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so I recently built a CFC from SS tubing. I detailed the build here and testing here. In summary, I purchased the tubing and fixtures from stainlessbrewing.com. The coil is 25', terminated with stainless tee fittings and using bushings and JB Weld. total cost: $90.25, plus the cost of the...

So i screwed up a cleaning session yesterday - inadvertantly left the discharge from my pump outside the kettle while running and heating, and walked away to make a sandwich. I came back and my rig had now power and no water... the GFCI/breaker had thrown. No beer was harmed - it was just...

My wife made a peach cobbler a few weeks ago that I can't get out of my head. Delicious. Part of what made it great is that the peaches were still a bit on the tart side - not overly sweet at all, very fresh tasting. I want to make a version of this in beer form. Obviously, I'm thinking it...

I recently brewed an ordinary bitter and entered it in a club competition. I took 2nd place, both judges rated it as a 32. One common note from both judges was astringency, which I can definitely taste. I'm trying to understand where it comes from. General recipe: Marris Otter: 6 lbs Special...

So I was purposefully trying to make a low-alcohol beer - lower gravity than I normally brew, but then to make it not seem thin I added a good amount of crystal and caramunich for extra body and I mashed fairly high. I ended up (predictably) with poor attenuation - is the beer done, or is there...

so I was at the LHBS, buying my grain. I was looking at the wrong line in my shopping list and pulled too much Special B. after I realized the mistake, I compounded the issue by compensating by cutting the chocolate malt. After thinking about it, I think I am going to have too much...

full write-up is here. In a nutshell - this was a $50 find from letgo. No modification to the fridge was necessary (outside of removing ice-maker) - fits a carboy or slim 1/4 barrel as is. https://i2.wp.com/makeitstout.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/installed-open.jpg I am running a...

I just built a new fermentation chamber. As my basement tends to be in the mid 60's (especially during the winter), I need to add a heating element into the chamber if I want to do any kind of temp ramps. I installed a 15W reptile heat cable by zip-tying it to the sides of the chamber, and...

My fermentation chamber sits in an unfinished portion of my basement. I decided it would be pretty slick to hard-wire it directly to the wall. Of course, after spending all day getting this hooked up, the paranoid voice in my head says, "how do you know this is safe? Is the STC-1000...

https://www.minibrew.com/collections/easy-seal/products/easy-seal-weldless-bulkhead-fitting?variant=25687127174 anyone have any experience with these? in a nutshell, it's a weldless SS fitting that threads from the outside. I've been thinking about using a SS keg as a fermenting vessel...

there are a bunch of pH meters on Amazon for <$20. Are these complete garbage? I understand they may not actually be accurate to the hundredths (x.xx). Is that kind of precision really necessary, especially on a homebrew scale? I've been making fairly good beer for years without even...

I finished building my stand yesterday. In short, it is a bottom draining keggle with a 5500W element running on 240V. I have a SS chugger pump attached for re-circulation, and it is all built into a single wooden cart. Pics: The images all come from my blog, where I went into...

hey guys, I hope you don't mind me plugging this, but I've started a blog to chronicle all of my builds. I did it as a single web-page vs here because I wanted to share with my local homebrew club, friends, family, etc and not post to a web forum. Also, to learn about blogging and web page...

I have a bunch of homebrew projects in the works, and started a blog to chronicle everything - makeitstout.com. The general theme is DIY homebrew gear, but right now I'm working on my new rig. In a nutshell, the rig is a 240V, 5500W keggle, bottom draining, all built into one movable stand...

Next fall, I want to start brewing and drinking Bronco beer. Problem is, I don't know what Bronco beer is. I'm a huge Denver Bronco fan, displaced in Charlotte, NC. I would like to brew something special to enjoy during games next season. Having trouble figuring out what kind of beer would...

so my company announced last week that we are ceasing operations at my location. Effective in January, they will be laying everyone off. It sucks, but it is pretty awesome that we have plenty of advanced warning. I'd like to make a batch of beer as a going away gift to everyone. I figure I...

I have relatively soft water (values in bottom of post). I will be brewing an ESB today, and want to mimic the hard Burton profile. I am using Bru'n Water spreadsheet, v1_16, by the way. I find if I add about 3.5 g/gal of gypsum, 1 g/gal of Epsom Salt and 0.25 g/gal of CaCl2, my mineral...

here's my basic thoughts: 1. use a keggle as the pot, considering inverted so that it's bottom draining. Still not sure if this is a good idea or not. 2. heating element: Blichmann Boil Coil 15. 3. grain bag goes inside a fryer basket, which will sit on the floor of the keggle...

I've been in the planning stages of putting together an e-HERMS set-up for a while now. I haven't pulled the trigger yet, waiting for some money to come in first. Anyways, I think I want to start implementing decoctions in my brewing. Lots of the styles I'm most interested in could use...

I use a 5 gallon igloo cooler for my mash tun. Until I can get this upgraded, I have been limited in the size of beer I can make. I'm fine with it, as I only typically make a big beer once a year - I like to make a RIS or barleywine or something like that every winter, age it all year, and...