Using a Hydrometer with 1 Gallon Batches

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lucasweb

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I've just started brewing and am currently brewing my first 1 gallon batch.

I would like to be able to use a Hydrometer in order to accurately determine when fermentation has finished but am concerned about the amount of liquid I need to retrieve in order to get a reading. If I have to do this 2-3 times it is going to put a dent in the number of bottles I get from the batch.

Does anyone have any advice about using a hydrometer with a 1 gallon batch or know of any alternatives.

Thanks in advance.
 
sanitize everything and pour the beer back into the fermenter. be careful not to oxidate the brew tho.
 
What shauntraxler said, or do what I do with most of my 1 gallon batches - give it a minimum three weeks in primary. I have yet to have a beer not finish in that time (granted, I'm not making super high-gravity beers or anything).
 
lucasweb said:
I've just started brewing and am currently brewing my first 1 gallon batch.

I would like to be able to use a Hydrometer in order to accurately determine when fermentation has finished but am concerned about the amount of liquid I need to retrieve in order to get a reading. If I have to do this 2-3 times it is going to put a dent in the number of bottles I get from the batch.

Does anyone have any advice about using a hydrometer with a 1 gallon batch or know of any alternatives.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

I'm about to start 1 gallon batches also. How big is your primary? I plan to use a 2 gallon bucket I bought from HD's paint dept. Should have plenty of head space to prevent blowing the air lock. If I need to use the bucket before it's done I could secondary to a 1 gallon jucie bottle.
 
Thanks for advice. I have ordered the following wine thief (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00186ADYS/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20). It looks like I should be able to retrieve a sample, measure it and replace it fairly easily. I let you know how it goes.

@C-Rider - I am using a fermenter that I got as part of a kit from Brooklyn Brew Shop. It looks it takes about 6 quarts of liquid. I used a blow off tube to release the pressure for the first 3 days and then fitted the air lock.
 
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heh, I just got done saying in another thread that I don't like returning the sample to the fermenter... but for a 1-gallon batch, maybe I'd feel differently. +1 to doing it with a thief though. Any other method for taking the sample, I'd be concerned about splashing and such when returning it to the fermenter.
 
Why couldn't you just sanitize a hydrometer and float it in the primary, then retrieve it? Is it because of too much floating matter to read it?
 
sjjn said:
Why couldn't you just sanitize a hydrometer and float it in the primary, then retrieve it? Is it because of too much floating matter to read it?
Click to expand...

Some people do this, but I wouldn't. Number one, like you said, if there is any kraeusen or floating hop material or anything in there, it will be hard to get a reading. Number two, hydrometers are glass and prone to breaking; you do NOT want that thing breaking inside your fermenter.
 
C-Rider said:
I'm about to start 1 gallon batches also. How big is your primary? I plan to use a 2 gallon bucket I bought from HD's paint dept. Should have plenty of head space to prevent blowing the air lock. If I need to use the bucket before it's done I could secondary to a 1 gallon jucie bottle.
Click to expand...

You may want to check what kind of plastic that is made from and make sure it's food safe. Maybe I'm just being paranoid, but I wouldn't want to wait around a few weeks only to find out my beer has a chemical taste from the plastic it was fermented in.
 
jdubb75 said:
You may want to check what kind of plastic that is made from and make sure it's food safe. Maybe I'm just being paranoid, but I wouldn't want to wait around a few weeks only to find out my beer has a chemical taste from the plastic it was fermented in.
Click to expand...

Why 1 gallon batches? All that time, work, cleaning, and for what? 10 Beers?

I did a half batch (2.5 gallons) and I'm not really happy because the beer tasted great, I wish I had all 5 gallons of it.
 
lucasweb said:
Thanks for advice. I have ordered the following wine thief (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00186ADYS/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20). It looks like I should be able to retrieve a sample, measure it and replace it fairly easily. I let you know how it goes.

@C-Rider - I am using a fermenter that I got as part of a kit from Brooklyn Brew Shop. It looks it takes about 6 quarts of liquid. I used a blow off tube to release the pressure for the first 3 days and then fitted the air lock.
Click to expand...

Somewhere there is a youtube video showing a person shaking their thief to fill it enough... unless your 1 gal is narrow of base, it is likely you won't get enough in the theif. A quick shake up and down will put more liquid in it (stoper and current liquid go up and then more fills the bottom, etc etc.. you can practicde this with a glass of water)...

