My first ever brew has been in the primary fermenter for 2 days now. The bucket I'm using doesn't have a gasket (the LHBS was out of them when I picked up the kit), so I'm not seeing any bubbles in the airlock.
I'm a bit worried because we took the OG reading directly after pitching the yeast, and I'm worried we took a whole lot of it out then too. Not being able to check the air lock doesn't help my nerves.
So when should I start taking samples and measuring with the hydrometer? I guess every time I take a sample I'm risking infection, so I don't want to unnecessarily. But at the same time if I can check it early, and see that it's doing nothing when it should be doing something, I'd like to know, especially if it could be saved somehow.
Finally, I read elsewhere on the forums that the OG reading might sometimes be inaccurate when partial boiling, as the wort and water doesn't have time to mix. What direction does the result skew, and by how much?
My OG was 1.040, I think it was meant to be 1.045.
I'm a bit worried because we took the OG reading directly after pitching the yeast, and I'm worried we took a whole lot of it out then too. Not being able to check the air lock doesn't help my nerves.
So when should I start taking samples and measuring with the hydrometer? I guess every time I take a sample I'm risking infection, so I don't want to unnecessarily. But at the same time if I can check it early, and see that it's doing nothing when it should be doing something, I'd like to know, especially if it could be saved somehow.
Finally, I read elsewhere on the forums that the OG reading might sometimes be inaccurate when partial boiling, as the wort and water doesn't have time to mix. What direction does the result skew, and by how much?
My OG was 1.040, I think it was meant to be 1.045.
