First time - trying to use hydrometer - Help Please!!

[ggoogs]

First timer!

For Christmas my wife gave me the "True Brew - Home Brewing Kit" So far i'm not sure it's going so well.

1. I think, now looking back to last week, I added the yeast to quickly, I didnt waite 10 mins after everything was done boiling.

2. The bubbling in the airlock, although only a bubble here and there, stopped after a day. I am on day 6 now.

3. After searching for info as to what I should do or be looking for, I am really at a point of thinking this maybe a complete disaster. I see people saying to take peek in and see if there is any foam, the answer is no foam. I see to take a reading with a hydrometer which came with the kit, I do not have a glass container to put the sample into to test it, what can be used as a substitute?

Any and all help would be great!

Thank you in advance for your time.

Guy

 

[Yooper]

Do you have the plastic container the hydrometer came it? If so, just use a sanitized turkey baster or a sanitized glass measuring cup, and take a little beer out of the fermenter and fill up that tube. Float the hydrometer in it, spinning it a bit to make sure it's not sticking to the side, and then take the reading. It's easier if you a. do it over the sink because you will probably spill some beer the first time, and b. once you spill some beer, hold it on the counter and bend over and read it at eye level. That should give you a good reading.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

10 mins after boiling? did you cool your wort off to pitch temps?

use the plastic tube your hydrometer came in to put the sample in. kinda a nifty lil bonus that comes with a new hydro.

bubbling in an airlock means very little, rely on gravity readings.

fermentation can take as little as a day or two, but that doesn't mean it's 'finished'. many of us here like to leave beer in primary for 2 or three weeks, even if FG is reached in days.

 

[acuenca]

First, what temperature was the wort when you added the yeast??

You can use the tube the hydrometer came in.

 

[ggoogs]

The truth is, I was trying to focus so much on the directions that I did not take any temperatures, it boiled for 30 mins than I poured it into the 4 gallons of cold water. The yeast got sprinkled in within minutes.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

you should always pay attention to temps. you don't want to pitch yeast too hot or too cold, you could kill or stress them. take a gravity reading and post back the results.

 

[Revvy]

Here, watch this.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtQt7HiObuU]Hydrometer - Brewing Beginner Series - YouTube[/ame]

 

[ggoogs]

ok thanks!

 

[Hang Glider]

Welcome to brewing. Now, you get to practice patience. Even if it's been 6 days, leave it be 3 more weeks. Then, when you bottle it, leave it 3 more weeks.

Nevermind what the instructions told you about making beer in just 10 days...

Think about your temperatures, think about temperature control during the fermenting. (place the fermenter in an icechest, fill with water, and regulate the water temp - especially during the first week. Inexpensive and efficient.)

 

[dougdecinces]

I would invest in a 100 mL graduated cylinder. Glass, preferably. It's the perfect size for taking hydrometer measurements and you can also use it to measure whatever various liquids you wish to measure.

 

[lgilmore]

Sounds like you still need a few things here and there. A thermometer is a real need. Maybe a wort chiller. Reading your description of your brewing, it seemed rushed, like steps or quality control was eyeballed rather than actually checked.

It will get better as you go. I would dry run next time to make sure you have everything handy, your steps down and then you won't have that missed something feeling.
cheers man.

 

[JohnnyO]

Hey man, I live in Hamden and work in Branford. Don't worry if this batch comes out less than what you would like. I think everyone's first batch is more a learning experience than anything else. You might have some issues like off flavors from improper pitching temps. However, you'll likely have a drinkable beer. Enjoy!

 

[ggoogs]

I took the gravity reading, this is what I have

 

[atom]

looking good. let it sit a few more weeks and see it the reading is the same...

 

[jwplessner]

Hopefully you tasted the sample, too, and liked it.

 

[Brewnoob1]

Looks about 1.016ish? Looks like it's coming down just fine so you have yeasties that are pluggin away.

I 2nd ^^^ Always taste your sample! That's my favorite come hydrometer reading time!

 

[ggoogs]

Thank you for all the help!

 

[ggoogs]

We sampled one tonight....not bad at all

 

[AdamPag]

Its really young to be drinking, let it condition in the bottles for atleast another week (its hard I know, but you'll seriously appreciate it) and start brewing another batch asap.

looks good, solid head good color. You SERIOUSLY need to use your hydrometer religiously. Take grav readings right before pitching the yeast, wait 2 weeks, take another reading, wait atleast another 5-7 days and check again, if it held steady, you can bottle that day or wait longer if you like. Temperature is a real big deal also, I cool my wort down to atleast 65* before I pitch. Also you said you added to 4 gallons of cold water? what size kettle are you using?

 

[ggoogs]

That was what the directions in the True Brew kit said to do that I was following. For the next batch, I have to slow it down a little, make sure the wort is cooled down.

 

[Hang Glider]

That was what the directions in the True Brew kit said to do that I was following. For the next batch, I have to slow it down a little, make sure the wort is cooled down.

Kit directions are notorious for being outdated, or just plain wrong. They're in the business of selling kits, so "you can make beer in 10 days" - so you'll make another kit 10 days later...

Some instructions are better, from the larger online houses like Midwest, Austin, Northern Brewer...

however, you are in the right place to learn better processes, and modify to fit your preferences.

 

[venquessa]

I tasted my first batch on bottling day 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and finished the last bottle on the 12th day. (Hey I was off work for 2 weeks!)

I can honestly say, the bottles on the 11th and 12th day bottled were really starting to taste nice. A lot of the off flavours, chalky, yeasty, sweet, cidery slowly ebbed away and I drank 3 litres of it on day 11, resulting in a foul hangover for work! This was mostly cause I didn't eat dinner, but fell asleep at midnight on the sofa, so went to work without eating for nearly 16 hours.

So, I'm only sample 1 bottle a week for the second batch until these tastes have gone, then I'll start drinking it. Week 1's bottle was flat, cidery, but quite refreshing. Week 2 is coming on Friday when I'm holding some high hopes!