Eliminating Secondary Fermenter

[Buckzilla]

I'm fairly new and have been making basic IPA's and 2x IPA's with extract. I see many comments and suggestions of leaving in primary and adding another week. So in theory a basic IPA with 1 week in the primary and 2 in the secondary would be a total of 4 weeks in a primary without racking. A double with 2 weeks in the primary and 4 weeks in the secondary would be 7 weeks in the primary without racking. My question is do I leave in the primary and start testing SG before the suggested time and bottle when it reaches calculated SG or is it safe/better to let it go out to the maximum suggested time to achieve the calculated SG? My concern is too much time in the yeast... would the extended times more so for doubles effect the flavor if in the primary too long?

 

[TexasDroughtBrewery]

I wouldn't worry about two much time on the yeast..the longest I have left mine on yeast is 2 months and when I did that I was searching for the same thing and everyone said I was fine. But...two months is pushing the envelope to be fair.

To answer you questions...you can do either way as long as the beer reaches SG it dosen't matter how you got to it.

 

[Biscuits]

Many people skip secondary all together unless you're adding something to it like fruit. typically for an IPA APA, any basic brew, all you need is 2 weeks in primary and then straight to bottle or keg. This is only a rule of thumb of course....always check gravity a few days apart to confirm it is finished.

 

[jabba11]

My general rule of thumb is apparently different in that I am 4 weeks in primary UNLESS I am racking over fruit or something in a secondary. For IPA's I dry hop at 3 weeks or so (7-10 days) and keg or bottle and let it sit for another two weeks. I get tired of checking gravity and this system works for me every time UNLESS its a big beer or something then Im watching gravity readings.

 

[worlddivides]

Wow. That's a really long time in the fermenters for an IPA. I personally only use a secondary when I'm adding something like fruit or aging it long term (for sours or barleywine, for example). For hoppy beers (like IPAs and APAs), I only use a primary and try to get it out of primary as soon as possible. For example, with my previous beer, it was in primary for 2 weeks and then I bottled it. The fermentation lasted about about 4-5 days. About 2-3 days after the fermentation had ended, I started dry hopping and I dry hopped for about 7 days. Then I bottled the beer. Turned out insanely hoppy and refreshing.

It seems the consensus on this site is pretty much "Don't use secondary unless you absolutely have to" (what constitutes having to use secondary seems to differ from person to person). Most think the risk of oxidation upon transferal is not worth it.

I do wonder what the reason for leaving a double IPA in the fermenters for 7 weeks would be. Depending on the details, I might leave it in primary for up to 3 weeks, but that'd be my personal max for any kind of IPA.

 

[jabba11]

Aroma comes mostly from dry hopping, bitterness doesn't fade. 7 weeks is longer than necessary in a fermenter probably but when you start the dry hop is probably most important. A double IPA is probably gonna need more time in a fermenter to finish but 7 weeks seems long for sure. You don't really want your beer to still be fermenting when you dry hop it will drive aromas out of the fermenter. Most beer are done fermenting at two weeks so being done in three is certainly not out of the question but its not a race necessarily either. That's just my two cents people do what works for them

 

[kh54s10]

Why would you want to extend the time in primary longer than you would to a primary and secondary?

Primary for about 2 weeks or until you have final gravity and a pretty clear beer then package it. 2 weeks fermenting and about 3 weeks bottle conditioning. Unless it is a really big beer. Then you want to age it, probably in the bottles, longer.

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

I only do secondary for lagers when it will be sitting on the yeast a long time. Everything else is just primary. My minimum is 2 weeks for OG less than ~1055. As gravity increases, so does fermenatation time. My last BDSA was OG 1109 and I gave it 6 weeks. For dry hopping or other post-ferm addiions (fruit, nibs, vanilla, etc), I just add a week before bottling.

 

[shortyz]

i still like to cold crash and clear with gelatin in secondary, only takes 2 days and keeps a buncha junk outta my keg/bottles.

 

[itsbarleytime]

I have always had good results doing two weeks in primary and cold crash in the primary for a couple days. I have had beers that left in primary for a month that were yeasty flavored, mainly my lighter beers. I have had negative results from secondary. If you want clear beer cold crash 2 days to a week. I dry hop on the last two days with great results. That's just my experience. Remember theres no wrong way to eat a Reese's.

