should I put beer into second fermenter

I did my first brew a few days ago. A Hefeweizen. The directions said to let the beer settle for 3-4 days after i don't see anymore bubbles, generally a week total. I bought another kit of a different Hefeweizen to experiment with by putting some fruit flavor in there for the wife. These directions say to ferment for one week and then transfer over to a second fermenter for another week. My question is should I ferment my first batch in a second fermenter even though the directions say not too?

It all depends on what you're doing and who you ask.

In the future you may dry hop, do back-to-back batches using sludge from the primary as yeast for the next batch, or not bottle right away, in which case a secondary can be quite useful.

In your case you'll be fine skipping the secondary. Let the yeast fall out, give it another week to be safe, then bottle.

Skip the secondary and give it two weeks in primary, unless you're going to pitch onto your yeast cake or need the space in the primary.  Generally secondaries aren't necessary unless you have a compelling reason to do them, IMO.

smokehouse said:

My question is should I ferment my first batch in a second fermenter even though the directions say not too?

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No.

+1 alcaponejr and mainehomebrewer!

As you can tell there are a lot opinions on this topic.  In the end it really does boil down to personal preference.  You cannot hurt the beer by putting it in secondary (as long as you make sure the container is sanitized). 

Personally I do both, it just all depends on what I'm brewing.  More often than not, I do like to do a secondary for conditioning and to help the yeast finish falling out and the beer to clear up.  If you are looking to do a fruit addition or dry hop, secondary is where that is done.  Also, I have started leaving my beer on the yeast for 10-14 days.

In the case of a Hefe, I would probably do a very short secondary on the first batch.  Something like 3-4 days, just long enough to help the yeast finish falling out.  Then on the second batch, do the full secondary to allow for the fruit addition.

Good luck!

From my experience I learned to be carefull having the beer long in the primary. I have had some bad experience with yeast off-flavors and since I use to do the following things:

- have new/healthy yeast
- have a yeast starter and pitch with the right amount
- areate, areate and areate during the first 24hrs (a vigorous fermentation will crowd out bacteria)
- depending on the type of brew but I try to keep the primary not longer than 5 - 8 days
- have a diacetyl rest after primary 5 - 10 degrees F higher for 2 - 3 days (not longer) to stimulate diacetyl
  re-absorption and cool down to your normal secondary schedule
- have your fermentation temperature according to the type of yeast (lager, ale etc.) and instructions
- secondary at least 2 weeks preferably 1 - 2 weeks longer and with lower temperatures (depending on type of
  beer and your schedule)
- conditioning in the bottle at least 2-3 weeks and store them cold

I always follow the development of my beers (taste, flavor, color etc.) during the whole process by tasting it. It's amazing how beers can change their flavor/taste spectrum in a positive way over time.

Regards,
Slurk

If you're not adding anything else to it (like dry hopping) then IMO there's no need to use a secondary.