Final SG not as instructions - issue?

[slider09]

Hi all,

I have Muntons Smugglers Special Ale which has been fermenting for 12 days, the SG when read with my hydrometer is 1016. The instructions which came with the kit say to stand for 4-6 days and fermentation will be complete when bubbles cease to rise or the gravity remains constant below 1014.

I only took my first reading last night, so don't know whether it will fall anymore, however should I be concerned that my SG is still not as instructed?

Thanks

 

[The Baron]

No every brew is different also reading a hydrometer and especially the cheap ones are not that accurate to a couple of points so just take a second and third reading over the next 2 days if they are the same it is usually safe to bottle as the brew is deemed finished and stable but anything 1.016 or above needs to be checked over the 3 day method to minimise the risk of bottle bombs. Also the brew is a Muntons and can be notorious for not fermenting as low as they say it will just have a slightly sweeter taste but some people prefer that

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi!
I always allow two weeks for fermentation.
Leave it over the weekend and take another reading.
I don' t think you're going to get bottle bombs at 1016, if the FG doesn't drop any further.
EDIT: there is conflicting advice out there on reading the scale on a hydrometer. Some suggest that a more accurate reading should be taken at the top of the "curve", not at the meniscus.
This could explain your 2 point difference.

 

[peebee]

Eee … I remember when I used to dream of final gravities greater than 1.010 (greater than 1.005 for that matter). The few (dried, no liquid yeast, 2 or 3 varieties tops) yeasts available at the time were all pretty aggressive (but slow) and I think the malt extracts were all pretty well converted too. The results were notoriously bad, and petty thin too.

So I wouldn't be worrying about it finishing at 1.016. You need to be a little bit careful if bottling - as "the baron" says, you can declare it finished it the gravity doesn't change over three days (unless it's significantly too high, say 1.020, in which case declare it "stuck" and figure out what to do next). The result might not be noticeably sweet, because the unfermentable complex sugars left in the beer are not as sweet as the (fermented) simple sugars, but the unfermented complex sugars give the beer some "weight".