New Brewer Equipment Question

So I have been looking at Norther Brewer's brewing kits the last few weeks trying to decide what I want to buy with my Christmas money. I am thinking about getting their cheapest setup and just adding a carboy along with it. My question is what would be the best size of carboy to use as a secondary? I will be brewing 5 gallon batches but wasn't sure if the 5 gallon carboy wouldn't have enough room. I would imagine it would be seeing how it would be used for a secondary but wanted to ask before I buy something and it not be what I need. Thanks.

/edit Sorry I just realized I put this in the extract board. I meant to put it in the beginner board. Very sorry.

For 5 gallon batches a 5 gallon carboy is good for a secondary, becuase in secondary you want your head space to be minimal. Now having just started not too long ago myself let me tell you that maybe instead of just one 5 gallon carboy for secondary that you should get that and a 6.5 gallon carboy to ferment in. I gota say being able to watch the fermentation process is awsome. Your gonna want to see whats going on. Good luck and no matter what you get have fun and welcome to home brewing.

Reddheadedstepchild said:

For 5 gallon batches a 5 gallon carboy is good for a secondary, becuase in secondary you want your head space to be minimal. Now having just started not too long ago myself let me tell you that maybe instead of just one 5 gallon carboy for secondary that you should get that and a 6.5 gallon carboy to ferment in. I gota say being able to watch the fermentation process is awsome. Your gonna want to see whats going on. Good luck and no matter what you get have fun and welcome to home brewing.

Click to expand...

What he said.

Also think the process all the way through you need the equipment to brew, the equipment to transfer or rack and the equipment to bottle and cap. so make sure the kit you get is covering all of that. And then the kit that you are going to pick to brew for your first beer.

Without looking at NB's catalog right now, I'd recommend you get the big bucket fermenter (6.5 gallon, actually holds 7 gal) and two better bottles for secondary. 5 gal BB's are better for secondary but for the few bucks more you can get one large enough to primary in if you ever run short of buckets. Some day, hopefully, you will have that problem

I recommend two secondaries because the beer will spend 2-4 times as long in that container and you don't want to be unable to brew because you're out of containers. You could also go for two big primaries and skip the secondary fermenter altogether, which plenty of brewers here will vouch for. Remember to cold-crash your primary if you do that and give the beer 3-4 weeks in primary.

I recommend against glass; you can find lots of posts here saying why, but they're heavier, more expensive, and will explode if damaged. Just don't use that carboy brush in your BB.

I do not recomend using a secondary at all.

You can do most everything in the primary. Don't waste your money on a secondary. I also like the better bottles. They are clear and it very important to be able to see what's going on with the ferment. They are much lighter and more durable then glass. I have had the glass carboys break and it's not only a huge mess it's very dangerous.

Save the money you would have spent on a secondary and get an imersion chiller.

No need for secondary for most beers.

I say get another carboy or bucket. That way you can have 2 batches fermenting at a time.

More beer.......

Here is the kit I was looking at. Figured it would be nice to have fermentation bucket and a separate bottling bucket. Would just add the carboy as secondary. And figure when I get to the point where I will be brewing a lot more I can just add more buckets and carboys. Which could be a while because I don't really have a place to store 40+ bottles of beer at the moment.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/starter-kits/basic-starter-kit.html

I'll chime in to say I secondary most of my beers. I just get WAY less sediment. Blame it on the auto-siphon...blame it on my racking skills. I don't care.

A secondary is NOT worthless.

Sorry, I haven't paid attention to prices, but really it might be just as cheap to buy exactly what you need instead of getting a kit. I have 2 6.5 gallon carboys and 2 5 gallon carboys for secondary (I make a lot of IPA's, and it's a good place to put the beer to clear out the primary). I agree that carboys are cool, I have glass but they are heavy. BB are better, but I had my carboys already and am too cheap to change. It's fun watching fermentation. I can often have lots of batches going at once - very fun and easy to do.

Equipment that you need is:

primary (6.5 gallons is best - can be bucket or carboy)
secondary (not necessary but I like it - 5 gallon is OK)
some sort of siphon tube and bottling wand (many varieties, I have the cheapest)
capper
hydrometer
tubing
airlock
bottling bucket
funnel (to get it all into the fermenter)

Good luck. Think I'll go have a brew as we speak

Dont forget bottles and caps or a kegging system. You can make as much beer as you want but if you dont have a way to get it carbed and cold you wont be drinking much of it. So make sure you think about the whole process before you jump in. I know that you got time to buy bottles and or collect them Im just saying dont forget em. Or kegging if your gonna go that route.

One of the best "complete" start up kits I have seen is on this site http://www.homebrewit.com


It was what I bought check the super deluxe boil kit. It comes with a kettle, bottles ,capper, caps, bottling bucket, fermenting bucket ,glass 5 gallon carboy for seacondary, hydrometer, testing cylinder, wine theif ,racking cane, tubeing, bottling wand, carboy brush, bottle brush, and sanitizer as well as themometers. I may have even of missed some things. It is by far the most complete start up kit I have seen.

Oh I almost forgot it also comes with your first beer kit with steeping grains I think the kit is an american amber.

Yeah I have already started to sit aside bottle for my brew so that shouldn't be a problem. I may look into piecing together a kit myself. Thanks everyone for all the help.

heres the one i am saving my pennies for. it comes with 2 better bottles or 2 glass carboys if u want to pay a little more. midwestsupplies.com

LazyPBar said:

heres the one i am saving my pennies for. it comes with 2 better bottles or 2 glass carboys if u want to pay a little more. midwestsupplies.com

Click to expand...

I would not buy that kit. The better bottles are only 5 gallon. That's too small to use as a primary fermenter. You really need the 6 gallon size better bottle or you will loose a half gallon of beer on every batch to blow off.

You mention that you don't have the space for 40+ bottle? You may want to get a Mr. Beer kit. You can make good beer with a Mr. Beer kit, and it's only around 20 bottle. I always put my finished, carbonating beer back in the cardboard box the empty bottle came in and put that in a rubbermaid tote with blankets to keep some insulation. This way, you can put the totes in a closet, attic, basement, etc. and not have to worry about making a mess if a couple bottles explode...

Steve

Breck09 said:

Here is the kit I was looking at. Figured it would be nice to have fermentation bucket and a separate bottling bucket. Would just add the carboy as secondary. And figure when I get to the point where I will be brewing a lot more I can just add more buckets and carboys. Which could be a while because I don't really have a place to store 40+ bottles of beer at the moment.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/starter-kits/basic-starter-kit.html

Click to expand...

maida7 said:

I would not buy that kit. The better bottles are only 5 gallon. That's too small to use as a primary fermenter. You really need the 6 gallon size better bottle or you will loose a half gallon of beer on every batch to blow off.

Click to expand...

oh thanks for pointing that out. i didn't even think about it. i guess we might be better off piecing one together like he said. thanks again for the heads up.

this one Looks good. Start with the bucket. There is really nothing wrong with the bucket. But if your brewing more frequently you will want 2 primary fermenters. So just buy a 6 gal better bottle. They run about 25.00.

This one Starts you out with a better bottle as a primary fermenter. It does not say what size but I assume that it's the 6 gal. You should probably check with them before you buy.

Do you have a pot? You will need a gianormus pot. 5 gallon is the what I would recomend as a starter. Idealy you would have a 8-10 gallon pot so you could do full boils. With the full boils you probably want to get off the stove and that would require a propane jet burner. Also with the larger boils you will need a chiller. Imersion chillers are the best for the money and will serve you very well.