Move to secondary. Too early?

[skeaterbait]

No matter how much you swear you will leave it be, on your first batch I guess many just can't. That would be me.

I brewed last Wednesday and watched the airlock pretty carefully. After at least two and probably three days of not activity I decided to split the difference in the directions that came withe the kit and all the advice I got on here.

Popped the lid and checked the gravity which came in at 1.006. This is about .005 under the target which gives an ABV fo 4.7%. The instructions said it should be 4.25-4.5%. As a noob I figured that wasn't too bad and racked to the secondary for aging.

Is there any reason I should have waited longer?

 

[skeaterbait]

Hmmm, I said under, perhaps I meant over? Target was 1.010, OG was 1.042.

 

[medusa1066]

Some will say that by leaving the beer on the yeast cake will give them time to clean up there mess of flavors and esters. Some will ask, "Why are you using a secondary?" You really want to make sure that fermentation is complete before you bottle for obvious reasons. Consecutive stable hygrometer readings are a good indicator of this. You should be fine!

 

[brtisbuck]

Hmmm, I said under, perhaps I meant over? Target was 1.010, OG was 1.042.

Airlock activity is not indicative of what is actually happening. Consecutive stable gravity readings are...like over a 2 or 3 days. Since you are in secondary, which isn't really necessary if you leave it in primary longer, you should be fine. Be sure your readings are stable prior to bottling or you may run into gushers and bottle bombs.

 

[JLW]

I think your beer will be ok. If target gravity was 1.010 and your hydrometer reading was 1.006 then you could assume fermentation was complete at transfer.

Personally I leave all my beers in primary for a minimum of 3 weeks and longer for higher gravity beers.

 

[Darwin18]

I always leave my beer in primary for 3 - 4 weeks. No off-flavors and my beers out nice and clear. I don't personally see the need for a secondary. At best you're adding to the number you need to clean/sanitize. Why risk oxidizing your beer?

 

[aquatar]

I just brewed my first batch two Thursdays ago (12/29) and had a similar experience. Unfortunately I decided to start out a bit complicated and brewed a Oktoberfest as an ale, because I do not have lagering capabilities. My hydrometer readings stayed constant for 2 days (1.021 down from OG of 1.054), which was a bit less alcohol than was to be expected. I decided to move to secondary... we'll see what happens! Any reasons there may have been a higher FG/lower alcohol %?

 

[Darwin18]

I just brewed my first batch two Thursdays ago (12/29) and had a similar experience. Unfortunately I decided to start out a bit complicated and brewed a Oktoberfest as an ale, because I do not have lagering capabilities. My hydrometer readings stayed constant for 2 days (1.021 down from OG of 1.054), which was a bit less alcohol than was to be expected. I decided to move to secondary... we'll see what happens! Any reasons there may have been a higher FG/lower alcohol %?

What yeast did you use? If you used a lager yeast and fermented at ale temperatures (60 - 68 F) you may have a 5G batch of butter beer.

 

[aquatar]

I used lager yeast at ale temps at the recommendation of the local home brew shop owner. Despite the lower than expected alcohol level, the sample tasted great - just like an Oktoberfest.

 

[aquatar]

What do you mean by butter beer?

 

[Toastman]

I always leave my beer in primary for 3 - 4 weeks. No off-flavors and my beers out nice and clear. I don't personally see the need for a secondary. At best you're adding to the number you need to clean/sanitize. Why risk oxidizing your beer?

Isn't a secondary good especially if you want to reclaim/wash the yeast early? Would you really get good yeast after 4 weeks?

 

[Darwin18]

Diacetyl is off-flavor that produces a "buttery" flavor that is a flaw with lagers that fermented at temperatures out of the recommended temperature range.

If you fermented with a lager yeast at an ale fermentation temps (60 - 68) than you're going to likely have diacetyl, and a lot of it. If your LHBS gave you a hybrid yeast like a Cali Common yeast or a Kolsch yeast then you should be OK fermenting at the lower range of ale fermentation temps.

 

[Darwin18]

Isn't a secondary good especially if you want to reclaim/wash the yeast early? Would you really get good yeast after 4 weeks?

Why wouldn't your yeast still be good after 4 weeks? There will be less yeast in suspension and will be compacted in the yeast cake if you go for a longer primary. Most likely you're going to store the washed yeast at a colder temperature until your next beer/starter, so they're going to go dormant anyway.

 

[Toastman]

great info.thanks

 

[pjj2ba]

Isn't a secondary good especially if you want to reclaim/wash the yeast early? Would you really get good yeast after 4 weeks?

Yes it is a good reason. Taste preference is another. I'm currently reading Chris White's yeast book and he had some definite preferences. He says the best yeast are obtained by top cropping out of the active krausen (for ale yeast). His least recommended is from an older yeast cake (2-4 weeks). He's not really a fan either of dumping it out of a conical earlier, but acknowledges that it is a very common practice among craftbrewers. He also advocates using the harvested yeast immediately if possible, or ideally within a couple days. He doesn't like to see harvested yeast stored for over a week, 2 weeks max.

Now this is for optimal yeast health, which translates into the best beer. His writing is a bit slanted towards the craftbrewer though. Yes yeast can be stored longer and still give good fermentation, but you will be adding a lot of dead yeast to your wort so will have to add more to compensate. As a homebrewer, it is still good to follow the best practices if possible. We can be lazier about it though as we are not selling our beer