Priming Calculators

[MrBJones]

Most (all?) priming calculators ask for a tempurature. Is that the current temperature of the beer as you bottle it, or the temperature at which it'll be stored as it carbs up?

 

[DBhomebrew]

The warmest it's been since the end of active fermentation.

 

[hotbeer]

I wouldn't worry if the difference in temperature isn't large. A five degree difference on the BrewersFriend calculator on yields a 3% difference for 2.0 Vols and about a 9% difference for 3.0 vols.

The couple times I cold crashed, I used the fermentation temp the first time and the bottles carb'd like I wanted. The second time I used the 40 some degrees F it came out of the fridge at for the calculation. The carb level was very weak and the beer flat before I could finish a glass.

The notes on each calculator will tell you what they want it as. However I've found that some differ on what they think it should be taken from. Maybe it's a similar thing to why some recipes make us think we have to use a secondary fermenter. They just haven't been adjusted to todays common accepted practice... if we can really decide on one.

I'm going to go with the temp it was actively fermented at for the calculators I currently use. But I doubt I ever cold crash again anytime soon as it hasn't done anything for my beers that a little extra time in the fermenter won't do.

 

[ncbrewer]

Another entry for the calculators is volume of beer. It isn't always clear whether to use volume in the fermenter or volume that goes into the bottling bucket. It should be the volume in the bottling bucket. If like many brewers, you put the sugar syrup into the bottling bucket first and then rack the beer from the fermenter, you will have to estimate the volume. I just use the amount from previous batches.