Just a thought.
 
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k2zr2 said:
Why 1 gallon batches? All that time, work, cleaning, and for what? 10 Beers?

I did a half batch (2.5 gallons) and I'm not really happy because the beer tasted great, I wish I had all 5 gallons of it.
Click to expand...

I only drink about 2 beers a day. I like a little variety in my beer. Been doing 5 gallon batches till now. After I give away a few 6 packs to friends I still have over 30 bottles left. I can only store so much before the refer is full.
 
C-Rider said:
I only drink about 2 beers a day. I like a little variety in my beer. Been doing 5 gallon batches till now. After I give away a few 6 packs to friends I still have over 30 bottles left. I can only store so much before the refer is full.
Click to expand...

You can send some of that surplus over here! I'll be glad to store it for you.
 
lucasweb said:
Thanks for advice. I have ordered the following wine thief (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00186ADYS/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20). It looks like I should be able to retrieve a sample, measure it and replace it fairly easily. I let you know how it goes.
Click to expand...

I don't know if it is the same one, but at my LHBS I looked at a wine thief that would float a hydrometer inside of it. I tried it in the store and the wine thief would not fit through the opening of a 1-gallon jug.
 
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k2zr2 said:
Why 1 gallon batches? All that time, work, cleaning, and for what? 10 Beers?

I did a half batch (2.5 gallons) and I'm not really happy because the beer tasted great, I wish I had all 5 gallons of it.
Click to expand...

Lots of us make many size batches, including the hosts of the BASIC BREWING podcast, they're big advocates of 1 gallon brews. People who make wine, meads or ciders seem to have no problem with making 1 gallon batches, so why the hate on it? I do 1 gall and a hell of a lot of 2.5 gallon batches, mostly test batches, or experiments or things for contests, or things I know I won't want 5 gallon batches for. Plus if I'm trying to nail a recipe down, I really don't want or need 2 cases of experiments.

So just because it's not your cup of tea, doesn't mean there's not a lot of us who do it. In fact so many folks do it that not too long ago some folks were pushing for an entire subforum soley devoted to small batch brewing...

The way I look at it, this is a hobby, not work, and I enjoy the act of brewing, whether it's a 30 gallon batch or a 1 gallon batch, I have fun doing.

*shrug*
 
jdubb75 said:
You may want to check what kind of plastic that is made from and make sure it's food safe. Maybe I'm just being paranoid, but I wouldn't want to wait around a few weeks only to find out my beer has a chemical taste from the plastic it was fermented in.
Click to expand...

We've sort of put this myth to bed on here and determined that as long as the code on the bottom of any vessel is a <1> or <2>, which most things including plastic water jugs and homer/lowes buckets are, then it's fine to use.
 
You could sanitize everything and pour it back in like the previous posts suggest. However, I would just place the hydrometer in the tube it came in and use a sanitized turkey baster to fill it until it floats. If you wait 3 weeks to do so, you are going to lose maybe a couple ounces at most as opposed to possibly ruining the entire batch.
 
Revvy said:
Lots of us make many size batches, including the hosts of the BASIC BREWING podcast, they're big advocates of 1 gallon brews. People who make wine, meads or ciders seem to have no problem with making 1 gallon batches, so why the hate on it? I do 1 gall and a hell of a lot of 2.5 gallon batches, mostly test batches, or experiments or things for contests, or things I know I won't want 5 gallon batches for. Plus if I'm trying to nail a recipe down, I really don't want or need 2 cases of experiments.

So just because it's not your cup of tea, doesn't mean there's not a lot of us who do it. In fact so many folks do it that not too long ago some folks were pushing for an entire subforum soley devoted to small batch brewing...

The way I look at it, this is a hobby, not work, and I enjoy the act of brewing, whether it's a 30 gallon batch or a 1 gallon batch, I have fun doing.

*shrug*
Click to expand...

Thanks Revvy. Indeed, I'm gonna do a Roggenbier next. 1 gallon. I've never had one, don't know if I'll like it so why brew 5 gallons? I plan to play around w/my own recipes and they will be expirements so why not try it on a small scale to see if it works.

