Fermentation Temperature

Breck09 · 06-22-2010, 04:23 AM

So I am planning on fermenting my ale that I am brewing this weekend in the rarely used bathroom in my finished basement. I thought for sure that the temperature would be in the low to mid 60s. I bought a thermometer today and placed it in the area where my bucket would be and it is reading 69. Is that going to be too warm given that fermenting beer can be warmer then the room temperature? I am using Nottingham dry yeast which gives a range up to 70 I do believe.

Captain_Bigelow · 06-22-2010, 04:33 AM

You are slightly on the high end for Nottingham. I would recommend a swamp cooler and you will be all set.

mikebiewer · 06-22-2010, 04:36 AM

Agreed.

Underneath my steps is about 65 and fluctuates 2 degrees on either side. Swamp cooler it is for me!

Breck09 · 06-22-2010, 04:42 AM

What exactly is a swamp cooler?

Okay I looked up some places about swamp coolers and they seem pretty easy to do. Only problem that may arise is I am going for 10-12 hours a day and wondering if termperature fluctuations during that time can be a problem?

**marubozo** · 06-22-2010, 04:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Breck09

What exactly is a swamp cooler?

A swamp cooler is basically just a bucket of water that's large enough to set your fermenting bucket/carboy in. Then you place chunks of ice in the water to keep it cool and therefore keep your beer cooler. Some go a step further and also drape a towel or t-shirt around the fermenter soaking up the cold water and then have a fan blowing on it to pull the heat away and keep it even cooler.

It might look kind of ghetto, but it works

Captain_Bigelow · 06-22-2010, 04:50 AM

You can get a large plastic tub with rope handles from Wal-Mart for $5.

mikebiewer · 06-22-2010, 04:52 AM

A quick search on google got me this.

http://www.brew-dudes.com/swamp-cooler-magic/287

These guys are pretty cool to!

Breck09 · 06-22-2010, 04:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Captain_Bigelow

You can get a large plastic tub with rope handles from Wal-Mart for $5.

My wife is going to kill me with all this "extra" stuff I need. So would I just try to keep the water in the swamp cooler around say 65 or so to insure my beer is fermenting at a good temp?

**marubozo** · 06-22-2010, 05:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Breck09

My wife is going to kill me with all this "extra" stuff I need. So would I just try to keep the water in the swamp cooler around say 65 or so to insure my beer is fermenting at a good temp?

That depends on a lot of things, like how high the water is on your fermenter, etc. But generally speaking, yes. You want to keep the water a good few degrees cooler than you want the actual fermentation to be since fermentation is exothermic and gives off more heat.

Breck09 · 06-22-2010, 05:11 AM

Thanks all. I may have to go the swamp cooler route. Checking some different places in my house to see if I can find a spot a little cooler then my original spot. Problem is I have two little curious 4 year olds that like to get into everything.