Bottle too early?

[pjl]

I am brewing an Amber Ale from extract and it is my first brew. I didn't take a starting gravity. I pitched the yeast and started the fermentation in approx. 58 degrees. Was slow and not that responsive so after a week I moved it to 70 degree. Left it there for a week and took a hydrometer reading. It was 1.018. Let it sit for another week in the 70 degree. Then, moved it back to the basement which was now 56 degrees b/c I wasn't ready to bottle and wanted to see if it helped with clarity. Bottled tonight and took an FG and it was around 1.016. This is kinda way off from the 1.010-1.012 target that the little pamphlet that came with the kit said. Will I get bottle bombs? Have I completely screwed up? I stored the bottles up in the 70 degrees...should I move it to the cooler basement?
Thanks!

 

[Chudz]

Do you know the temp of the beer when you took the FG reading?

I've bottled a recipe that was around 1.025 when the sheet said 1.022 without any issues. However, my OG was higher by .003 as well. So it went down as much as it advertised.

 

[pjl]

The temp was 56ish....maybe a bit cooler.

 

[Chudz]

If your hydrometer is calibrated for 60 degrees then that's not going to change the reading really. Personally, I think you will be fine and would keep the bottles in the 70 degrees area. However, please feel free to come back here and call me a knucklehead should the first one blow up. Of course, please also post a picture of the carnage.

 

[IceFisherChris]

You should be fine. I've found that the FG readings are always different, and different yeasts will yield different results. If you're ever seriously concerned, then leave a couple bottles upstairs in a safe container while the other bottles are downstairs. The warmer ones should carbonate faster and in the unlikely event that you do have bottle breakage, the colder ones are a step or two behind.