Besides I'd rather have 1/2 dozen different brews in the fridge than 4 doz of two types. :tank:
 
Revvy said:
We've sort of put this myth to bed on here and determined that as long as the code on the bottom of any vessel is a <1> or <2>, which most things including plastic water jugs and homer/lowes buckets are, then it's fine to use.
Click to expand...

Yup, bucket has a #2 on it and the letters HDPE just like the 6.5 buckets from the LHBS.
 
Oh in answer to the OP's original question, I really wouldn't bother with grav reading on 1 gallon beers...just pitch plenty of yeast and wait 3-4 weeks...your beer will ferment out fine in that time. So you don't really need to check the gravity.

Or you could use a refractometer where you only need a drop of wort, then you can use a calclator which will allow you to take a reading with the presence of co2 in the beer when it fermented.
 
@ACBrewer, thanks for the tip, I found the video you were on about [ame]http://youtu.be/5DlQgomUc54[/ame]

The wine thief has shipped so as soon as it arrives I'll try it out and let you know how it goes.
 
Re: batch size, I also do a lot of 3 gallon batches for "experiments" and such. I do marvel at you 1-gallon folks, I think I'd find that frustrating. But to each his own! What I'm trying to say is even if I can't personally imagine doing a 1-gal batch, big +1 on sometimes smaller batches being better!
 
Revvy said:
Lots of us make many size batches, including the hosts of the BASIC BREWING podcast, they're big advocates of 1 gallon brews. People who make wine, meads or ciders seem to have no problem with making 1 gallon batches, so why the hate on it? I do 1 gall and a hell of a lot of 2.5 gallon batches, mostly test batches, or experiments or things for contests, or things I know I won't want 5 gallon batches for. Plus if I'm trying to nail a recipe down, I really don't want or need 2 cases of experiments.

So just because it's not your cup of tea, doesn't mean there's not a lot of us who do it. In fact so many folks do it that not too long ago some folks were pushing for an entire subforum soley devoted to small batch brewing...

The way I look at it, this is a hobby, not work, and I enjoy the act of brewing, whether it's a 30 gallon batch or a 1 gallon batch, I have fun doing.

*shrug*
Click to expand...

Wow man. I wasn't hating, I was asking a question. I brew half batches as test batches, I understand the importance of smaller batches, I just wondered why 1 gallon instead of getting a case of beers.
 
You could also invest in a refractometer to decrease the sample size taken for each reading.
 
Batch size question: I do one gallon batches for a couple of reasons. First, I like to do test batches this way - if it sucks, its only 10 beers. Two, its very easy and quick - I can do a 1 gallon AG batch in 3.5 hours, set-up through clean-up. Its easy to do in my tiny apartment, after work, while puttering around. Finally, I have multiple 1 gallon carboys in order to do experiments - for instance, I will make a three gallon batch, divide into three 1 gallon carboys, then pitch three different yeast strains in order to test strain differences.
 
k2zr2 said:
Why 1 gallon batches? All that time, work, cleaning, and for what? 10 Beers?

I did a half batch (2.5 gallons) and I'm not really happy because the beer tasted great, I wish I had all 5 gallons of it.
Click to expand...

I'm doing 5 1g batches for an experiment. Also 1g batches are a good way to get the process down because its cheap so you can make a lot more and get your process down to a science, more work, but more experience.
 
k2zr2 said:
Wow man. I wasn't hating, I was asking a question. I brew half batches as test batches, I understand the importance of smaller batches, I just wondered why 1 gallon instead of getting a case of beers.
Click to expand...

I didn't pick up any "hate" in your post.

At the rate I drink 10 beers will last a week! Gives me chance to see what I really like and experiment making my own recipes. Also I can do AG w/the equipment I have on hand.
 
The wine thief and hydrometer I ordered worked perfectly with the 1 gallon carboy. Using the technique mentioned above I was able to get a sample, take a reading, and return it to the carboy easily.

Thanks for everyone's help and suggestions. Am hoping the beer will be ready to bottle tomorrow which will no doubt lead to more questions :)
 
lucasweb said:
The wine thief and hydrometer I ordered worked perfectly with the 1 gallon carboy. Using the technique mentioned above I was able to get a sample, take a reading, and return it to the carboy easily.

Thanks for everyone's help and suggestions. Am hoping the beer will be ready to bottle tomorrow which will no doubt lead to more questions :)
Click to expand...

Grats, I'll be glad to help, make sure you refrigerate for 2-3 days before trying one
 

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