Is gravity worth it if you didn't take a starting gravity?

[detz]

I think my bucket might have leaks since this is the second batch I don't see bubbles in the airlock. If I push the lid it bubbles out but it doesn't really bubble itself. Hopefully everything is going right, is it possible to check with the hydrometer to see if it's done even if I don't know the starting gravity?

 

[verysupple]

Short answer: Yes.

Long answer: You should know at least a ball park figure for the OG. If the SG is now a lot lower then you know it's fermenting. E.g. if you were aiming for an OG of 1.050 and your SG is now 1.025 then you can assume it's fermenting as it's unlikely that you were 25 points short on your OG.

The other reason hydrometer readings are useful is because you should know roughly what the FG should be. I.e. if it was an average-ish beer then the FG won't be 1.025, it will be more like 1.008 - 1.016. So if your SG stays stable at something reasonable for a few days then you know it's finished fermenting.

Happy brewing.

EDIT: You could also plug your recipe in to an online recipe calculator to get an *estimate* of the OG and FG. That might help you know if your current SG is a reasonable FG.

 

[andy6026]

I think my bucket might have leaks since this is the second batch I don't see bubbles in the airlock. If I push the lid it bubbles out but it doesn't really bubble itself. Hopefully everything is going right, is it possible to check with the hydrometer to see if it's done even if I don't know the starting gravity?

Pushing the lid helps it ferment faster, hence the bubbles you see when you do it.

Haha, just kidding.

 

[unionrdr]

I had a Brewer's Best ael pail that didn't have a lid seal. It leaked out under the lid onto those ribs around the top during initial fermentation. Not much bubbling. So when it got infected, I ditched it for the Midwest shorty 7.9 gallon with lid seal. I got tired of the clean up from the non-sealed lid leaking.

 

[justenoughforme]

never bottle without taking at least two gravity readings.

 

[Calypso]

Yes. Except for stuck fermentation, you're looking for relative changes between consecutive readings to determine if fermentation is complete.

And as verysupple points out, you can use an online calculator to estimate your OG.