how to correct high OG

[ogre1]

This may simply be a dumb question, but I definitely want to know the answer for future reference. I brewed an extract kit last night (those are all I use). Everything was done following the directions to a tee, including the additional water to bring the kit to 5 gallons (my fermenter has precise demarcations. After all was said and done I drew the sample for the hydrometer and took a reading of 1.081. I've never had a problem with too high an OG before (especially using all kits). So I figured the easiest way to reduce the SG would be too add additional water. Eventually I ended up adding 3/4 a gallon (5.75 total). Is that something that could be expected within reason? I've check out the other high OG threads on here, but those are intentional, and actually after reading them, I think I should have just let it slide and gone with my original high OG.

Was adding a volume of water 15% greater than what the kit calls for the correct action here?

BTW, readings were taken at 71 degrees, and I double check the calibration on the hydrometer too (no problem).

 

[cheezydemon3]

Doing anything was a mistake.

I hope you have pitched the yeast.

My serious advice is to never look at your hydrometer again.

 

[kanta]

how well did you mix the water into the wort when you topped off to 5 gallons? it's likely that you had the higher gravity wort on the bottom of the fermenter and the water mixed with some wort at the top. using the amounts of extract called for andthe amounts of water called for make it difficult to overshoot your gravity.

 

[Revvy]

We get this question 10 times or more a day. Read this for an explanation of why your initial gravity always seems to appear off.

Attention new brewers, yes your original gravity reading is wrong. Don't panic.

You really should have come here FIRST before you tried to "fix" something that you would have found wasn't really a problem. Now you actually are going to end up with beer with that is lower in gravity than the kit was meant to have.

 

[Revvy]

My serious advice is to never look at your hydrometer again.

This is really BAD advice. And not what we suggest to new brewers.....

 

[cheezydemon3]

This is really BAD advice. And not what we suggest to new brewers.....

I used it once and never looked back. The damned thing causes more of (case in point) THIS, than any good it does.

For all of the "my FG is off 2 points", "My OG is off 10 points" threads, what happens?

You go on and drink it ANYWAYS. Plus he is talking extract. There is no efficiency.

 

[unionrdr]

Even extract brews aren't an exact science. The numbers can vary from batch to batch a lil bit. Using a hydroemter is a good habit to get into. Especially to know for sure when it's done fermenting,rather than just waiting for it to settle out clear & hoping it's done.
Anyway,I agree that it's most likely that the wort & top off water weren't mixed well enough & the sample taken from the bottom reading too high.

 

[jerrodm]

Gotta say, I know I'm new around here but I've got some sympathy for cheezy's point of view. For extract brewing, if you follow instructions, hit your volume, maintain a reasonable fermentation temperature and most importantly WAIT plenty of time before racking and/or bottling, there really isn't any need for hydrometer readings.

Will you know if your beer got stuck at 1.025 rather than finishing where it was supposed to at 1.014? No. But it will still be beer. And for newer brewers the obsession over inaccurate hydro readings, airlock activity &c just creates more trouble than it's worth.

If we told all new HB'ers to make sure their (extract) batches ended at the planned volume, pitch at 65F and don't look at it for a month, then secondary (or not) and bottle, they'd end up just about as happy and with a lot less stress than if they're stressing over gravity readings. And the beer would probably end up tasting just about the same. Of course for AG brewing it's a totally different story.

Just my .02

 

[Clonefan94]

Gotta say, I know I'm new around here but I've got some sympathy for cheezy's point of view. For extract brewing, if you follow instructions, hit your volume, maintain a reasonable fermentation temperature and most importantly WAIT plenty of time before racking and/or bottling, there really isn't any need for hydrometer readings.

Will you know if your beer got stuck at 1.025 rather than finishing where it was supposed to at 1.014? No. But it will still be beer. And for newer brewers the obsession over inaccurate hydro readings, airlock activity &c just creates more trouble than it's worth.

