Bad thermometer how high can ferm temp swing?

I brewed my first stout (sweet stout) a couple days ago and just started brewing last summer. I have an OG of 1.076 and am using US-05 dry yeast that i rehydrated. I have 5 gal glass carboy resting in a Tupperware container with cool/cold water. My digital thermometer is old and used for cooking (food network brand) and I don’t think it’s accurate at lower temps. I got a reading of 81 and freaked out and bought ice as my ice packs (3) were melted and needed to go back in freezer (just got several more ice packs from neighbor). The tub with the carboy is resting in my basement bathroom shower stall. I would guess ambient air temp is high 60’s during day and mid 60’s at night. I’m adding a few ice packs during day. Im smelling a slight fruity ester aroma and I’m wondering if that’s from fermenting too warm. Going to look for a better thermometer tomorrow but was curious what the hottest a sweet stout can get when ambient air in room is upper 60’s?

thanks,

Mike

 

My thermometer read 70 and it was late so I pitched yeast, added a couple ice packs and went to bed. I’ve had a glass of water sit overnight on counter and my house thermostat is set to 70 and the thermometer in that glass of water says 79. Does my thermometer seem to be working?

 

Oh man! New thermometer is reading 55 degrees. I immediately took carboy out of water bath and am wondering if I should repitch? I suppose I should let it warm up and see if air lock activity increases (fairly slow bubbling currently). Rookie mistake I don’t have spare yeast. This yeast was pitched Wednesday night and it’s Saturday morning. Krausen foam appeared before I dumped a bunch of ice in water bath yesterday so I’m hoping they went a little dormant and didn’t die off around 55 degrees for roughly 24 hours. Would this necessitate a gravity reading to check progress?

 

Definitely wondered about the new ones accuracy so thanks for the tip

 

Funny thing is I have that temp tape on the carboy but it wasn’t helpful when I had it submerged. Now it’s reading 60 and airlock activity is increasing

 

Good to know. Thanks. One last question: my airlock smells like fruity esters. I’m still only on day 4 of fermentation but curious if this smell is normal or could be a bad sign that I stressed the yeast?

 

Two nights ago I relocated carboy from basement to the coldest area on my main floor which is at 67 degrees. Yesterday, the fruity ester smell coming from air lock has lessened substantially. Wish I could fast forward in time bc I’m ready to try my first homebrewed stout

 

I wanted to just quickly take a small sample to taste but failed. I used a clean tube and tied to plug one end with my thumb and carefully lift the other end out and dump into wide glass on the floor. Despite being successful on the trial run with water, the beer leaked out instantly and i just made a mess. I have the proper equipment to grab a sample but I noticed there is minute amount of dried gunk in a hard to clean area so I decided not to use it.
Anyways, I did try a drop of the beer and plan on grabbing enough for a gravity reading this weekend. It definitely tastes like an easy drinking stout and although a bit simple in flavor it seems close to done.

 

Just took a gravity reading and a taste.
Recipe: OG: 1.060 FG: 1.023 ADF 61% Abv 4.9
My beer: OG: 1.076 FG: 1.028 ADF 62% Abv 6.3

Today marks the 10th day of fermentation. Taste is good but a little sweet. I can see this being pretty enjoyable carbed and colder. I know I should probably take another reading tomorrow but I might bottle this tonight. No airlock activity for a couple days and I think I under pitched my yeast. I used one 11.5 gram pack of safale US-05 for 4.5 gallons of 1.076 OG wort with minimal aeration.