Low starting gravity

Hey guys, quick question. I just racked my second batch into my primary fermenter today, yet I ran into some trouble.

I was working on a Magic hat #9 clonebrew, and I thought that I had done everything correct until I checked the I.G. and found it to be 1.033 instead of the 1.051 that the recipie says should be normal. However, when I added the wort and then the water, I did not stir the wort, and water, so I believe that there may have just been a lot more water than normal on the top, where I took my reading. Yet I have already added the yeast, so I am wondering:

1) Is it possible that 1.033 is my actual reading and that I did mess up real bad? and

2) If I did mess up by not mixing the wort and the water should I just let the yeast do its work, or mix up the wort?

As always, cheers

Give a detailed account of your ingredients and procedures...that'll help us figure it out. You extract brewers (I'm making an assumption in this case) sure are screwing up the OG thing lately! Third post like this in 20 minutes!

Sorry, I left the recipie at my friends house, where we brewed, but here is basically what we did.

Crushed and steeped .5lbs Crystal Malt 60°L in 1/2 gallons of water for 20 mins at 160-180 degrees.
Then strained into my brew pot and sparged with 1/2 gallon of 150 degree water.
Next, we added water until the total volume was 1.5 gallons and heated until boilling.
Then added 6lbs of malt extract with about 1oz hops and added water until the total volume was 2.5 gallons, and boilled for 45 minutes, but it took 20 minutes to get the water up to a boil again.
Next added .5 oz bittering hops and irish moss and boiled for 15 mor minutes.
After that we cooled the wort in a cold water bath, until it cooled to about 100 degrees and strained it into our primary.
Then we filled the bucket up to 5 gallons with cold water, without stirring.
Then I took the O.G. and pitched the yeast.

I wouldn't go back and stir it if the fermentation has started. Punt and wait until the air lock stops bubbling and the f.g. is stable for a couple of days. Expect it to be closer to the f.g. on the recipe than 25% of your o.g.

If it isn't mixed well, you're not going to get a good reading. Besides being able to get a good reading, when you add the yeast and stir the wort, you entrain air, which will help get your fermentation started faster.

1.033 seems a little low, with 6 lbs of LME and .5 lbs of crystal you should be in the upper 30's. Not that far off though. I suspect, however, that if you were expecting 1.051, then the recipe probably called for 6 lbs of DME. I forgot to convert my recipe this morning and ended up with the same thing. Not sure if it's too late to fix, I noticed it right after I put it in the fermentor and checked the SG, so I just boiled up some more water and extract and added it in. If it's already starter fermenting though, that might not be a good idea...

I use DME, but I am almost positive now that my problem is that i didn't stir the water and wort which would lead to a low starting gravity. I am not sure if the yeast will help to mix these two, or if it will just occur naturally, so if someone knows if it is ok that I didn't stir the water + wort, any help would be appreciated.
Thanks

Quite honestly, use a sanitized spoon, dont take a lond time, and dont stir it like a mad man. But more than likely it is probally too late to really do anything about it. Sorry, I had to be honest. I would expect the same. Good luck and ROCK ON!!!:rockin: