First Brew, General questions, please help!

[chrisbarry]

So i started my first brew on this past sunday, and im starting to think that i may have screwed some things up.

i have a 3 gallon kit.

What i did... i filled my carboy up with water and poured it into my brew kettle to use for adding my steeped grain, and for boiling my wort. the instructions didnt say how much water i initially needed to start with in the pot. it is fermenting now in my primary bucket before i transfer it to my secondary carboy. i feel like i may have to much liquid for the carboy now.

my first question is, did i add to much water? and if so, how much water should i start with? since adding the steeped grain fills it up as well. as well as i filled the primary wort bucket up with water to the fill line, which seems way bigger than the carboy.

if anyone can help me that would be awesome.

thanks,

chris

 

[Hello]

How much wort got into your carboy?
When I did 5 gallon extract batches I used 3 gallons of water, cooled the wort, topped up with 2.5 gallons which made up for what I lost during the boil. If I were doing 3 gallons, I'd shoot for a full boil and top up if my boil off was greater. What was your OG?

 

[freisste]

So i started my first brew on this past sunday, and im starting to think that i may have screwed some things up.



i have a 3 gallon kit.



What i did... i filled my carboy up with water and poured it into my brew kettle to use for adding my steeped grain, and for boiling my wort. the instructions didnt say how much water i initially needed to start with in the pot. it is fermenting now in my primary bucket before i transfer it to my secondary carboy. i feel like i may have to much liquid for the carboy now.



my first question is, did i add to much water? and if so, how much water should i start with? since adding the steeped grain fills it up as well. as well as i filled the primary wort bucket up with water to the fill line, which seems way bigger than the carboy.



if anyone can help me that would be awesome.



thanks,



chris

I'm having a little trouble figuring out exactly what you did. How much water did you boil, how much went into the fermenter (boil plus top off), and how large was the bath supposed to be (recipe size)? Also, how big is your fermenter and is it a bucket or carboy.

This was an extract batch, right? Like 1-2 lbs of grain steeped and thrown away and then you boil syrup or powder?

Answer those questions and we can help a little more.

But first step: if it is really close to the top of the fermenter, replace your airlock with a blowoff tube.




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[chrisbarry]

How much wort got into your carboy?
When I did 5 gallon extract batches I used 3 gallons of water, cooled the wort, topped up with 2.5 gallons which made up for what I lost during the boil. If I were doing 3 gallons, I'd shoot for a full boil and top up if my boil off was greater. What was your OG?

OG was 1.05.

full boil means? i want to assume you mean start with 3 gallons of water in the brew kettle?

 

[chrisbarry]

I'm having a little trouble figuring out exactly what you did. How much water did you boil, how much went into the fermenter (boil plus top off), and how large was the bath supposed to be (recipe size)? Also, how big is your fermenter and is it a bucket or carboy.

This was an extract batch, right? Like 1-2 lbs of grain steeped and thrown away and then you boil syrup or powder?

Answer those questions and we can help a little more.

But first step: if it is really close to the top of the fermenter, replace your airlock with a blowoff tube.




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I started my boil with 3 gallons of water, I didn't know that you could top off after the boil. And yes, it was an extract batch. so, my primary is a plastic bucket, and my secondary is going to be my 3 gallon carboy. recipe size is supposed to be 3 gallons.

this is what i did:

1) steeped my grains, roughly .16 of crystal 60/30 malt in roughly 4.2 litres of water

2) added my steeped grains (strained), into 3 gallons of boiling water

3) added my extract

4) brought back to a boil, and went through my hop process

5) added my wort into my plastic bucket, and added yeast. wlp013 london ale

this is where i may have screwed up i think. i didnt know if i lost any volume of wort in the boil? does that happen? so when i added my wort into my bucket, it wasnt at the "fill line" so i added water. and now i feel as though when i go to transfer it to my carboy, its going to be too much volume of liquid.

what im wondering, how much water should you start with in a 3 gallon batch? what is a full brew? if i start with 3 gallons of water in my brew kettle, do i need to add anymore water at the end?

 

[freisste]

A "full boil" means you boil enough liquid that at the end of the boil, you have your recipe volume remaining. For example, if you wanted to brew a 5 gallon batch, it is common to start with 6+ gallons (depends on your system).

The opposite of a full boil is a boil with top off. For example, if you want a 3 gallon batch, you could start with 3 gallons and add 1/2-1 gallon at the end (because yes, you do lose volume to the boil).

So my question to you is this:

You say you filled your bucket up to the "fill line." What line? The 3 gallon line? If so, you did exactly right.

That would be a boil with top up. You got to the right volume and that is exactly the volume that will go into a 3 gallon carboy.

 

[dbkdev]

Having a tough time following your English. How many gallons is your fill line?

 

[chrisbarry]

A "full boil" means you boil enough liquid that at the end of the boil, you have your recipe volume remaining. For example, if you wanted to brew a 5 gallon batch, it is common to start with 6+ gallons (depends on your system).

