First time using Secondary Fermentation!

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theguy

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How long do you normally use the secondary fermenter before bottling? Is there a common rule of thumb for this or do you base it off of the gravity reading?
 
Fermentation should really be completed in primary. Secondary is generally used as a clearing tank and to dry hop or add fruit, etc.

Edit: But anyway, I usually do two weeks in primary and a week (or more depending on laziness) in secondary.
 
You should be at final gravity by the time you put it in the secondary. If there was a rule of thumb, it would probably be 1-2 weeks, but it really just depends on what you want to accomplish. Conversely, there are things like wheat beers that don't really benefit from a secondary at all.
 
As a general rule of thumb for a standard brew, it is 1 week primary, 2 week secondary, 3 weeks in bottles.
As all rule of thumbs go, it depends. Some brews I leave in primary for two weeks to a month. Some brews I leave in the secondary for only 48 hours crash cooling it, or some of my braggots, and darker beers I keep them in secondary for months.
 
All good replies. Much thanks for your input. For this beer (German Oktoberfest) I will plan to leave it in the secondary for 2 weeks.
 
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