DBake
Member
Can you use a bucket as a secondary?
...You're better off taking a glass carboy with the proper volume for your batch.
Well, the smaller the headspace, the better it is, when we're talking about secondary.5 gallon batch to a 5 gallon carboy?
So, I tried to re-read this entire thread to find this answer but here's my question! If primary is for fermentation and secondary is for clarification (essentially, NOT fermentation) then if I used a cool/cold fermentation can I leave the secondary fermenters in a different temperature environment, just so they can clarify? Or would this change in temps cause some problem that I'm not seeing? I have a fridge that I've got my primary's in and I'd like to use it for continual primarys rather than having to use it for the same batches in secondary. If that makes sense? Thanks in advance for your thoughts/help! :fro:
Just make sure you finish the ferment in the primary and there is no need for a secondary. You can skip it. Problem solved.
So, I tried to re-read this entire thread to find this answer but here's my question! If primary is for fermentation and secondary is for clarification (essentially, NOT fermentation) then if I used a cool/cold fermentation can I leave the secondary fermenters in a different temperature environment, just so they can clarify? Or would this change in temps cause some problem that I'm not seeing? I have a fridge that I've got my primary's in and I'd like to use it for continual primarys rather than having to use it for the same batches in secondary. If that makes sense? Thanks in advance for your thoughts/help! :fro:
I. . .guess? I'm trying to clear fridge space for new fermentations. What you suggested is not a clear answer to my question. I was wondering if I complete fermentation, can the fermenter (primary or secondary) then be taken out of a temperature controlled environment without causing off-flavours or some other unforeseen (on my part) problem? I've heard of folks skipping secondary, this is not how I was taught to brew.
I'm not a mead maker but I assume the mead would be fine conditioning at 70-76F following fermentation for a short period before botteling.
The answer is in the FAQ sticky
This is just a quick overview.
If you are not sure and want an easy rule of thumb for a normal beer then a lot of brewers are happy to stick follow the 1-2-3 rule. 1 week to ferment - 2 weeks clearing/conditioning - 3 weeks to bottle condition.
Hope that helps.
so i have three batches in primary and they will by this weekend (March 5) have been in there about six weeks (maybe seven). One (allgrain IPA) had twelve pounds of grain instead of "traditional" (so I was told) 10 pounds. That one is slowing. I have a Cooper LME Real ale that I added two extra pounds (one sugar and one Amber DME) to at the reccommendation of the Cooper kit instructions. This one is still fermenting strong. The last is a Munton's nut brown ale LME kit that I added 3 pounds of DME to (1 more than recommended by the directions) all of the kits said they anticipated around 5 to 6 percent alcohol. I'm wondering why they are taking so long. They run at a consistent 65 degrees and everywhere I look people say fermentation should take 2 weeks ( maybe 3). I even had a wheat beer (my first brew attempt) finish in 2 weeks. WHAT'S THE DEUCE? are they just highly alcoholic? too cold? I wouldn't expect that it's because they're still in the primary with the yeast because yeast propagates anyways? AAAAAAHHHHHH I just want to try my beers.
The reading was 1.046 when i started the primary fermentation. I've read a 1000 times that I need to take reading to determine when to go to secondary but no one has ever mentioned what the reading should be.
Thoughts?
reim0027 said:I would pony up. If you want to add those flavors, you'll need a secondary.
We just did our 4th beer, our first porter, last week but our kit/recipe didn't mention fermentation times or methods at all which is a first for us. We looked through a few recipe books for other porters, and here, but we'd like to remove rookie speculation if we can.
Most porter recipes we've seen call for a week or two of primary, and no secondary, but a few do want it. All our recipe says about this is the original and final gravities, no fermentation times at all.
Do porters benefit from secondary at all, or should we just wait for final SG and go straight to straining/bottling once we hit the mark?
Do porters require extra/less time in the bottle before they're ready to roll? We made a Dead Guy clone that took twice as long to carbonate in the bottle as the recipe said it should, that's why I ask.
Straining? Why would you do that? Sounds like it would introduce oxygen and that would be very bad at this point in the process.
I typically strain batches when siphoning into the bottling bucket/keg. Never had any oxidation problems. How are you straining? Wrapping a hop bag around the siphon-end (bottom) of the racking cane, or filter at the outflow? The former has never given me any issues at all, except perhaps for crystal-clear beer .
No, not a bag. We got our initial gear in a kit and it came with a funnel that has a little screen at the bottom to catch big chunks of crap. We've been using that going from primary to secondary fermenters, and before bottling. But we keep it a hair away from where it's going to reduce aeration and we really don't get much bubbling at all.
Personally I think the trouble we had with carbonation in our Dead Guy was from the priming sugar mix going into the wort too warm and we might have killed off some yeast, and the extra time we needed was the yeast trying to get a foothold again.
But like I said, true rookies right here.
Well good to know about the strainer.
But are you saying no secondary in general, or just for porters/stouts? Pretty sure you mean the latter, but just being safe
No secondary ever. Well maybe use a secondary with fruit or sours and maybe for lagers but never for standard ale fermentation.
Secondary is something that homebrewers used in years past when they did not know how to properly ferment beer. Today's homebrewers have liquid yeast, are making starters and pitching at the proper rates. The secret to great beer is in the ferment. If you do the fermentation correctly there should be no reason for the secondary.
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