First batch, couple questions

[Aberrix]

So my first batch went off without a hitch really, I just have a couple questions.

I have my primary in the basement right now and its sitting at 64F (has been since last night), is that okay? (its an ESB) I haven't seen any visible signs of fermentation yet, couple bubbles here and there but I know it can take 24-72 hours to show real signs of fermentation. Should I be looking into something like 'the brew belt' to raise the temp a little or am I fine?

Secondly I took my OG but realized I don't really know how to read the hydrometer... well, at all... looks like it read 5%? but I'm unsure how to convert that to a 1.XXX reading? how do I?

Thanks in advance, I had a ton of fun brewing my first batch and can't wait to do more!

 

[D_Struct]

If the ambient temperature of your basement is 64F, assume the temperature of your fermenting beer is approximately 5-8 degrees higher.

If you're wanting to ferment sub 70F, you're right on the borderline, but not in the danger zone by any stretch. You should be all set, depending on the type of yeast you're using (different yeasts like different fermentation temps).

Rule of thumb, when you're using your hydrometer's gravity readings to determine abv, you need to take your starting gravity and subtract your final gravity (once the beer's finished fermentation). Take that and multiply it by 131. Don't use the hydrometer's % scale. There should be two scales. One with percentages, and another one that looks like 1.050 (arbitrary number). Check out:



Using hydrometers to get a dead-on abv isn't 100% accurate, but it's close. There can be other non-fermentables there throwing off the reading just a hair.

 

[Aberrix]

If the ambient temperature of your basement is 64F, assume the temperature of your fermenting beer is approximately 5-8 degrees higher.

64F is the reading on the fermometer on the side of my carboy.

using Wyeast 1968 London ESB, which iirc says 64F-71F for fermenting.

 

[D_Struct]

64F is the reading on the fermometer on the side of my carboy.

using Wyeast 1968 London ESB, which iirc says 64F-71F for fermenting.

What's the ambient temperature in the room? That's the best way to tell without drawing a wort sample and getting a temp reading. Stick-ons, while they give you piece of mind, don't always give you the best reading (ballpark figure that lets you know when things are really off kilter).

 

[Aberrix]

I'll have to get a reading on the ambient temp of the room, its MN and its an unfinished basement. We keep our house at a constant 70F day/night. So to guess I'd say it "feels" around 65-67F in the basement. But I'll have to double check.

So, my hydrometer doesn't have readings clearly marked like that. (I bought all my equipment second hand) Is it too late for me to go buy a 'proper hydrometer' and get a OG reading tonight?

 

[Aberrix]

I dont know if it works in reverse like this but if I got a 5% reading that would equate to just under 1.040, right? my recipe kit says I should have an OG of 1.047...

is it ruined?

 

[D_Struct]

I'll have to get a reading on the ambient temp of the room, its MN and its an unfinished basement. We keep our house at a constant 70F day/night. So to guess I'd say it "feels" around 65-67F in the basement. But I'll have to double check.

So, my hydrometer doesn't have readings clearly marked like that. (I bought all my equipment second hand) Is it too late for me to go buy a 'proper hydrometer' and get a OG reading tonight?

Just assume that if the ambient temperature in the basement is 65, your wort is somewhere between 70F and 73F (I've heard of fermenting wort being 10 degrees higher, but I've not encountered that, yet). If you're worried, rig up a swamp cooler or cold water bath to get the temperature where you want it. You haven't ruined it, at all. Just do what you can to get the temperature under control. One of my first beers was over temp for the first 2 days of fermentation (not drastic, but enough to be worried), and I was told I had little hope to correct things. I got it in a cold water bath with some frozen bottles of water as soon as I could, and the beer ended up terrific.

Hmm. You might've missed your window for a proper OG. Did your kit instructions give you a suggested OG and FG? If you didn't go off the grid with the directions, just use that as your starting point. What's really important now is picking up a new hydrometer and waiting on the FG to be in the sweet spot for a few days in a row. You might not hit the kit's suggested FGs consistently, but being close and making sure it's not still fermenting before you bottle or keg is critical.

