When you add the water or DME is that based on the pre-boil SG?

Brewhouse I think. Still getting the hang of this, but either way my last batch went into the fermentor at a higher OG than the recipe predicted.

So I have my Efficiency set to the default 70% I haven't done enough batches yet to be confident on what my efficiency will actually be with my equipment, but on my last batch, I back calculated it at 75%, so my beer was a bit stronger than planned. Not the end of the world, it tasted pretty...

Thanks. I don’t have a wort chiller yet, so I’m cooling the kettle in an ice bath in the sink.

Thanks guys. Stupid follow up question then. How do most people transfer from the kettle to the fermentor? Right now I am pouring it out into the bucket, but that won't work if I'm going to a carboy. I assume I would syphon into the carboy? In which case, do I need to change my volume...

I'm sure this has been addressed here already, but a quick search didn't turn up what I was looking for. I've made 2 batches so far, for both batches my method has been to: Pour the full contents of my kettle into my plastic primary fermentation bucket, pitch yeast, add an airlock, etc. Wait 1...

Thanks :)

The OG was 1045 and the FG is 1014. Not sure what the target was meant to be, it is an amber ale from an extract and some steeped grains. Planning to cold crash it now and then bottle on the weekend.

Brewing my first ever batch. I’ve had it in the fermenter for 2 weeks and when I went to check the gravity before bottling, I noticed some white snowflake like things floating on top. Is this mould? Does it mean I didn’t sterilize well enough? And most importantly, is the beer still good to...