How much air space in secondary?

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Newfermenter1

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Just moved first beer (Nut Brown) to secondary but I have about 5 inches from the bottleneck, and wonder if this is a problem? :confused:
 
Newfermenter1 said:
Just moved first beer (Nut Brown) to secondary but I have about 5 inches from the bottleneck, and wonder if this is a problem? :confused:

You are smart to ask this question. We do not want to expose our beer to oxygen and large head spaces may allow that to happen.

I understand that the beer will send out some CO2 in secondary adding a thin layer over your beer.

I keep an eye on my airlock and watch that the water I keep in it is not equal. That I believe will tell me that some CO2 remains in the carboy.
 
Don't sweat it, in a secondary you will still be getting some out gassing to protect it. If you are not splashing it around, head space is no big deal. If you are worried about it flush the carboy with CO2 before racking. I usually have 2-6'' head space in the secondary and never had a problem.
 
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