Boiling amounts...

[rambone54]

I am going to brew my second beer later this week and was wondering if adding less water than what is asked for in the directions is ok?
The directions ask for 2.5 gal of water to make the wort. On my first brew it was hard to get and keep at a boil. I was wondering if I only added 2 gal of water if this would be ok?

 

[twistr25]

It will be fine, but the less water you add the lower hop utilization you will get, so your IBUs may end up a little lower. Other than that, shouldn't be a big deal.

 

[Black Island Brewer]

It is okay, but it can affect the hop utilization - you'll get less bitterness from the hops when the concentration of the wort during the boil is increased. However, you can compensate for it a couple of ways. You could add more hops, or, if you're not already doing so, you could add part of the extract in the last 10 minutes of the boil so the wort is less concentrated when your hops are isomerizing.

 

[rambone54]

Ok. Thanks for the responses.