my first brew

[mmonteiro]

2 days till i can bottle my beer as instucted by my recipe kit. cant wait, i haven't peeked inside yet and its killing me. I dont even care about the taste lmfao as long as its not infected and comes out as beer im gonna be extatic.

 

[RiffMagnum]

2 days till i can bottle my beer as instucted by my recipe kit. cant wait, i haven't peeked inside yet and its killing me. I dont even care about the taste lmfao as long as its not infected and comes out as beer im gonna be extatic.

i'm kinda in the same boat, although i really want it to taste good. Doesn't have to be award winning, just solid.
Are you gonna bottle before you check your F.G.? What was the style and how long has it been fermenting?

 

[WortIfied]

Just a word of advice, don't follow the kits calendar instructions, rely on your hydrometer, and it never hurts to leave a beer in primary for an extra week or or three

 

[mmonteiro]

i'm kinda in the same boat, although i really want it to taste good. Doesn't have to be award winning, just solid.
Are you gonna bottle before you check your F.G.? What was the style and how long has it been fermenting?

i dont have a hydrometer yet so i cant even measure my F.G. its an american wheat ale, i bought it as a 2.5 gallon kit. it had a recomended fermentation time of 5-7 days but i'm waiting 10 days and then i have to keep it bottled for 2-3 weeks.

 

[WortIfied]

Get one ASAP, it will help save you alot of headache and heartache!

 

[mmonteiro]

@wortified i just looked online there pretty cheep so i gonna purchase one before my next brew.

 

[Golddiggie]

Second getting a hydrometer BEFORE you go and bottle up the batch. Just using a calendar is foolish when you're starting out. You have zero experience with the yeast and how it works. That can be a very unhealthy combination. You can get bottle bombs easily, which can require a trip to the ER or getting stitches. At best, you'll have a mess to cleanup where you have the bottles of brew stored.

 

[homebrewdad]

Agreed. Bottling without taking a gravity reading - especially after ten days, when fermentation might or might not be done - is a bad idea. We're not trying to rain on your parade, just trying to help you make good beer (or at least avoid exploding bottles).

 

[WortIfied]

Indeed, there is no rush, it definitely feels like that your first few brews, that was the hardest part for me, learning patience in this obsession :$

 

[mmonteiro]

would i be able to buy a hydrometer at walmart/ target?

 

[Golddiggie]

Agree with the homebrewdad on why we're telling you this... I let the majority of my batches go a full month before I keg them. A low OG batch (for me, that's under 1.060) can go 3 weeks from boil to keg, but that's the bare minimum I go. I still take gravity readings (OG and FG) so that I know where it landed. It's also helpful to confirm the estimated FG is the actual. That way you can also figure out how strong the brew actually is.

Some of the people brewing longer might not feel the need to take readings, which is their choice. They also have a lot more brewing time under their belts, as well as experience with the yeast and recipes.

I've moved on from using hydrometers and now use a refractometer for my gravity readings. Much smaller sample size needed, and much faster (and more definitive) readings. I don't need to worry about the hydrometer leaning against the side of the tube. Or gas bubbles skewing the results.

 

[Golddiggie]

would i be able to buy a hydrometer at walmart/ target?

LMAO!!! I seriously doubt it... Look for a LHBS, or just order it online... Exercise patience and wait for it to arrive. One of the best tools in a brewers arsenal is patience.

 

[WortIfied]

You will need to order one online or find a local home brew store, more than likely.

 

[mmonteiro]

**** just went to the local home brew store 2 days ago...its an hour drive... guess ill buy it online.

 

[boscobeans]

Try a local pet store ( Petco...) that sells aquarium supplies.. They have hydrometers that will do.. They will probably be marked for salinity but the regular SG (specific gravity) scale will be the same as on a brewer's hydrometer.

bosco

 

[WortIfied]

I was under the impression that refractometers were only good for OG, is this correct? Meaning you will still need a hydrometer for FG?

 

[Golddiggie]

**** just went to the local home brew store 2 days ago...its an hour drive... guess ill buy it online.

Ouch... I just checked to see where you are... Just north of BFE it appears... I'm not using my hydrometer anymore. But I'm further away than the LHBS to you. I work [for now] in Quincy, but don't know if that's any help.

 

[mmonteiro]

Ouch... I just checked to see where you are... Just north of BFE it appears... I'm not using my hydrometer anymore. But I'm further away than the LHBS to you. I work [for now] in Quincy, but don't know if that's any help.

im from wareham, i went up to the homebrew emporium in cambridge.. aparently theres a store called the witches brew in foxborough which is only about 40 minutes, ill probably go there tommorow.

 

[mastamind]

would i be able to buy a hydrometer at walmart/ target?

Very doubtful man I have never seen any homebrew products sold at wallmart besides juices you would need to ferment but that's just a common thing they would carry for drinking haha. Any way do you have a hbs? if not online you could buy one cheap. I have only made 3 kits so far and I am never really right on with my og and fg. I am still a newb but the beer all ways get's me drunk sure it might be a little sour or the taste might not be the greatest but I have never yet had to open my primary and see any nasty science experiments haha.As long as it is drinkable to you and your friends and it get's you drunk that's all it matters when it come to homebrew. That's how I look at it at least. But the guys are right Take a same before know as (og-original gravity) and then once you think fermentation is down known as (fg-final gravity) I all ways let my kits go for 2-3 weeks and if the fg is within 3 or 4 I bottle. Hope this helps. Cheers 17

 

[mmonteiro]

what reading range should i be looking for once i get the hydrometer, seeing as i'll have nothing to compare it too?

