optional, moving it serves little purpose other than to free up a big primary for a new batch so I would say yes too soon. That aside though, just let it set for a few weeks and the yeast that are still in there should still do the job fine, it just may take a bit longer to really clean house.

TL;DR, your fine, just let it ride.

I used to do a 1-2-3 brew cycle with each being the number of weeks in each step (primary, secondary, and bottle conditioning). I now do a 3-3 cycle for all of my Ales. The yeast cake really helps to clean up the beer prior to bottle conditioning and you'll still get good clear beer as long as you are care racking the beer to your bottling bucket.

Thanks for the input. I think my next batch will just stay in the primary until it is ready to be mixed with the sugars.

pvtschultz said:

I used to do a 1-2-3 brew cycle with each being the number of weeks in each step (primary, secondary, and bottle conditioning). I now do a 3-3 cycle for all of my Ales. The yeast cake really helps to clean up the beer prior to bottle conditioning and you'll still get good clear beer as long as you are care racking the beer to your bottling bucket.

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+1 on 3/3 ; 1/2/3 is old school

I am about 2 weeks into the fermentation of my Summer Ale. I am going to give the 3/3 method a try and see how it turns out. The Milk Stout turned out amazing (in my opinion).

OP, I use a secondary 100% of the time (I tried primary only, and ended up bringing too much trub over to my bottling bucket), but I would agree with the advice above - don't be in such a hurry. Let fermentation finish completely before you even think about secondary.

Understand that the term "secondary fermenation" is a misnomer - secondary is used for clarifying or additives, not for any more actual fermenting. Let the beer sit at least two - if not three to four - weeks in primary, then secondary for a week to clear, or for longer to bulk age a high gravuty beer (I recently bottled an imperial nut brown ale that aged in secondary for 4+ months).

My original plan was to do a 2/2/2...but maybe I will do a 2/1/2 where that is 2 in the primary, 1 in the secondary, and then 2 in the bottles for carbonation.

unionrdr said:

Most of the time,you need 3-4 weeks in the bottles to carb & condition. Then 1-2 weeks in the fridge to clear up chill haze & get thicker head,& longer lasting carbonation.

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This. Three weeks at 70 degrees is the baseline for most beers to carb up properly in bottles. Higher gravity or lower temps will add to the time.

I wish I had a basement. Right now the best I can do is a broom closet that stays about 73 degrees.

homebrewdad said:

OP, I use a secondary 100% of the time (I tried primary only, and ended up bringing too much trub over to my bottling bucket),

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Biscuits said:

I wish I had a basement. Right now the best I can do is a broom closet that stays about 73 degrees.

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Not doing a secondary does not = trub in your bottling bucket. If you move the fermenter to the bottling area early then give it time to settle you can then siphon carefully and not transfer trub.

I did a secondary on my first 2 batches and only 2 since (when I needed the fermenter). My 1 year brewing anniversary was July 1. 26 batches!

73 degrees is not too warm for bottle conditioning.

You do not necessarily need to wait 3 weeks bottle conditioning then 1 week chilling. I test at 2 weeks and about 24 hour chilling. Sometimes they are OK and I get started on them slowly. With others it may take weeks + or longer until they are ready. EDIT - most do take 3 weeks.

I have a winter ale that I brewed last November hoping for late February consumption. I am now waiting for this fall.

kh54s10 said:

Not doing a secondary does not = trub in your bottling bucket. If you move the fermenter to the bottling area early then give it time to settle you can then siphon carefully and not transfer trub.

I did a secondary on my first 2 batches and only 2 since (when I needed the fermenter). My 1 year brewing anniversary was July 1. 26 batches!

73 degrees is not too warm for bottle conditioning.

You do not necessarily need to wait 3 weeks bottle conditioning then 1 week chilling. I test at 2 weeks and about 24 hour chilling. Sometimes they are OK and I get started on them slowly. With others it may take weeks + or longer until they are ready. EDIT - most do take 3 weeks.

I have a winter ale that I brewed last November hoping for late February consumption. I am now waiting for this fall.

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I agree, not doing a secondary does not at all mean more trub. I know that lots of the vets advocate primary only. I have tried it both ways, and I personally got a lot more trub with primary only, so in the future, I will contine to use a secondary.

Plus, it frees up my primary.

I guess it is up to me to experiment and find which way works best for me. Oh the joys of brewing!

Biscuits said:

I guess it is up to me to experiment and find which way works best for me. Oh the joys of brewing!

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Yep. There are some basics that apply to everyone, but lots of other things are style, personal preference, what works for you.

Fermentation can finish in just 3 days. On average it only takes 3-7 days.

But the recommendation of letting the beer continue to condition in the carboy for 2-3 weeks is a smart choice (whether you're doing this in the primary or secondary or both).

Your job is not only about making alcohol, but about making good tasting alcohol/beer.

bobbrews said:

Fermentation can finish in just 3 days. On average it only takes 3-7 days.

But the recommendation of letting the beer continue to condition in the carboy for 2-3 weeks is a smart choice (whether you're doing this in the primary or secondary or both).

Your job is not only about making alcohol, but about making good tasting alcohol/beer.

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Yes, the logic behind it (for me) was solely because I understood it that if I gave the yeasties more time, they would actually clean up any byproducts they left behind during fermentation once all of the sugars were eaten up. Sort of a "starvation mode" for them would cause them to eat up whatever they could.

Considering that when I made my Milk Stout I followed the directions to the letter and that batch turned out phenominal as far as I am concerned, I am going to move this batch out of the primary this Sunday which would be two full weeks in the primary and give it at least another week in the secondary to settle anything else out before bottling.

All of the advice I have been given has led me to believe that there is no real set in stone way of doing anything and as long as there are the key requirements are met, such as allowing fermentation to complete, the rest is preference and what make the brewer comfortable. I don't mind risking the extra movement of the beer from the primary to the secondary and then again to a bottling bucket because the secondary being a glass carboy lets me visually see when the beer has cleared as much as it can.