problem hitting final gravity

[huntfisher]

oatmeal stout
intended final gravity 1.016

My original gravity was suppose to be 1.064, but ended up with 1.058, and the final gravity is at 1.020 after 14 days. I did gently swirled carboy to see if it will drop some more and adjusted temp to 70 degrees instead of fermenting at 68. If it stays at 1.020 will it be okay to bottle. Plan on waiting another week to see if it will finish.


10lbs pale malt 2 row
1lb barley flaked
1lb caramel crystal malt 120l
1lb roasted barley
1lb wheat flaked
1oz 60min coloumbus
wlp 004 Irish yeast

[lexuschris]

Just a thought ... have you calibrated your hydrometer recently? Pulled out the distilled water, cool it to 60-F and see if it reads 1.000 ?

I was having all sorts of gravity issues, until I did this and found my hydrometer was high by 10 ponits! I've since switched to a new one.
--LexusChris

[huntfisher]

no i never tried that but will try it tomorrow

[brahn]

Don't forget that the final gravity is nothing more than an educated guess. I wouldn't expect to actually hit the intended fg listed on a recipe unless you calculated it yourself based on your system and familiarity with your ingredients.

If it's done, it's done. Go ahead and bottle it. If the gravity stays the same for 3 days you're done.

[huntfisher]

I am little worried that my aeration did not add enough air since I only left oxygen on for ten seconds, so when I realized it should of been on longer, then I shook the carboy up a bit. I did use a 1300ml starter, so maybe that added a sufficient amount of air. I am just worried when bottling day comes that bottles do not explode.

Thanks for the tips Lexus Chris and Brahn