1st BIAB Stuck Fermentation

[coug51]

I made my first attempt at BIAB with an IPA on 2/4.

OG was 1.068

On 2/19 OG was stuck at 1.038, so I pitched US05 and sloshed the bucket a bit.

Yesterday 3/3, I'm still sitting at 1.038. I never saw the agressive fermentation that I'm accustomed to with most of my extract IPAs.

Any thoughts on what I may have done wrong?

Can it be saved?

Sorry- I don't have the recipe in front of me right now (I can post tonight), but off the top of my head, I used 13-14lbs grain and Wyeast 1332.

 

[WayFrae]

I made my first attempt at BIAB with an IPA on 2/4.

OG was 1.068

On 2/19 OG was stuck at 1.038, so I pitched US05 and sloshed the bucket a bit.

Yesterday 3/3, I'm still sitting at 1.038. I never saw the agressive fermentation that I'm accustomed to with most of my extract IPAs.

Any thoughts on what I may have done wrong?

Can it be saved?

Sorry- I don't have the recipe in front of me right now (I can post tonight), but off the top of my head, I used 13-14lbs grain and Wyeast 1332.

What temperature did you mash at? You could try making a starter and pitch it at high krausen.

 

[btbnl]

Certainly sounds like too hot a mash resulting in lots of unfermentable sugars.

 

[peterj]

Are you measuring the FG with a refractometer or a hydrometer? Refractometers are not accurate once fermentation has begun without adjusting the reading to compensate for the added alcohol (which can be done with online calculators).

If you are using a hydrometer then I'll echo the others and ask what your mash temp and fermentation temps were.

 

[coug51]

Mashed at 160', but I'm afraid that because I'm using a new Tall Boy kettle, my thermometer may be to short to get an accurate read?

 

[coug51]

Are you measuring the FG with a refractometer or a hydrometer? Refractometers are not accurate once fermentation has begun without adjusting the reading to compensate for the added alcohol (which can be done with online calculators).

If you are using a hydrometer then I'll echo the others and ask what your mash temp and fermentation temps were.

I'm using a refractometer. I'll double check with hydro tonight.

 

[WayFrae]

I'm using a refractometer. I'll double check with hydro tonight.

It looks like after adjusting for alcohol your beer finished at 1.018. It finished fermenting that high since you mashed at such a high temperature.

After fermentation you need to use a hydrometer for accurate gravity readings.

 

[peterj]

The refractometer is the problem. I used this calculator to convert your reading and it looks like it's probably around 1.019.

But, 160 is way too hot. I'm surprised you got as much attenuation as you did with a mash temp that high.

 

[Gavin C]

Refractometer readings need to be adjusted if alcohol is present. Without doing the calculations you are probably at about 1.018

 

[doug293cz]

I'm using a refractometer. I'll double check with hydro tonight.

I played with your OG (1.068) and incorrect current SG (1.038) using this calculator: http://seanterrill.com/2012/01/06/refractometer-calculator/. I come out with an original Brix of 17.3 and a current Brix of 9.9. The alcohol corrected current SG is then 1.019. Still a bit on the high side, but much better than 1.038. Given your very high mash temp (160°F) 1.019 is probably as low as you are going to get.

Brew on
Edit: Wow! three people beat me to the punch while is was typing.

 

[coug51]

Thank You!

 

[eadavis80]

In reference to the thermometer, I have an 8-gallon Tall Boy kettle and while I rest my thermometer on the kettle with its clip, when I actually take a temperature reading, I'm always careful to put the thermometer deep into the wort so the reading is proper as my thermometer is not all that long. I learned the hard way that its readings were not valid unless I put the probe of the thermometer deep into my wort.

 

[Dixon9717]

In reference to the thermometer, I have an 8-gallon Tall Boy kettle and while I rest my thermometer on the kettle with its clip, when I actually take a temperature reading, I'm always careful to put the thermometer deep into the wort so the reading is proper as my thermometer is not all that long. I learned the hard way that its readings were not valid unless I put the probe of the thermometer deep into my wort.

Have you been talking to my wife? She tells me the same thing

 

[wilserbrewer]

I would also suggest stirring prior to taking a temp reading so the wort is homogeneous w respect to temp.