Worst brew day ever

[Matthew Clegg]

I've had the worst brew day ever today. Won't go into details, but an unmitigated disaster. Anyway managed to salvage it BUT it would seem i was short on my strike water so my OG has come out 10 points above what i was expecting.

I was thinking that when I do priming for bottling i'll add extra water. Is there a flaw in my cunning plan?

 

[user 18729]

I've had the worst brew day ever today. Won't go into details, but an unmitigated disaster. Anyway managed to salvage it BUT it would seem i was short on my strike water so my OG has come out 10 points above what i was expecting.

I was thinking that when I do priming for bottling i'll add extra water. Is there a flaw in my cunning plan?

You’re probably better diluting now before fermentation, but either would work. I can’t speak from experience though

 

[Matthew Clegg]

I think that ship might have sailed, wort in fermenter don't really fancy giving it my bad luck again today. Since i will have gto get in there for bottling, i'm thinking i'm going there.

 

[Drunkula]

If you dilute at bottling you've got to boil the water first for a while to get the oxygen out. That's why I'd also say add water now.

 

[foxy]

I've had the worst brew day ever today. Won't go into details, but an unmitigated disaster. Anyway managed to salvage it BUT it would seem i was short on my strike water so my OG has come out 10 points above what i was expecting.

I was thinking that when I do priming for bottling i'll add extra water. Is there a flaw in my cunning plan?

That's how the major breweries do it dilute when fermentation is finished, (saves fermenter space) as Drunkula said make sure you boil the water.

 

[Matthew Clegg]

I always make a priming solution with boiled water. Good to know big breweries do that. I guess I just need to do a bit of a calc to make sure I get a sensible fg

 

[Rodcx500z]

Happened to me not long ago got 15L instead of 21, I just went with it put it bottles instead of a pb, was one of the nicest beers I have made sadly all gone and never to be made again

 

[Richie_asg1]

Just a little mistake I made on my last brew by boiling 1.5L of water with the priming sugar, was to miscalculate the priming sugar quantity for the new volume, and as it was 1.5L of boiling water it raised the temperature of the finished beer, and I think I sterilised some of the yeast. Carbonation is very slow this time. Lesson learned.

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

I hate to hear about a brew going wrong, I feel your pain!

On the bright side you’re talking about a brew that has an OG that’s different to plan - not the same as an infected beer or something equally disastrous.

What you’ll get is something about 1.3% higher than planned - just drink a little less.

Come to think of that IS a disaster

 

[An Ankoù]

It's by no means a disaster. I do it as a matter of course (as do others, above, I see). Either "liquor back" before you pitch the yeast, or do it when transferring to secondary fermenter. In my experience, if you dilute the wort as soon as the yeast has taken hold, it stresses the yeast.
If, for example, you've got 1060 instead of 1050 and you've got 20L of wort, then 20 x 60/50 which comes to 24. So you need to top up with 4 litres of water at some stage.
My thinking about topping up the secondary fermenter is that the beer is still live and kicking and full of viable yeast, which have a better chance of killing off any bugs that might sneak in than would your crystal clear beer which is ready to be bottled. I top up with a low-mineral bottled water as it's cheap and ready to hand.

 

[Matthew Clegg]

Just a little mistake I made on my last brew by boiling 1.5L of water with the priming sugar, was to miscalculate the priming sugar quantity for the new volume, and as it was 1.5L of boiling water it raised the temperature of the finished beer, and I think I sterilised some of the yeast. Carbonation is very slow this time. Lesson learned.

Cheers for the tip, will boil and cool