The opposite of a full boil is a boil with top off. For example, if you want a 3 gallon batch, you could start with 3 gallons and add 1/2-1 gallon at the end (because yes, you do lose volume to the boil).

So my question to you is this:

You say you filled your bucket up to the "fill line." What line? The 3 gallon line? If so, you did exactly right.

That would be a boil with top up. You got to the right volume and that is exactly the volume that will go into a 3 gallon carboy.

http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j...Z9vPCvTLDCsAfuZlRBI2baBg&ust=1391566786470799

^^thats an example of the bucket i have, except mine is 3 gallon not 2. It doesn't have any marker lines on it for reference when topping off. so i filled it almost to the top. but when i compare the size of the bucket to the carboy that im going to be transferring to, the bucket seems a lot bigger. Im going to assume i have enough, maybe even too much for my carboy.

-can adding too much water ruin the batch?
-whats better? full boil or a top off?


but so far youve been really helpful, thanks.

 

[freisste]

http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j...Z9vPCvTLDCsAfuZlRBI2baBg&ust=1391566786470799



^^thats an example of the bucket i have, except mine is 3 gallon not 2. It doesn't have any marker lines on it for reference when topping off. so i filled it almost to the top. but when i compare the size of the bucket to the carboy that im going to be transferring to, the bucket seems a lot bigger. Im going to assume i have enough, maybe even too much for my carboy.



-can adding too much water ruin the batch?

-whats better? full boil or a top off?





but so far youve been really helpful, thanks.

I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but a three gallon bucket vs a three gallon carboy - they're going to be pretty similar.

Adding too much water will not ruin a batch, but it will be watered down.

Most will say that a full boil is better than a partial boil. How much better depends on how far from a full boil you are. (Boiling 6 gallons down to 5 is a little better than boiling 5 to 4 and topping off with a gallon; boiling 6 to 5 is much better than boiling 3 to 2 and topping off with 3.) Sometimes topping off is nice because it helps you cool faster.

But I have to ask again, you mentioned a "fill line" before, and now you say there are no markers. Do you have any idea how much you added? Does your recipe give a target OG?






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[chrisbarry]

I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but a three gallon bucket vs a three gallon carboy - they're going to be pretty similar.

Adding too much water will not ruin a batch, but it will be watered down.

Most will say that a full boil is better than a partial boil. How much better depends on how far from a full boil you are. (Boiling 6 gallons down to 5 is a little better than boiling 5 to 4 and topping off with a gallon; boiling 6 to 5 is much better than boiling 3 to 2 and topping off with 3.) Sometimes topping off is nice because it helps you cool faster.

But I have to ask again, you mentioned a "fill line" before, and now you say there are no markers. Do you have any idea how much you added? Does your recipe give a target OG?






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Ok, I think I'm starting to understand. Yes, the target OG was 1.049. I had roughly around there when i tested it. I added roughly 3 litres

 

[freisste]

I think everything is going to be good. What you did does not sound out of the ordinary at all.

My only concern now is headspace (the empty space inside your fermenter above your beer). Do you know how close the wort was to the top of your bucket when you closed the lid? If it was within a couple inches (50-75mm) or less, I would make sure to use a blowoff tube. Google "blowoff tube" for instructions, but they're pretty simple.


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[uatuba]

It's probably not a 3 gallon bucket. It's probably listed as a 3 gallon but to the rim is likely a 3.5...I got a "6.5 gallon" bucket that actually holds 7 gallons when filled to the rim.


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[chrisbarry]

I think everything is going to be good. What you did does not sound out of the ordinary at all.

My only concern now is headspace (the empty space inside your fermenter above your beer). Do you know how close the wort was to the top of your bucket when you closed the lid? If it was within a couple inches (50-75mm) or less, I would make sure to use a blowoff tube. Google "blowoff tube" for instructions, but they're pretty simple.


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I have about 5 inches of air between the lid. But regardless I will google blowoff tubes.


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[chrisbarry]

It's probably not a 3 gallon bucket. It's probably listed as a 3 gallon but to the rim is likely a 3.5...I got a "6.5 gallon" bucket that actually holds 7 gallons when filled to the rim.


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Yeah that's what I'm starting to think. Thanks.


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[freisste]

I have about 5 inches of air between the lid. But regardless I will google blowoff tubes.


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You'll probably be fine (I'm much less worried for you now), but blowoffs are always a good idea. Better safe than sorry.


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[chrisbarry]

You'll probably be fine (I'm much less worried for you now), but blowoffs are always a good idea. Better safe than sorry.


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Thanks for all your help!


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[goodyx7]

You will lose a little bit of your beer from your bucket when transferred to the carboy due to sediment (trub). You're going to want to leave all that behind.

 

[chrisbarry]

You will lose a little bit of your beer from your bucket when transferred to the carboy due to sediment (trub). You're going to want to leave all that behind.

Ok. Yeah, I've been reading up on that. Thanks for the post


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