i guess i never thought of the first runnings getting caught in the welded portion and ball valve. i did stir for awhile but i could see it getting trapped in that part i will try a vorlauf of sorts next time in the kettle to pull that out and see where i sit at. thanks all for the help. i'm going to grab a new hydrometer just to cross that off the list as well. i will post results on next brew day which should be next sunday the 21st.