My beer is slowing down in the fermentation process. I know I'm supposed to take another reading before adding in the corn sugar. Am I supposed to take one when it's settling in the carboy before I move to the bottling bucket?
Second gravity reading
- Thread starter charley
- Start date
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You add the corn sugar to the bottling bucket and rack your beer on top of it so it mixes well, then start bottling. Make sure it is ready through .you want fermentation finished and extra time to let the yeast clean up.
Others with more experience can correct me, but as far as I understand you'd never add the corn sugar until the fermentation is complete and you're ready to bottle.
What you do with the gravity readings is determine whether the fermentation has completed or not. You know this based on having the same reading after 3 days.
TL;DR
Don't add your corn sugar until the fermentation process has completed and you're ready to bottle.
Sorry for not making my post very clear but what I meant was do I periodically take readings throughout the couple of weeks it's in the carboy? I know I'm supposed to add sugar right before I bottle but I thought I was supposed to siphon a couple inches into to the bottling bucket then take my final reading to figure out my ABV %, add the sugar, and then finish the siphoning, then bottle. Right?
You want to check gravity before fermentation for an original gravity reading and after fermentation for a final gravity reading.
To answer your question, you don't need to check the gravity periodically just for the sake of checking gravities. You want to check the gravity towards the close of the fermentation to see if you met your target final gravity and to make sure your gravity doesn't change (which means fermentation has stopped). Ideally you want to do this BEFORE bottling but if the numbers line up, it won't matter.
As for your method of checking gravity, I suppose that is ok just make sure your hydrometer is sanitized...ideally, I don't believe in taking gravity reasons in beer that will be bottled. I just don't like risk of infections, especially when a couple inches worth of beer is at stake.
So yes, take your reading after siphoning and before priming.
Cheers
To answer your question, you don't need to check the gravity periodically just for the sake of checking gravities. You want to check the gravity towards the close of the fermentation to see if you met your target final gravity and to make sure your gravity doesn't change (which means fermentation has stopped). Ideally you want to do this BEFORE bottling but if the numbers line up, it won't matter.
As for your method of checking gravity, I suppose that is ok just make sure your hydrometer is sanitized...ideally, I don't believe in taking gravity reasons in beer that will be bottled. I just don't like risk of infections, especially when a couple inches worth of beer is at stake.
So yes, take your reading after siphoning and before priming.
Cheers
