Something is not right..

Hey guys, I just finished extract brewing Midwest supplies "Beer. Simply beer. IPA" and for the most part everything went okay except a couple things. I forgot to get a OG reading before pitching the yeast. After reading through the forums I decided to try anyways and to get a reading and came up 1.020 which for the instructing said 1.051 so I'm way off. I tried the reading it tasted watered down. I then shook the carboy again hopefully mixing everything. Did I mess up or am I freaking out for no reason?

 

Rdw

 

A quick read of the recipe shows it's a full extract, partial boil.
If you ended up with the correct volume to the fermentor - including the topping-up water (which actually goes in first per the instructions) - and no fermentables left over, the OG will be as expected - it's unavoidable.

A very common SG reading error is due to insufficient mixing before taking your hydro sample...

Cheers!

 

Yea hopefully the second shake got it better, it at least looks better lol. I guess I didn't fill it exactly per the instructions. I bought two 2.5 gallon water jugs so I know there is 5 gallons(maybe a little lost in boil). Oh well just let it go and see what happens!

 

Yes, unless you spilled half your extract on the floor, you've probably hit your numbers! Don't worry about it.

 

Mark the five gallon level on your primary with duct tape before your next brew. Siphon the five gallons of water to the second fermentor if you have more than one to save time measuring.

You will have less than five gallons in the fermentor if you used a total of five gallons for this brew due to boil off loss. Your beer will just be a little higher ABV with less volume but still good beer.

 

Thanks for the help guys, it's been less than 24 hours and fermentation is rapidly going. I feel oh so noobish lol