Help my stupidity please

[bigbeer]

Hi all,
So recently i did something very stupid because i was rushing and not paying attention! Basically i made a barleywine (1.085 if im not mistaken) and like a tard, i racked it to secondary and dry hopped forgetting to take a gravity reading. when i realized i hadn't taken one, I used my refractometer only to discover it hadn't dropped enough! so, the "f.g." is now 1.044 and im not sure what to do! i tried bringing temp up hoping the yeast would start up again with only minor airlock action. so im thinking my options are either add sugar (probably molasses because i have 5 gallons) to hopefully kickstart yeast or add yeast nutrients! any other ideas or opinions other than to check next time?

thanks

 

[lumpher]

Let it go for a few days and see what happens. If nothing happens, repitch. If it's still dropping, let it go. It'll take care of itself in that case.

 

[bigbeer]

let it go for a few days and see what happens

yea, been about 2 weeks since i racked it to secondary :/

 

[GuldTuborg]

Hate to be Captain Obvious, but is this a corrected refractometer reading?

 

[bigbeer]

Hate to be Captain Obvious, but is this a corrected refractometer reading?

what do you mean by "corrected"?

 

[Michael_K]

You should not use a refractometer post-fermentation - you will not get an accurate reading. Use your hydrometer.

 

[GuldTuborg]

Meaning you ran the reading through a calculator so you could get a corrected reading that corresponds to what you'd get now from a hydrometer. Since you're asking, I'm guessing not. Refractometers don't read specific gravity, so post fermentation you have to calculate gravity from it.

NB has one online, but there are many others. If you started at 1.085, and you now see a 1.044 reading, it's likely your SG is around 1.004. That's low.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/learn/resources/refractometer-calculator/

 

[bigbeer]

You should not use a refractometer post-fermentation - you will not get an accurate reading. Use your hydrometer.

i usually do but this time it was too late to get enough wort. i do know my refractometer is calibrated at least.

 

[bigbeer]

Meaning you ran the reading through a calculator so you could get a corrected reading that corresponds to what you'd get now from a hydrometer. Since you're asking, I'm guessing not. Refractometers don't read specific gravity, so post fermentation you have to calculate gravity from it.

NB has one online, but there are many others. If you started at 1.085, and you now see a 1.044 reading, it's likely your SG is around 1.004. That's low.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/learn/resources/refractometer-calculator/

really!? that much of a discrepancy!?

 

[GuldTuborg]

really!? that much of a discrepancy!?

Absolutely. Remember, you're not measuring gravity with that thing. You're measuring the refractive index, and the refractive index of alcohol is very different than that of water.

 

[bigbeer]

Absolutely. Remember, you're not measuring gravity with that thing. You're measuring the refractive index, and the refractive index of alcohol is very different than that of water.

so should i sanitize my siphon very well and take out just enough for a hydrometer ready before i do anything?

 

[doug293cz]

Meaning you ran the reading through a calculator so you could get a corrected reading that corresponds to what you'd get now from a hydrometer. Since you're asking, I'm guessing not. Refractometers don't read specific gravity, so post fermentation you have to calculate gravity from it.

NB has one online, but there are many others. If you started at 1.085, and you now see a 1.044 reading, it's likely your SG is around 1.004. That's low.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/learn/resources/refractometer-calculator/

I get OP's current SG as 1.021 using this calculator.

Brew on

 

[GuldTuborg]

I get OP's current SG as 1.021 using this calculator.

Brew on

Good catch. I was inputting gravity numbers instead of degrees Brix into the NB one. My brain is clearly toast today.

NB's now gives 1.016. That's more reasonable. I'm not surprised by differences of 10% or more using different calculators for bigger beers like this.

OP, I'd either use a hydrometer, or just use a few different calculators and take the average. That's likely going to be close enough.

 

[bigbeer]

Good catch. I was inputting gravity numbers instead of degrees Brix into the NB one. My brain is clearly toast today.

NB's now gives 1.016. That's more reasonable. I'm not surprised by differences of 10% or more using different calculators for bigger beers like this.

OP, I'd either use a hydrometer, or just use a few different calculators and take the average. That's likely going to be close enough.

awesome guys! thanks a lot for the advice!