If we told all new HB'ers to make sure their (extract) batches ended at the planned volume, pitch at 65F and don't look at it for a month, then secondary (or not) and bottle, they'd end up just about as happy and with a lot less stress than if they're stressing over gravity readings. And the beer would probably end up tasting just about the same. Of course for AG brewing it's a totally different story.

Just my .02

I'm with you on this as well. I was just reading a thread where the FG was stuck at 1.02, what do I do? And most of the responses were, "nothing." I'm done with extract brewing for now and am glad I got used to taking readings for my move to all grain, but I really found the only important reading for extract brewing was to find make sure fermentation was really done.

I did quite a few extract brews in only a couple of months, but the last 4 or so that I did, I never did bother with taking an OG reading. They seemed to be all over the place anyways and in the end, it was pretty good beer anyways. So, what's the point of the stress of not hitting OG unless you plan on moving to all grain and it's good to get a system down for taking your readings?

 

[cheezydemon3]

I know how I come off, but seriously, there are plenty of goob meticulous brewers, and plenty of good "from the hip" brewers.

I took hydro on batch 1 and never did again.

I never had bottle bombs, never had overly sweet (unfermented) beer.

I also never lost a moments sleep over a hydrometer reading. I am not saying that every brewer should ditch the hydro, just the ones who don't want to chart and graph every brew.

Efficiency is the only reason I would use a hydro.

I also do NOT encourage looking at fermenting beer.

There is just no reason to, and it can only raise concerns.

 

[weirdboy]

For extract batches, unless they gave you the wrong amount of extract, it is highly unlikely you missed your OG by that much.

It is more likely, especially if you are doing a partial boil and adding water afterwards, that the wort in your fermenter wasn't a homogeneous solution and you got a denser sample, and by topping off with even more water you actually thinned it out a bit.

 

[jerrodm]

I also do NOT encourage looking at fermenting beer.

There is just no reason to, and it can only raise concerns.

That all depends. I highly encourage gazing entranced at the swirling, twirling beauty that is a beer in high ferment. Let the frolicking yeast tickle your optic nerves as you sit with a frothy glass of suds in your hand and mutter softly to yourself, "...soon, my love...soon..."

OK maybe that's just me. But yah, I guess there's no NEED to look at your beer while it's fermenting.

 

[jsv1204]

and mutter softly to yourself, "...soon, my love... soon.

Soon, my love... soon... almost 5:00! Going to crack a homebrew and ponder fermenting wort!

 

[cheezydemon3]

That all depends. I highly encourage gazing entranced at the swirling, twirling beauty that is a beer in high ferment. Let the frolicking yeast tickle your optic nerves as you sit with a frothy glass of suds in your hand and mutter softly to yourself, "...soon, my love...soon..."

OK maybe that's just me. But yah, I guess there's no NEED to look at your beer while it's fermenting.

Lol. Actually a seasoned veteran may thoroughly enjoy looking at his beer without letting in a ton of light and with no real harm done.

The harm comes when a relative newcomer sees a yeast iceberg and takes it for mold..and PANICS. A phenomenon which evidently occurs every 2.36 seconds.

Actually, taking specific gravity shouldn't happen until at least the third or fourth batch.

 

[jerrodm]

True. Someone should count the number of threads with the subject title, "Is my beer supposed to look like this?" Almost guarantee it's not going to be a photo of a pellicle.

 

[metanoia]

I know how I come off, but seriously, there are plenty of goob meticulous brewers, and plenty of good "from the hip" brewers.

I took hydro on batch 1 and never did again.

I never had bottle bombs, never had overly sweet (unfermented) beer.

I also never lost a moments sleep over a hydrometer reading. I am not saying that every brewer should ditch the hydro, just the ones who don't want to chart and graph every brew.

Efficiency is the only reason I would use a hydro.

I also do NOT encourage looking at fermenting beer.

There is just no reason to, and it can only raise concerns.

