OG vs FG not enough?

[ajcmbrown]

My first two brews started around .038 and ended at around .010, and I would have thought that there should have been more of a drop in SG than that from what I have read here.
Re-hydration might just be the answer, although this is my first in a temp controlled fridge, the first two were fermenting at 24-25 degrees according to the strip thermometer if they are accurate?

 

[warra48]

Thanks Warra, although it is illegible unfortunately but it gives me some clues as to where to look.

I hadn't thought of a fan MHB, but that makes sense, and also begs the question.....should the temp probe also be located as low as practical on the outside of the tub to reduce low temps at the bottom of the wort?

I access AHB through Google Chrome, not IE.
Maybe that's why it's illegible for you?

 

[ajcmbrown]

Haha, I only tried in Firefox but will give chrome a try.

 

[ajcmbrown]

Works fine in Chrome, thanks for the link.

 

[MHB]

Thanks Warra, although it is illegible unfortunately but it gives me some clues as to where to look.

I hadn't thought of a fan MHB, but that makes sense, and also begs the question.....should the temp probe also be located as low as practical on the outside of the tub to reduce low temps at the bottom of the wort?

With a fan it doesn't matter where the probe is - the whole fridge will be the same, which is rather the point of putting in a fan.
Mark

 

[damoninja]

With a fan it doesn't matter where the probe is - the whole fridge will be the same, which is rather the point of putting in a fan.
Mark

I put thermos in multiple places in my fridge to test and it was the same temp throughout. With exception of the element of course where it's lower, I use that spot to age cheese.

 

[ajcmbrown]

"With a fan it doesn't matter where the probe is - the whole fridge will be the same, which is rather the point of putting in a fan."

Sorry Mark, what I meant was that by placing the probe lower it could negate the need for a fan, I just didn't explain myself very well.

I use a separate temperature gauge and probe to check against the STC1000 and it doesn't change in temp whether I place it on the bottom shelf of the fridge or the top shelf by any more than about 0.5 of a degree.

It is only a small fridge though, which is quite full once the wort is placed in it so I guess that doesn't leave much room for temp variation. I may be talking out of my arse of course, but that seems logical to me.

 

[MHB]

Then the yeast at the top can be 5oC (or more) hotter and that can change the taste of the beer.
There are added advantages (and this has been discussed here before): -
It brakes up thermal layering, just like when you dive into deep water, nice and warm, nice and warm, nice and warm, nuts drop off... I think everyone has experienced this phenomenon.
Because the air is moving it takes heat out of the ferment faster than, just like chill factor, its always colder in the wind than out of it.
Being more consistent it improves the repeatability of your beer, if you make a great beer you want to be able to make it again, being able to reproduce the conditions of the ferment make this more doable.
The fan is a small heater, if its using 25W of electricity it is producing 25W of heat, this coupled with the heat of fermentation (0.16 KWh/Kg fermented to alcohol) means that except under extreme conditions the fridge cant get too cold and cause the yeast to stall.
Its a cheap way to get the most out of a temperature controlled ferment, every commercial fridge from the smallest right up to drive in cold-rooms have fans, my old fermentation fridge, setup to take a 65L Conical or 2 X 50L fermenters would reach nearly 40oC with the fans on and the compressor off, it was a fridge freezer with oversize fans and compressor, cranked right up it can freeze 100L of water overnight - might sound a bit extreme, but when you have fast response to any temperature across the brewing range and the ability to hold your brew at exactly the temperature you want, its easier to make good beer.
Mark

 

[ajcmbrown]

Good explanation Mark, that makes perfect sense when explained so well. I will try to find a space in my fridge to place a PC fan.