 

[Aberrix]

So maybe I'll just leave the primary alone, I moved it to a 'warmer' part of the basement and put a towel around it and under. I suppose I can always move it and uncover it to lower it should I need to, I guess I was more worried about it being too cold.

My recipe instructions (http://www.northernbrewer.com/documentation/beerkits/ExtraSpecialBitter.pdf) only list an OG (1.047), I followed them to a "T", I have a wort chiller and was able to chill to 100F within 5-10min and then added it to the 2 gallons of cold water already in the carboy, topped off to 5 gallons (another 1/4-1/3 gallon), shook (swirled) it around a bit and then took my OG before pitching the yeast.

I'll have to look at my hydrometer again and look at the instructions for it too, maybe I missed something... I probably should've inspected it before using it for the first time at the most crucial part :/

 

[Yooper]

Just assume that if the ambient temperature in the basement is 65, your wort is somewhere between 70F and 73F (I've heard of fermenting wort being 10 degrees higher, but I've not encountered that, yet). If you're worried, rig up a swamp cooler or cold water bath to get the temperature where you want it. You haven't ruined it, at all, just do what you can to get the temperature under control. One of my first beers was over temp for the first 2 days of fermentation (not drastic, but enough to be worried), and I was told I had little hope to correct things. I got it in a cold water bath with some frozen bottles of water as soon as I could, and the beer ended up terrific.

Hmm. You might've missed your window for a proper OG. Did your kit instructions give you a suggested OG and FG? If you didn't go off the grid with the directions, just use that as your starting point. What's really important now is picking up a new hydrometer and waiting on the FG to be in the sweet spot for a few days in a row. You might not hit the kit's suggested FGs consistently, but being close and making sure it's not still fermenting before you bottle or keg is critical.

In my experience, the stick on thermometer is very close to the temperature of the beer- within a degree or so. So, you can believe if it says "64", it is. It's true that fermentation produces heat, but it's less pronounced when it's cooler. At this time of year, my fermenting beer is usually very close to ambient temperature, unless it's a wild and crazy fermentation. Slow and steady fermentations don't produce nearly as much heat as a wild rockin' "hot" fermentation.

Anyway, 64 is fine. Almost all of my ales are fermented at 60-68, summer and winter. The key is to pitch enough yeast. If you've used only one package of yeast without a starter, you may have a long lag time to get it to take off. You could try raising it up off of the floor (if it is on the floor) and throwing a blanket around it to maintain the warmth until it takes off.

If your kit says 1.047, you can use that figure as the OG. Unless you added more water than the kit calls for, it's impossible for the kit to be off. The sugars are in there, and there are a preset number of them. So don't worry about an OG reading!

 

[Aberrix]

Cool, thanks for the reassurance guys. I appreciate it.

 

[D_Struct]

No worries. Just get the temp down, and let it ride! Check again in a few weeks!

First brews can be maddening to wait out, but following the great advice you can get on these boards will put you miles ahead in your brewing hobby.

I would advise making plans for another batch within the next few weeks. That's the only way I can keep my mind off the currently fermenting batches! Once you feel out the hobby and see if you enjoy the fruits of your labor, you'll want to get a pipeline going as soon as possible! lol

 

[D_Struct]

In my experience, the stick on thermometer is very close to the temperature of the beer- within a degree or so. So, you can believe if it says "64", it is. It's true that fermentation produces heat, but it's less pronounced when it's cooler. At this time of year, my fermenting beer is usually very close to ambient temperature, unless it's a wild and crazy fermentation. Slow and steady fermentations don't produce nearly as much heat as a wild rockin' "hot" fermentation.

Anyway, 64 is fine. Almost all of my ales are fermented at 60-68, summer and winter. The key is to pitch enough yeast. If you've used only one package of yeast without a starter, you may have a long lag time to get it to take off. You could try raising it up off of the floor (if it is on the floor) and throwing a blanket around it to maintain the warmth until it takes off.

If your kit says 1.047, you can use that figure as the OG. Unless you added more water than the kit calls for, it's impossible for the kit to be off. The sugars are in there, and there are a preset number of them. So don't worry about an OG reading!

And another piece of advice:

Listen to Yooper before you listen to me!