1,2,3 rule + beer finnings

[Bart]

Hi there,

The brewing equipment have been delivered, few brewing kits sitting in a kitchen, I'm on a forefront of starting my first kit brew.
There's that 1, 2, 3 rule I stumbled upon educating myself on this forum: 1 week primary, 2 weeks secondary, 3 weeks minimum in bottle conditioning.

Does this rule apply for kit brews (ginger beer & lager, in my case)?
The impression I have is the reason for secondary brewing comes with dry hopping - to allow for better flavour transfer before bottling.

What would the reason be to keep the kit brew in secondary for another two weeks once the FG reading shows the fermentation is over?
I am aware the transfer to secondary comes handy then batch priming the brew (is that the word? getting sugar in instead of carbonation drops).

What's the story with Young's Beer Finnings?
You add that before bottling for 24-48hrs to clarify the lager but would that influence in bottle carbonation? Will this remove all yeast cultures thus rendering carbonation impossible?

Thanks for your advice!

[LordEoin]

if you don't want to secondary, just leave it in the primary for about 2 weeks.
That'll give plenty of time to finish fermenting and for the yeast to clean up and drop out a bit.
But it's best not to have fixed routines. React to what the beer's doing, not what your calendar says.
There's no need for finings.

[Bart]

It's not that I don't want secondary but just trying to understand it right.

So the secondary is to allow the yeast to clean up and drop out a bit. Grand.

[LordEoin]

That can be done in primary too, but racking it to secondary takes it off the trub. 
If you're bottling, a lot of the cleanup will happen in the bottle also.
Whatever's easiest for you

more detailed info on secondary can be found here

[newToBrew]

some people secondary - some dont - I do sometimes - and other times I haven't - its not really for dry hopping as such - its just that theres no point dry hopping in the primary when the fermentataion is happening as the co2 bubbling out would also drive out the hop aroma ?? - thats the impression I have anyway

i get a little lazy after brew day - so I find if I secondary - as in get the beer off the trub/lees  i feel under less pressure  then to bottle/keg  - leaving it in the primary can lead to aytolysis - yeasts become cannibals - favours get affected - stuff like that - but afaik this takes more than a few weeks

if your on your first run - your probably gonna want to learn - try as much as you can - so if you have the equipment and the time - its no harm doing it I guess

oh - I tried finnings recently - but did it wrong - I think I fecked it in secondary for about a week - at one of our meets one of teh lads got a boiled egg smell from my beer - dunno if I can attribute it to that  though

anyway - I dont think I'll bother with it again - only did it coz I read  the finings will still leave enough  yeast to carbonate

[Dodge]

Fermentation can be complete in up to a week but your better off leaving it for the 2 weeks to allow things to finish off and the yeast to settle out. Checking your final gravity will tell.

The more you transfer from container to container, the greater the chance you will pick up bacteria which will effect your beer. That's why sanitation is very important. I don't transfer to secondary, unless I'm dry hopping which I do after a week.

After your 2 weeks in primary ( and after checking your final gravity) your ready to bottle, transferring to a bottling bucket removing beer off the trub. Keeping the bottles in a warm location for about 2 to 3 weeks to allow the remainng yeast to carbonate the beer.

I've never needed finings in my 4 years of brewing.

As previously stated, allow time to work its magic.

[Bart]

Thanks for all the replies and links. It all makes sense while into 6th day of brewing @18°C.
The bubbling seems to be more apparent and more often than in the second day.
Leaving it to bubble in the secondary vessel for two more weeks seems to be a wiser choice.

It's really hard to resist to leave it going for 5 weeks uninterrupted and abandon any "spicing up" in the process.
It'll be a low alcohol coopers ginger brew (OG: 1.031) and there's the temptation to get even more sugar in over initial 1kg raw cane sugar.
Heck!

Transferring it to secondary vessel do I also stir the hell of it to get as much air in as possible or do I do it gently no to shock the yeast?

[Bart]

So here's my trouble with 1,2,3 rule - Made my 4th brew so far, Brewbuddy Lager (with brewing sugar), OG:1.040, really loud bubbling.
Due to family constraints had to keep it for 10 days in the primary, surprised the gravity reading at that stage was showing only 1.009.
Decided to bottle three cloudy pints (for the sake of R&D, adding two sugar drops each) and transfered the rest to secondary.

Bubbling is secondary was very slow and quiet. 10 days later came the bottling time with FG @ 1.006. Clean brew with two sugar drops each went into conditioning. At this time couldn't contain myself not to open the test batch bottled on day 10 - fizzy, almost like a champagne, leaving white sediment at the bottom of the bottle.

Compared two batches: Test @31 days bottle conditioning vs Regular @21 days conditioning.
Regular: almost flat, sweet in taste, looking through the bottle you could spot the "sugar swirl" when turned the bottle, no sediment
Test: Fizzy, loud bang when opened flip-top, hoppy, no sugar sweetness, no "swirl", but a white sediment rising from the bottom when turned the bottle.

This basically shows me all secondary vessel does is to clean the brew of yeast and let them go down to the bottom. Which results in clear lager but no almost no carbonation. Not a bother for a keg brewer. And I intentionally put more than recommended sugar drop rate.
My 3c on the topic.

[onesoma]

From what I've read (only on my 4th kit too so no expert) there is no risk of yeast autolysis at the scale you ferment at home. This is only a risk in large brewery size fermenting vessels.

You don't want any oxygen getting in to your beer after fermentation starts - transferring to secondary is a risk in that regard. And certainly don't stir it up if you do so!

There's a good thread on it here:
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f163/secondary-not-john-palmer-jamil-zainasheff-weigh-176837/

[Rossa]

I usually leave my beer in the primary for 2 to 4 weeks. I might add finings then and keg a few days later. Less messing with the beer the better really.

[Hop Bomb]

I only do secondary if dry hopping. I leave it in primary up to 5 weeks sometimes if Im too busy or lazy to transfer to kegs.

[Bart]

I leave it in primary up to 5 weeks sometimes if Im too busy or lazy to transfer to kegs.

How is the carbonation on the day of kegging? Is it all flat or nice and fizzy?

[Eoin]

I do a more or less 3+3 schedule.

About three weeks in the fermenter and the bottle or keg.

I have left it up to 8 weeks in primary, illness or laziness has been a cause, but am tending away from that as the longer periods especially on higher gravities really tests the quality of your yeast. I was ending up with beefy autolysis flavours in the beers at the end of it. Autolysis is not a myth on a homebrew scale but you won't see it too often.