 

[RiffMagnum]

im from wareham, i went up to the homebrew emporium in cambridge.. aparently theres a store called the witches brew in foxborough which is only about 40 minutes, ill probably go there tommorow.

It'll be worth it man, or just order it online. You've only been fermenting a week, so waiting a week for the hydrometer to get there will be perfect timing.
The guys on this site give good advice. Don't even crack that carboy/bucket till you're in the 2-3 week range. If you're at final gravity, give it another week of fermentation to "clean up" for good measure.

 

[WortIfied]

what reading range should i be looking for once i get the hydrometer, seeing as i'll have nothing to compare it too?

This is one thing you can rely on the recipe instructions for the time being, at least until gain enough experience and start formulating your own recipes, in which that case there are calculators out there. Attempting to get as close to the final gravity as possible, but sometimes you come only within .002-3 points.

 

[Golddiggie]

what reading range should i be looking for once i get the hydrometer, seeing as i'll have nothing to compare it too?

What does the recipe say the estimated FG should be? Even if it doesn't, take one reading, then a second one 3+ days from then and compare them. IF they are exactly the same (and I do mean exactly) then it's at final...

As for refractometer use one fermentation has started, there's a spreadsheet you can use to correct the readings after OG.

 

[mmonteiro]

What does the recipe say the estimated FG should be? Even if it doesn't, take one reading, then a second one 3+ days from then and compare them. IF they are exactly the same (and I do mean exactly) then it's at final...

As for refractometer use one fermentation has started, there's a spreadsheet you can use to correct the readings after OG.

it never gave me an fg that i should be looking for, also how do i go about removing the wort from the bucket to get a reading , ive hears dome people say a turkey baster?

 

[Golddiggie]

it never gave me an fg that i should be looking for, also how do i go about removing the wort from the bucket to get a reading , ive hears dome people say a turkey baster?

You can use a clean, sanitized, turkey baster if you want. I would purchase a brand new one if you go that route. Or pick up a beer thief when you're at the home brew store.

Where did you get the recipe kit from that didn't have the FG listed?? Granted I've not used kits in about 1-1/2 years, but they had that where I got mine. With extract kits, you should be able to get the OG and [most of the time] FG from the different recipe tools/software.

I'd also get some StarSan, if you don't already have it, from the HBS. Mix up some and fill a spray bottle with it too. That way you have some on hand to surface sanitize quickly with. A great many of us have the spray bottle of it now. I also have some mixed up at pretty much all times. I just keep it in a good bucket (clear, food grade for me, but you can use a HD/Lowes bucket if you like), with a lid. Stuff keeps a good long time. I usually either run out, or make a fresh batch when I don't have much left.

 

[mmonteiro]

You can use a clean, sanitized, turkey baster if you want. I would purchase a brand new one if you go that route. Or pick up a beer thief when you're at the home brew store.

Where did you get the recipe kit from that didn't have the FG listed?? Granted I've not used kits in about 1-1/2 years, but they had that where I got mine. With extract kits, you should be able to get the OG and [most of the time] FG from the different recipe tools/software.

I'd also get some StarSan, if you don't already have it, from the HBS. Mix up some and fill a spray bottle with it too. That way you have some on hand to surface sanitize quickly with. A great many of us have the spray bottle of it now. I also have some mixed up at pretty much all times. I just keep it in a good bucket (clear, food grade for me, but you can use a HD/Lowes bucket if you like), with a lid. Stuff keeps a good long time. I usually either run out, or make a fresh batch when I don't have much left.

i got it from homebrewoutpost.com

 

[Golddiggie]

i got it from homebrewoutpost.com

Never heard of them before... I would stick with either local homebrew supply stores, or the major ones (talked about in good ways here) for the time being. DON'T go to the cheapest places. There's a reason why they're cheap, which is rarely a good thing.

BTW, nothing comes up under that url...

 

[mmonteiro]

this is the URL http://www.homebrewers.com/ someone told me i should just take a reading today, and then one in about 3 days. if it hasn't changes its ready to be bottles

 

[Golddiggie]

Taste the samples too. IF there are no 'off' flavors with it then you could bottle it. It could go another week or two too without issue. Unless you consider better brew an issue.

 

[KevinW]

If you are brewing with extracts (dry/liquid) then the OG is a matter of how much liquid and how much extract you have as extracts are very standard when it comes to the specific gravity, meaning, 6.6lbs of LME should give you 5 gallons of wort with an OG of about 1.045. With that in mind you do NOT have to have a hydrometer. All a hydrometer will do is tell you what the specific gravity of a liquid is (when used correctly).

If you do not have a hydrometer and keep your beers in the fermentor for at least 3 weeks your beers should be fine. The only big advantage to having a hydrometer is you can calculate the ABV.

Chances are if you are using extract and your techniques are good enough to keep the yeasts happy, you can safely assume that the recipe OG-FG's will be pretty close to what you will actually have.

Relax, be patient, read a lot here on HBT and ask questions!!!

Good luck