First ever beer.. Secondary fermentation

[Jsel13]

So I'm brewing my very first beer and im up to secondary fermentation. I siphoned the wart into a glass 6 gallon carboy, but it's not even close to the top. There a good 4"/6" between the liquid and the top of the carboy. I read oxygen is bad so I'm not sure what to do, I read online that I can fill it with cold water, but it might dilute the beer. Please help... I'm new at this and I don't want to mess up my first beer
Thanks!

 

[kh54s10]

If you are at final gravity and didn't do a secondary because the instructions said to transfer on day X. I would go ahead and bottle it.

You don't really need to do a secondary at all. It is just a step to make the beer more clear.

Tomorrow would be OK for bottling. Not too much oxygen would get to the beer in that amount of time.

 

[Aristotelian]

If it is at stable final gravity, you should just bottle/keg it right now. There is now reason to do a secondary fermentation unless you are adding fruit or doing a sour/wild fermentation.

 

[Jsel13]

It was in primary for 2 weeks, the directions said, if so desired, I can transfer beer to a secondary fermenter for a cleaner beer and it will get it off the yeast cake.
(The beer is a simpme starter kit wheat beer)

 

[murphyslaw]

It sounds like he already racked to a secondary. Dont worry about the extra space, its totally normal. Some o2 is inevitable. That carboy was full of air before you put beer in it, right? Youll be fine.

For the future, ill say that most now agree that its not necessary to transfer to a secondary container. Fermentation is done when the gravity is stable, then you want to give the yeast a few days to clean up byproducts of fermentation, and maybe some time to mature. I think 3 weeks total is a good rule of thumb, but its the sort of thing you learn by trial and error.

 

[Jsel13]

Ok, so if I leave this in for another week, then bottle it, it should be ok? The air won't ruin it? And I shouldn't add water to fill up the carboy? And thanks for all your help. This is more complicated then I thought

 

[murphyslaw]

Yeah, that will be fine. Dont add water. A couple inches of headspace is normal.

 

[Jsel13]

Thanks for your help.. really appreciate it

 

[Michigan_Wolfman]

Don't sweat it, your beer will be fine.

 

[PADave]

Your first mistake was following the directions that come with kits. The second was transferring to secondary.

 

[Yesfan]

Ok, so if I leave this in for another week, then bottle it, it should be ok? The air won't ruin it? And I shouldn't add water to fill up the carboy? And thanks for all your help. This is more complicated then I thought

Check the gravity. If the FG ("final gravity") is already around the 1.010-1.014 mark, I'd go ahead and bottle it. I don't think I would leave it in there for another week, not with 4-6" of head space. Not only are you risking oxidation, but a possible infection.

 

[Yooper]

Check the gravity. If the FG ("final gravity") is already around the 1.010-1.014 mark, I'd go ahead and bottle it. I don't think I would leave it in there for another week, not with 4-6" of head space. Not only are you risking oxidation, but a possible infection.

Yep me too. It's not going to get "doner" if it's done, and the oxygen in the headspace is a risk. It won't benefit the beer, and may harm it.

Bottling it now is a great idea.

 

[Jsel13]

the Kit was a special recipe put together by the owner of a brewing supply store. they were his instructions. from what ive been told by some people who have used his recipes and instructions, he knows what hes talking about , and i was also told he is a certified brew master. so i trust his instructions.
so my question is why are some people saying its fine, and others saying its going to ruin the beer?
ive attached a picture for you to see what im talking about

 

[jjw5015]

I would just bottle it. Plus it's a wheat beer, so not really necessary to clear right?

 

[muels]

Most are saying it will be fine because more than likely it will be. You want to limit the amount of headspace because oxygen is detrimental to your beer. There is no benefit to your beer to leave it exposed to the oxygen in your secondary. If you have reached your desired final gravity you will be better off bottling it. As Yooper said, it can't get doner than done.

Most people don't do secondary unless they are aging or adding fruit, etc.. Do a search to see all of those discussions.

Your beer will not be "ruined" but it will be better if you limit its exposure to oxygen.

 

[ncbrewer]

so my question is why are some people saying its fine, and others saying its going to ruin the beer?

There seem to be more questions than answers when it comes to brewing - home brewing in particular. You've just seen a sampling. To me, it's part of what makes brewing fun.

 

[murphyslaw]

so my question is why are some people saying its fine, and others saying its going to ruin the beer?

Welcome to homebrewing!

My take is that oxygen is bad for beer, but its also always present to some degree. Its important to limit it where you can. For years people fermented in one vessel, then transferred to another and made good beer. Now its generally accepted that the reasons for transferring arent very good and the risks (additional o2 and possible contamination if you dont sanitize) arent worth the risks. So its not ideal to have that o2 sitting on top of the beer. It probably wont ruin your beer (which is why I say you're fine) but it is a negative (which is why others say bottle now). In the future, you probably want to just keep it in the primary. It's easier AND better.

Personally, I like the convenience of the 3 week fermentation rule and think its good for new brewers. But Yooper knows her stuff and she is right. If gravity is stable your beer is done fermenting.

This is actually something I've wanted to reevaluate in my own process, and yoopers apparent opinion that theres no benefit to maturing after fermentation is helpful to me.

 

[murphyslaw]

[duplicate]

 

[SteveM]

the Kit was a special recipe put together by the owner of a brewing supply store. they were his instructions. from what ive been told by some people who have used his recipes and instructions, he knows what hes talking about , and i was also told he is a certified brew master. so i trust his instructions.

99.99% sure he was just having a little joke. Many or most experienced brewers have their own processes and will free-lance recipes, even when using a kit. I'm sure your beer will be fine.

 

[PADave]

the Kit was a special recipe put together by the owner of a brewing supply store. they were his instructions. from what ive been told by some people who have used his recipes and instructions, he knows what hes talking about , and i was also told he is a certified brew master. so i trust his instructions.
so my question is why are some people saying its fine, and others saying its going to ruin the beer?
ive attached a picture for you to see what im talking about

That's a ton of head space for a secondary. If the FG is stable bottle that up now.

 

[seabrew8]

I too would go ahead and bottle. Nothing wrong with a secondary to help clear the beer though. Personally i cold crash and use gelatin in the primary.

Homebrew is like many things in life. There's many different ways to get to the same place.