This is my 2nd brew ever and I can’t get hydrometer reading below 1.02. I transferred to secondary tonight. Can I add new yeast to brew? Also can u add water to bring up to 5 gal level? I didn’t stir layer of stuff on bottom of bucket which I understand my reactivate yeast. It tasted ok but supposed to be 1.01 to 1.015
I think you just brought your beer up to 70F yesterday after it stopping at 1.020 and you had some activity?
Think Guns N Roses. Just a little patience…
Give it a couple (3-4) days at 70-72F and take another reading.
Dave
No patience Dave. Racked already to secondary. Can I add more yeast or forget it and drink it? Looks like a little over 4% abv
A lot of time extract brews can finish a little higher depending on the recipe and extract. Especially if you used a lot of “dark” extract. Mind posting the recipe? Also, did you aerate and pitch enough yeast? That can have some effect on attenuation.
I think most us have eschewed “secondary” fermentation. Ends up just being a way to introduce oxidation.
BTW: You can add more yeast but it will need to be an active yeast starter to do anything or a fresh slurry from a recent fermentation.
Gawd - I friggin HATE gun 'n roses. Just sayin. 
Northern brewer.com
Caribou slobber
First thing I noticed reading the recipe is that there is no brand of amber extract. Extracts (Especially Amber and dark) have widely varying fermentabilities. I bet that your beer is finished. If you guess that an amber extract is somewhere between 10-20% crystal malt, and then you add more crystal in steeping grains, you are going to end with a pretty high gravity. If you really want to, you could add more yeast, but if I were you, I would learn my lesson and bottle.
For future reference, most people on this forum recommend extra light or light malt extract as your go-to base for all beers. If you add steeping grains to that, you have a bit more control over the beer you brew.
A common new homebrewer mistake (like me years ago) is to transfer to secondary too early. Make sure that fermentation is completely finished before transfering. Any earlier and you’re removing the beer from the yeast that is supposed to be fermenting it (Doesn’t make much sense does it?) Most beers should sit in primary for two weeks. You can transfer when it’s finished, though as mentioned, many (like me) skip secondary altogether.
And I LOVE Guns-n-Roses
I am going to guess that you used the dry ale yeast option for this kit, which happens to be Danstar Windsor, so I doubt you’re going to go much lower in gravity.
+1
How embarrassing!
+1 and +1000! 8)
Here is your dilemma. If it’s done, then you can bottle and give them a try in 2 weeks. If it’s not done, then you run the risk of bottle bombs.
Since you transferred to secondary (in the future I would just leave in primary for 2-3 weeks) I would go ahead and bottle and leave them in a place that can get wet. I think you will be alright and agree with above that it’s probably finished.
I’m Intrigued by the idea of forgoing the secondary fermentation step altogether, and I’d like to try it. Is it simply a matter of combining the time normally spend in primary + secondary? Are there other variables to consider?
That’s pretty much it. But frankly, time spent in fermentation is something that the yeast determines, not the recipe. Generally, once you get to a stable final gravity for 2-3 days straight, then the yeast is done and you are OK to bottle/keg.
Why is it that some NB kits recommend a yeast starter and two-stage fermentation? Yeast starter I understand, but two-stage fermentation - what’s their logic?
Inertia. You can’t reverse forty years of tradition overnight, no matter how right you are.
For me, which yeast used and what fermentation temp are additional factors as to how long to leave in the primary. If someone doesn’t have great environmental control (i.e., starter kits), racking to secondary makes sense to avoid off-flavors.
I would give the opposite advice. It’s when you’re concerned about fermentation off-flavors that you want to give the beer as much contact time with the yeast as possible.
I agree with Sean on this. The only time I use a secondary is when making a sour beer. Even my strong ales get bulk aged in the keg. Lagers get stored on the primary yeast at 30-32F for six to eight weeks after fermentation is complete, then kegged and carbed.
Asking for the sake of clarification: Let’s say you don’t have temp control (let’s pick an ambient temperature of 68) and you were working from a kit, would you let it sit on the lager yeast cake for 8 weeks?