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Had this old freezer for quite some time now. The lid was completely shot and I figured I can just make a lid out of wood. The whole inside of the lid is insulated. It's not much to look at, but it keeps beer cold!

I'm formulating a pale ale recipe using hops I already have. What, if any, suggestions do you have for this one? This is a 5.5 gallon batch. 9.5# 2-row 1# Vienna .5# crystal 20L 1oz Galaxy @ 20 .5oz Galaxy @ 5 .5oz Amarillo @ 5 1oz Galaxy @ 0 1oz Amarillo @ 0 .5oz Galaxy & .5oz Amarillo dry hop...

I have a brand new ball lock keg and no matter how many times I re-seat the dip tube and post, the tube remains loose. When the post is tightened, you can reach in and shake the dip tube around. I even swapped sides with the other tube. Changed the seal already too. The keg hold pressure...

I'm making my first batches of mead this weekend. Both are 1 gallon batches. One batch will be traditional with a few steeped orange peels along with Lalvin D47. The second, I'd like to add a cup or so of strawberries in secondary using Lalvin 71B yeast. My question is, will any of the...

I took a few samples of my post boil wort and read through my new refractometer and I got a few different readings. Anyone else have similar issues? How do I get consistent readings? Refractometer has been calibrated.

I've gotten 2 Dead Ringer IPA kits in a row with bad crushes causing me to come in about 18 points below expected OG. Anyone else having issues with them? I guess I'll have another session IPA....

I may just be retarded, but I can't find a strike water and sparge water volume needed calculator on Beer Alchemy. It has a strike tempurature but no volume. Also no sparge temperature calculator. This is aggrevating, am I missing something?

I ordered a 13 pounds of hops from hopsdirect. Well I'm in the military and got deployed so I never got a chance to brew with all of them. There's a few pounds in the freezer at home that haven't been used yet. They will have been in there for about 2 years when I finally get home. They are...

I'm about to convert a Keg into a boil kettle. I need some help choosing the best way to filter hops/hot break materials. I'm thinking of going with a bazooka screen or a false bottom with dip tube. What do you think would be the best for a boil kettle application? I would like to save...

I have a pale ale in keg right now. I carbed @ 40psi for 2 days then backed off to 10psi for serving. The 1st 2 or 3 glasses had perfect carbonation. But a few days later, filled up a glass and it was damn near flat. Keg is still @ 10 psi. WTF? How am I losing carbonation? Is it my carb...

Okay, here's my dilema. I have a pale ale that went 3 weeks primary and one week secondary with dry hops. OG was 1.058. So I kegged it after 4 weeks, my 1st kegging experience so I think I jumped the gun. I had it at 30psi for 2 days at 40 degrees. I dropped it to 8psi after that and took a...

I just got into all grain with 3 batches under my belt. I currently have a 7.5 gallon pot. It works ok, but really can't do and boil time over 60 minutes. I'm looking at a 10 or 15 gallon pot. Not too sure where to go. Is there a such thing as too big? Should I get the ball valve for it...

Can I just sprinkle this yeast instead of re-hydrating? Also, how long does this yeast take to start taking off? This is my 1st time using it.

What is 1st wort hopping as opposed to 60 minutes addidtion?

I'm planning on ordering severl pounds of hops and I'd like to know one thing. Leaf or pellets??? I'm stuck on this. What are the advantages/disadvantages of both. What do you guys get?

I'm planning on buying around 15 pounds of hops from Hopsdirect.com. I'll be vacuum sealing it and keeping it in the freezer. I'm getting like 5 different varities. I'm just curious on how many different kinds of hops are in your freezer, and how much? Is this even a good idea? It seems...

Is there a thermometer kit I can get for a cooler mash tun. I wanna be able to keep track of temps without opening the cooler. Any suggestions?

Well after 1 1/2 years of extract brewing, I'm leaping into all grain. I wanna get one of those cooler systems but I'm stuck on one thing. Do I get 5 gallon or 10 gallon???? I'm stuck on this. I've been going back and forth for a week or 2 and I can't decide. is bigger always better?

I'm making a Java Stout. It's still in primary but I have a question. I'm brewing some super strong coffee to add to secondary. Can I just brew it and pour it in before I siphon in the beer??? Does the coffee need to be boiled to sanitize 1st???

I made a brown ale yesterday and I just realized I forgot to crush the steeping grains. What negative will this have on my beer?