sugar to raise og

I was brewing a Red ale kit and when adding water to 5 gal, the og only comes in at about 1.040. It's supposed to be 1.048. Is it acceptable to add sugar to bring it up or is this a big no no?

 

If it is an extract kit and you end up with the right final volume (e.g. 5 gallons for a 5 gallon batch) then it is all but certain the gravity is what it should be, despite what hydrometer reading you get.

 

Adding sugar dries out the beer, so it will be thinner and more alcoholic. If you really want to up the OG, it is better to use DME, unless you are intentionally drying out the beer.

As mentioned above, if you are using extract kits, and you added the correct amount of extract, and have the correct amount of wort after your boil, you are almost certainly at the intended OG, and your hydrometer reading is off due to insufficient mixing.

 

Thank you. Maybe I just didn't mix it up enough to get a true reading.

 

I quit taking OG readings on extract batches several years ago. If you keep mixing until you get the right reading, you're really just leaving the wort exposed to possible contamination longer. I like to close it up ASAP.