Newbie Help!

[Magicmuggle]

Hi guys

Well I decided to see what all the fuss was about and brew my own beer! To cut a long story short I ordered myself Brewferms Gallia beer but I didn’t find the instructions too clear and only added a total of 8L of water instead of 12L, the joys of being new . So guys what can I do? The wort has been fermenting for 7 days now and the bubbles in the air lock have started to slow right down. Should I just leave it or add water when bottling?
Also I didn’t take a hydrometer reading when I started.

And can you use RO water to brew your beer instead of normal tap water?

 

[broadfordbrewer]

Hi Magicmuggle,
I think with these kits there is a table within the instructions which tells you the quantities for each kit... the reason I point this out is that the tin of wort will also need to be accounted for in the total wort, otherwise you will make your beer a weaker abv than the one advertised for this beer (target 5.5%). So, if you leave it as it is you should end up with a stronger beer :twisted: (but not as many bottles :cry: ). If you are going to add more water I would boil it first and cool it to roughly the same temperature as the wort in your Fermentation bin before adding it.

I'd be tempted to leave it alone and start another kit. Others will be along to give their advice :thumb:

 

[Magicmuggle]

Thanks for the advice

So worst case is that the beer will be very strong? I can live with that!

 

[broadfordbrewer]

I think so... just put it down to experience and move on to another kit I reckon.... otherwise I reckon you run the risk of killing your yeast and messing it up. Apparantly it is quite hard to mess a beer up, so you should be fine either way! :hmm: sorry I can't be more decisive.

Check out this thread re: RO water - these guys cover it in detail and there is no point me trying to explain in my own words;
http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=7745&p=82450&hilit=reverse+osmosis#p82450

Good luck :thumb:

 

[Magicmuggle]

Shall i just go ahead and bottle it?

 

[broadfordbrewer]

Well, I would take a hydrometer reading first... I know you didn't take one to start with, but you should be looking to get a reading of near 1.010... maybe even a little lower than that? What does the kit say the target gravity is? Do that first. Other things to check are; Is there any yeast head on the top? or has that sunk now? can you still see any bubbles rising? If you have any doubt, its best just to keep it covered for another few days to be safe.

 

[Magicmuggle]

I'll take a reading later and see, the bubbles have nearly slowed to a hault and the foam head has gone. I'm gona follow your advice and take a reading and see from there. Thanks for all your help