Hydrometer question

[Mr_S_Jerusalem]

Hi guys,

So I have a Simply Brown Ale kit on the go at the moment, started 19/9/2019

The day after it started it had this foamy brown stuff on top which seems to happen a lot with beer kits?

Next day the foams gone, which I thought was a tad weird as usually I see something happening on the top a bit more.

The temperature lately has been varying significantly I think and dropping quite low at night. Our house currently does not have heating so I am concerned that it dropped low enough to stop the beer fermenting.

I gave it a stir the next day and put a heater next to it for 3 hours but it still looked the same. So I wrapped a couple of towels round it.

Today I took a hydrometer reading and I think it read 1.010 - just below the thick black mark.

I have been making wine for about 10 years but I haven't used a hydrometer for about 8 years, can anyone tell me what this means and whether my beer is still fermenting and if I need to do anything?

I've ordered another beer yeast in case someone thinks I should chuck it in but I won't get it til friday or even monday.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Keats]

Hi,

The foamy stuff (krausen) is totally normal and usually only lasts a day or two for my brews. If your’s has gone to 1.010 it sounds like it is fermenting fine and isn’t far from the final gravity. However it has only been fermenting 5 days and typical advice is to leave it for 2 weeks - ignore what the instructions say about this.

Towards the end of two weeks if your hydrometer readings are consistent over a couple of days, that indicates it has finished and is ready to bottle.

 

[Mr_S_Jerusalem]

Ok, so the hydrometer readings have to be consistent, is that sort of consistently in the yellow bit? Or the bit that's above that?

 

[Keats]

They should be the same number. I don’t think I’ve ever looked at the different coloured ranges!

The readings should be taken around the same temperature too.

 

[Mr_S_Jerusalem]

But if I take a reading in a weeks time and it's still 1.010, does that not mean it's stopped prematurely? I thought it had to be below 1.000 or something.

Or maybe that's wine lol

 

[Keats]

That would mean it has finished. Did the kit say what the expected final gravity should be?

Not many beers go that low! Mine end up between 1.006 and 1.010. Only had a saison that went anywhere near 1.000, ended up at about 1.002 and was quite tart / dry.

 

[DavidDetroit]

Kit instructions are good for one thing, for sure: if they tell you what the FG should be.
Regarding room temperature: If the temperature swings aren't huge or sustained, the beer is going to tend to fluctuate slowly toward "too cold" but if the ideal temp is happening most of the time, then nothing to be worried about. Eventually, you'll want to reduce those swings.

 

[Mr_S_Jerusalem]

That would mean it has finished. Did the kit say what the expected final gravity should be?

Not many beers go that low! Mine end up between 1.006 and 1.010. Only had a saison that went anywhere near 1.000, ended up at about 1.002 and was quite tart / dry.

Oh I was expecting much lower lol

I suppose because I am used to fermenting wines to dry. Unfortunately I don't remember what the kit said about SG, I usually just glance at the instructions to check the amount of sugar I need and if there's anything unusual there lol

I'll check it in a couple of weeks a couple times and with any luck it will be the same.

Thank you for your help, I was worried I'd have to do something drastic.

 

[Mr_S_Jerusalem]

Kit instructions are good for one thing, for sure: if they tell you what the FG should be.
Regarding room temperature: If the temperature swings aren't huge or sustained, the beer is going to tend to fluctuate slowly toward "too cold" but if the ideal temp is happening most of the time, then nothing to be worried about. Eventually, you'll want to reduce those swings.

Yes I normally don't check the SG at all but this time seemed like a sudden stop so I was concerned.

Most of the colder temperatures were obviously at night time, unfortunately two of our radiators are disconnected right now hence the heating being turned off. I have British Gas on the case lol. Being the genius I am I decided to start another brew at a point when the weather is on the turn with no heating lol. Something of a tactical error.

 

[GhostShip]

If the reading is 1.010 then in theory it’s ready to bottle, but make sure you hit that same reading over a period of 3/4 days. In any case, leaving it alone for another week really won’t do any harm - in fact it will help the beer to ‘clean up’.

 

[Keats]

I'll check it in a couple of weeks a couple times and with any luck it will be the same.

I know it is tempting to keep checking it but just leave it alone until then!

To stop it getting too cold at night you could wrap the bucket in an old blanket.

 

[Mr_S_Jerusalem]

If the reading is 1.010 then in theory it’s ready to bottle, but make sure you hit that same reading over a period of 3/4 days. In any case, leaving it alone for another week really won’t do any harm - in fact it will help the beer to ‘clean up’.

Ah I have a beer finings to add at the end. I bottled a kit once that I thought was clear and it ended up with 1mm of sediment in each bottle. Figured I wouldn't take the risk this time.

 

[Mr_S_Jerusalem]

Hello, so bottled the Simply Ale Kit I mentioned today.
It seems to have turned out great which is pleasing.
Another quick question, when you guys prime bottles do you add half a teaspoon or a teaspoon of sugar?
I forgot how much it was supposed to be so I chucked in a teaspoon.

 

[cushyno]

Dry wines can go below 1.000 SG, because all the sugar gets used up and alcohol is lower SG than water. Winner yeasts Beers have no problem coming through the simple sugars from grape must. Beers are different. Most wort has some unfermentable sugars and combined with maximum attenuation rates of most ale yeast, you won't get much lower than 1.010 SG. Saison and wild yeasts, and bacteria can get the SG lower.

Your simple brown ale should typically finish around 1.010 SG, so it's probably done.

 

[ACBEV]

do you add half a teaspoon or a teaspoon of sugar?

Half a teaspoon per 500ml bottle will be fine. Leave to carbonate @ 18-20c for two weeks, then another 2 weeks for conditioning...

 

[kelper]

Always keep the instructions! At least until bottling or kegging.

 

[Mr_S_Jerusalem]

So if I've put a whole teaspoon instead of half in each is this going to be a bit sweet? Or slightly volatile?

Yes unfortunately I do often throw away the instructions after I put it in the barrel lol.

 

[kelper]

I hope it was a level teaspoonful?

 

[Mr_S_Jerusalem]

Weeeellllll, 40 pint bottles.....

Took me ages to sterilise....

Yeah ok so I might've been getting a leeetle slack with my measurements by then lol

Some probably have a level teaspoon, some a bit under, some might even have a heaped teaspoon...

I kinda lost track by about bottle 20 lol

 

[kelper]

You drank twenty bottles already???