Hydrometer readings are just another way to further one's understanding of the brew/fermentation process. If you feel like being left in the dark for that aspect of brewing, that's your decision; don't suggest it like it's the only/best option because for the curious-minded brewers, they're the ones who need how to properly take hydrometer readings. You might treat this like just a hobby, but some people out there aspire to be exceptional brewers one day.

 

[ogre1]

Thanks for all the replies. The water had been mixed but perhaps not well enough. As for coming here first, we're pretty backwoods at home. No cable, no interwebs, my phone is an old flip phone that would take the better part of the night to post something on the forum "if" I could make it that far.

But dam. I do wish I could've looked here first. I only started using the hydrometer for the last two kits or so. And yes, all it has done is basically caused headaches. My last beer was a winter warmer that stalled out at a pretty high FG. I was concerned (talked to NB), pitched additional yeast etc. Never changed the reading; bottled it and drank it nevertheless -a little odd tasting but still good beer.

Cheezy, to answer your first post, I did pitch the yeast. Just a dry pack, no starter or anything like that.

Overall, well darn. I hope it turns out well enough for a tasty Christmas beer (Winter Fest from a local shop). I have an oatmeal stout waiting in standby until one of the fermeters frees up. I will be more relaxed about that one and probably avoid the hydrometer. My favorite beer to date was a coffee stout that my brother and I brewed in about the most amateur way possible.

 

[metanoia]

But dam. I do wish I could've looked here first. I only started using the hydrometer for the last two kits or so. And yes, all it has done is basically caused headaches. My last beer was a winter warmer that stalled out at a pretty high FG. I was concerned (talked to NB), pitched additional yeast etc. Never changed the reading; bottled it and drank it nevertheless -a little odd tasting but still good beer.

It's already been said before, but it's worth repeating. With extract kits, don't worry too much about what your OG reading is; the extract should always be right around the right degree of plato. OG readings will be more important with all-grain, since you use it to calculate both efficiency of the mash and eventual alcohol content.

Even with extract, taking SG readings for finding your FG is very much recommended, especially since a few weeks in the ferment will have mixed the starter wort and water fully. Use that FG to determine if fermentation is truly finished, and if you want to calculate your ABV with an extract kit, just take the recipe OG and factor in your FG.

 

[cheezydemon3]

Again....: I DO NOT LOOK DOWN ON HYDROMETER BREWERS....nor the nerds who use phototropic color measuring whatever thingies, etc.

I am merely saying that NOT EVERYONE NEEDS OR WANTS THOSE THINGS. And that is OK.Especially a NOOB!!! What will you do if the OG or FG is off? HUH??????? Something Stupid, that's what.

From what I can tell on here, my beers are more consistently good than most people's.

I mash boil cool seal it up tight and don't peek for 5 weeks.

Syphon carbonate serve.

No measurements no peeking. My friends who are card carrying beer snobs empty my kegs too fast. Maybe I should start taking samples and readings

 

[unionrdr]

What will they do if the OG/FG is off?? Learn from their mistakes & adjust their process accordingly. Yeah,they'll come on here wonderint whodawtf? But y'all did,you know you did,i saw ya donedoed it. So stop throwin such a hissy fit because you don't bother with anything. Some of us want to,OK???!!!

 

[gcdowd]

Cheezy, don't you wonder what the abv of your beers are?

 

[cheezydemon3]

Cheezy, don't you wonder what the abv of your beers are?

Honestly no.

I know about what they are, and if I do something new I know what my efficiencies and processes yield. If I do a barleywine or something unusual, I run the ingredients through beersmith and accept the predicted ABV as close enough.

I generally want to know session, normal, or high alcohol. Nothing more specific than that.

 

[gcdowd]

Honestly no.

I know about what they are, and if I do something new I know what my efficiencies and processes yield. If I do a barleywine or something unusual, I run the ingredients through beersmith and accept the predicted ABV as close enough.

I generally want to know session, normal, or high alcohol. Nothing more specific than that.

Fair enough. The first question I always get asked is, how much alcohol is in this?