Trouble getting higher gravity.

[Nefariis]

I've been messing around with a few different process as well as different ingredients/methods, and I have been struggling with getting a high starting gravity.

So far I've done all-grain, all DME, all LME and a few combination brews (mostly IPA's) but I cant seem to get the starting gravity over 1.060

This last batch my ingredients were 9lbs pale LME and 1lb crystal 80 and the gravity was < 1.050 whereas beersmith said I was going to be in the 8% range (I dont have the exact number currently).

Sugar doesn't really evaporate, so where does it all go?

This was the last brew -

- Seeped Crystal 80 for 20 mins in 2.5 gallons of water.
- When that was done, I put that in a strainer and poured .5 gallons of boiling water over it
- Now I added the 9lbs of LME and did a normal 60 min hop routine
- Chilled to 70
- Put it in a bucket
- Added water until 5 gallons

The only thing I can think of is to add the LME/DME at the very end of the boil (maybe with 5-10 mins left) next batch to see if that changes anything.

 

[boydster]

With the extract brews, you are certainly hitting your target OG as long as your volume is correct. The problem is that when adding top-up water, it's hard to get it to mix completely and that results in some wort stratification - if you were to pull a sample from the bottom, it would be way over your target OG, whereas the sample you are able to get from the top is significantly under.

You're right, the sugar doesn't evaporate, it's just not getting mixed completely evenly before you get a sample. No sweat though, the yeast will still find it and do their job. It happens all the time in partial boil brews, it's not something you are doing wrong.

Use the calculated OG from BeerSmith and the measured FG from your hydrometer to get an actual ABV. Otherwise, you may find that having a few one afternoon might hit you a little harder than you anticipated

 

[JimRausch]

9x 8points in 5 gallons= 1.072 from the LME alone.
So if you measured less than that then you:
1. Added less LME than you were supposed to.
2. Have a hydrometer/refractometer that reads low- check it with distilled water. Should read 1.000.
3. Added more top-off water than you were supposed to.
Or 4. Have wort/water stratification. This is most likely and is by far the #1 reason for posts on "my OG is lower than it should be". If you added all the sugars and the right amount of water, then by definition your OG has to be within a point or two of predicted OG. As you said, the sugar can not disappear.
You're good, don't mess with this batch. Next one, make sure you mix the cr*p out of it after adding the top-off. Or do a full volume boil.

 

[LLBeanJ]

You were good until you added the top-off water, which likely skewed your OG measurement due to not being well-mixed. Next time, take the reading before adding the water.

Example: you have 3.75 gallons post-boil and OG is 1.096. You need 5 gallons in the fermenter, so you'll top off 1.25 gallons. 3.75 x 96 = 360; 360 / 5 = 72; therefore, OG after top off will be 1.072. Despite how simple it sounds, getting a good mix after adding the top-off water can be a bit challenging.