Recent content by vlesperance

Can you tell the age or "harvest year" before you buy a bag of hop pellets? I've never seen a lable or "expiration date" or "harvest date" type info on a bag. Is there any kind of industry standard? I'm thinking of buying bulk (1lb) bags to save some money, but since they'll be in my...

I've only ever done 5 gallon batches, but I'm thinking my next few will be 1 or 2.5. I've got the procedure down. I've finally made beer that I think is great by following recipies from others. Now, I want to experiment with grains and hops and learn what everything tastes like. So, I'm...

It seems like with the 2 transfers and wait time, the wort for your 2nd batch would have cooled a bit. Net effect, your specialty grains would be seeping at a lower temp than the base beer. I don't know if that would be an issue for what you're trying to accomplish.

Can you tell the age or "harvest year" when you buy a bag of hop pellets? I've never seen a lable or "expiration date" or "harvest date" type info on a bag. I'm thinking of buying bulk (1lb) bags to save some money, but since they'll be in my freezer for up to a year, I'd prefer that they...

I see coils of 3/8ths copper tubing. Some are labled where 3/8ths is the inner diameter and some where its the outer diameter. So, with all the posts on this site debating 3/8ths vs 1/2 inch, are people debating outer diameters or inner? In other words, I can buy either. I want to know...

This fryer was a "master built." It looked really old. I typed the model number into seach engines and nothing came back, so I'm assuming pretty old. At least it had no timers or safety devices. I should probably have said 20 min. to bring wort (already 152*) to boil. (or that might have...

Gathering equipment to do all grain. Was about to buy my first turkey fryer, when suddenly, like magic, there was one on the side of the road, like prime roadkill. I ran it for 10 minutes and it seems to work fine. I just to make sure its not defective in some way. 1. How long does it...

Gathering equipment to do all grain. Was about to buy my first turkey fryer, when suddenly, like magic, there was one on the side of the road! I ran it for 10 minutes and it seems to work fine. At least to my noob perceptions. Just to make sure its "normal:" 1. How long does it take a...

Thanks all. Based on the answers here, I tried it again... and its already much quieter. Since I could now leave water in it, I filled it with 10 gallons just to test for leaks and heat retention. It is leak free. I'm losing about 4*F per hour, a bit more than I was hoping. Do you think...

Hi, I just made a mash tun from a 10-gallon rubbermaid cooler (the "standard" build that I see all over). I did notice that the inside liner is slightly warped inwards, if that matters. I just tested it with hot water (180-ish *F). It kept making a "crackling" noise. After about 20 seconds...

New homebrewer here. I'd like to brew a couple good batches and confirm that this is a good hobby for me before spending too much more money on start up. So, I'm hoping I can do all grain 5-gallon batches on my stove top. I'm reading that others here seem to do that successfully. I have...