Adding water to secondary.

[j-pint]

Hi
I've got a kit that is for 6 gallons but my primary only holds 5. I have a secondary that holds 6. Can I just add another gallon of purified water to the secondary?
Thanks


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[MaxStout]

Sure, but you will dilute your beer. You should have switched the two fermenters around--use 6g for primary, 5g for secondary. The 6g provides more headspace for active fermentations, and headspace isn't an oxidation issue since there will be plenty of CO2 developed to protect the beer. The 5g is better for secondary, as it limits headpace.

 

[ong]

Plus you're leaving some volume behind (trub and some beer ) when you rack to secondary.


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[sbharrison]

That's exactly what I do

 

[sbharrison]

.......as in using 6 gal as the primary

 

[j-pint]

Thanks for the advice. Makes sense.


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[Calder]

Boil it to get most of the entrained air out of the water, otherwise you are introducing O2 along with the water.

Add a couple of ozs of sugar to the boiling water. This will create CO2 in the secondary for you.