 

[RM-MN]

Most ales improve with time in the bottle as they mature there but the aroma that we seek with an IPA fade quickly in the bottle so we drink them young. The process of maturing the beer can happen in the fermenter as well as in the bottle so I'd leave my beer in the fermenter for a longer period, perhaps a week or 2 after they reach FG, then dry hop for 3 to 10 days before bottling. That way I get the benefit of mature beer with great aroma. YMMV

 

[myerstyson]

Is the question how to get rid of using a secondary? Simple: Don't rack to secondary.

 

[Yooper]

I'm packaging an IPA today. I brewed it on June 7, and dryhopped right in the primary 5 days ago.

I don't typically use a secondary vessel unless I'm saving the yeast from the primary. I also would never go 4, 5, 6, 7, weeks in a fermenter with most beers but especially an IPA. Once it's done fermenting and starting to clear, I dryhop. Three- five days later I package.

 

[Clavain46]

I just watched an interview with John Palmer who suggests just leaving it in the primary and that the quality of todays yeasts is so good that moving over to a secondary is not necessary. I've always used a secondary though, simply because it aids in clarifying before bottling.

 

[krackin]

I'm packaging an IPA today. I brewed it on June 7, and dryhopped right in the primary 5 days ago.

I don't typically use a secondary vessel unless I'm saving the yeast from the primary. I also would never go 4, 5, 6, 7, weeks in a fermenter with most beers but especially an IPA. Once it's done fermenting and starting to clear, I dryhop. Three- five days later I package.

I'm so far behind it is frustrating. Market farming and all that goes with it.

I did a citra IPA on the 9th and a centennial on the 10th and dry hopped on the 22nd. Cans are already and waiting so maybe tomorrow or Tues. No secondaries either for most house ales. There is just no point in it.

 

[dstockwell]

I will use a secondary only if I am going to dry hop on new yeast. I want to save the yeast without added hop material. If it's a subsequent use I wont use a secondary..

 

[PADave]

I've never used a secondary. Been going with a 3 week in the primary schedule. That way I know it's done. I take one FG reading, and that is as I am bottling.

 

[Ster]

No need for a secondary... but I do. Simply to reduce the chance of ciphoning up particles to the bottling bucket.

2 weeks primary.
Rack / Dry Hop
2 weeks secondary.
If not clear, 3 day cold crash.
If still not clear, add gelatin for 3 days.

After all of this, it's as good as it's going to get.

 

[kh54s10]

I bag my hops, so the trub layer is rarely deep enough that the cap on the end of my autosiphon does not keep it above. My beers are usually clear at 2 weeks. If I let them go longer it is usually that I get lazy when it is ready for packaging. Any small amount of debris that ends up in the bottling bucket or keg just settles to the bottom there. With the keg, it all is drawn off in the first glass which is usually discarded anyway.

I am not obsessed with getting a totally clear beer so secondary for me is just a step that serves no purpose in most cases. It is also another chance to create problems like oxidation or infection.

 

[kombat]

I've always used a secondary though, simply because it aids in clarifying before bottling.

How?

How does disturbing the beer, redistributing the particulates evenly throughout, result in clearer beer than just leaving it alone and letting things finish settling out?

 

[Jim311]

I must be doing it wrong, as soon as my beer makes it to FG I put it in the keg. I just kegged one that was a week old total, and I'm dry hopping it in the keg. You guys are nuts keeping any beer in primary for 2 months unless it's a real beast of a beer!

 

[jabba11]

I had a sour in a fermenter over a year once..

 

[logan3825]

I left a Barleywine in the primary for two years. It was a bucket. I never secondary any beer.

 

[jabba11]

well I did secondary that sour to get it off the yeast cake and cherry trub but it was in that secondary for 11 months LOL

 

[logan3825]

I did have to use some fresh yeast for bottling. I assumed the original yeast wouldn't be much help carbonating the beer, but yeah, same fermenter the beer went in after the boil for two years. The beer is actually pretty good.

 

[jabba11]

Yes I had to do this as well. My sour kriek is now over two years in bottle (yes almost 3 years total) and IMHO is still improving honestly either that or I am just used to it and liking it more and more but I don't have one but every so often.