Color layers during fermentation?

Howdy... new member here, and I have my first brew fermenting away. Today is day 3 of the fermentation. I've got a partial extract/grain kit going (Octoberfest... cant wait!!!).

Things have been going well. I was very careful about sanitation, temp control, and timing. For a first run, I must say, it went pretty smoothly. The only one problem I believe may effect my beer is that I believe I am a little short on water. I boiled my wort with 2 gallons, then added 3 gallons to the carboy... 5 gallons total, neglecting any liquids that may have been lost during the boil. No problem, first batch is a learning experience. Before the next batch, I'll have to mark the 5-gal mark on my carboy.

So today, day 3, I check on my beautifully fermenting jug 'o beer only to noitce layers in color. Sediment on the bottom which is normal, haze up until about 1.5" below top of the liquid, then what looks like real good beer on top of that. Is this normal? Fermentation still seems to be going well (bubble in the airlock about every 15-20 seconds). And my temperature is fairly stable around 70. I didnt get a chance to take a gravity reading initially because I didnt have a sanitary way to get a sample out of the carboy. Today I bought one of those thumb sucker turkey baster things specifically made to get a sample. I'll be sure to take a reading before I bottle.

Any help would be appreciated. I'm hoping my brew is OK, just getting a little worried because I've never done this before.

Thanks!

oh yea, one more question... are you supposed to cover the wort during the boil?

What you describe sounds normal. When fermentation is coming to an end the beer starts to clear up. Starting from the top and working downward, the beer appears to get darker as well as clearer. The beer below this layer will still look hazy.
I would give it another 4 or 5 days then rack it to secondary. If you are going to bottle from the primary I would wait 11 to 14 days.

You do not need or want to cover the wort during the boil. The first thing that will happen is that you will get a nasty boil over. The boiling process also helps to remove undesirable compounds from the wort.

EDIT: spelling

Thanks for the reply Rich. I figured that this was normal and all the haze would eventually settle to the bottom. Just wanted to make sure.

I had my wort covered during the boil (turkey fryer in the driveway)... 2 gallons boiling in a 8.25 gallon pot, didnt boil over once. Next batch I'll uncover.

As for the secondary, I was planning on waiting 7 days in the primary, taking a hydrometer reading, and if the time is right, rack to my bottling bucket with priming sugar and get to bottling.

So very excited... I've got another kit waiting. Once the first is bottled, wort #2 is to commence. My plan is to brew a few of these kits to get the hang of the process, and in the meantime rig up a mash/lauter tun and go all grain.

Thanks!

Yet another good reason not to cover is that boiling releases some nasty beasts including sulfides that are only removed by boiling uncovered.

Other than that, welcome to the most addictive hobby on earth,

Relax and have a beer.

Cheers,

knewshound

With a pot that big, consider a "full boil" next time - boiling 6 to 6.5 gallons to end up with just over 5 in the fermenter. You should get a lighter beer and your hops utilization should increase as well. The downside? Ya gotta chill 5+ gallons of almost boiling wort. Search "wort chiller" for more info.

Yuri_Rage said:

With a pot that big, consider a "full boil" next time - boiling 6 to 6.5 gallons to end up with just over 5 in the fermenter. You should get a lighter beer and your hops utilization should increase as well. The downside? Ya gotta chill 5+ gallons of almost boiling wort. Search "wort chiller" for more info.

Click to expand...

Hmmm... thanks for the idea. I've been looking around at lots of wort chillers lately. Been planning a full grain setup which would for sure include a chiller. This small, 2 gallon batch of wort chilled down in a sink full of ice and water in about 10 mins. I'm sure my engineering degreed brain can rig something up to chill 6 gallons.

I look forward to LOTS of batches to come. I'll keep the forum folk updated with my progress.

Thanks again!

(oh yea, checked my fermentation progress again today and I'm getting thirstier by the day!)