Ridiculously high OG

[KingPing]

So I just finished brewing my first brew, and took a gravity reading and it came out to a worrisome 1.112! This is without any temp correction. I tested the hydrometer in just water and it read just about 1, so that can't be the problem.

The beer was the Hefe kit from Northern Brewer and it lists an OG of 1.049. After cooling the wort I poured it into the carboy, then topped up to 5 gal., then pitched my yeast starter. Could things have not gotten mixed enough causing the siphon to take out mostly the concentrated wort?

Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Brewsmith]

If it was a kit I highly doubt the gravity was that high.

Did you measure before you topped up?

How much malt extract did you put in?

 

[WOP31]

I would lean toward it not beign mixed properly, you should always give the carboy a good shaking after topping up in order to mix it all up, and then take your sample.

Cheers

 

[KingPing]

Yes, the measurement was after having topped up.

It's only been in the carboy for 15-20 minutes, so I guess I'll give things a good shake and take another reading.

EDIT:

Yep, it was definitely a mixing problem. After looking closely, I could actually see that the bottom 6 inches or so was a lot darker than the rest. After mixing it up and taking another reading I got 1.047. Now I see where RDWHAHB really come into play, lol. It's my first batch though, so I'm sure I will be learning plenty more of these little things as I continue to brew. Thanks for all your help guys, real quick responses too.

 

[Thalon]

Also make sure there's enough liquid in the test tube to float the hydrometer. If it's not floating then of course you'll wind up with whatever reading the level of the liquid is at. Sadly, I speak from experience here.

 

[rohanski]

I have had this happen a few times although not that high. I don't know what causes it but the beer will be fine.

 

[jb444]

I tested the hydrometer in just water and it read just about 1, so that can't be the problem.

At the risk of being called pedantic if the hydrometer dosen't match it's scale, then it will probably read 0 in pure water, and it can only be tested by checking the hydrometer in a solution of known gravity to ensure its right (unless it reads wrong because the roll of paper with the scale has moved down)
just to let you know!

 

[WOP31]

At the risk of being called pedantic if the hydrometer dosen't match it's scale, then it will probably read 0 in pure water, and it can only be tested by checking the hydrometer in a solution of known gravity to ensure its right (unless it reads wrong because the roll of paper with the scale has moved down)
just to let you know!

Isn't that the point of testing it pure water to see if it reads right. If it reads 1.001 then you know to correct by .001 that is assuming that the error is linear.

Cheers

 

[KingPing]

The water test was just see make sure that the hydrometer wasn't incredibly off. The water I used was just tap water, and it probably wasn't exactly 1, but I just wanted to make sure that it was in the right ballpark.