Christmas gear?

So my mom who refuses to quit buying me gifts though I tell her I am 29 and its totally unnecessary asked me if I wanted a beer gun for christmas. I recently bought the very cheap items for the DIY beer gun so I told her it wasnt necessary. I was still trying to figure out how the hell she knew what a beer gun was. Upon processing I remembered my sister works for a brewery and she likely tipped her off.

I dont know that I want a blichmann beer gun. I have not yet tried the DIY beer gun with old racking cane and stopper but from reading on here the DIY is actually better than the blichmann.

I have a 13 gallon brew pot, 3 buckets, 2 kegs (no room to expand right now due to fridge size) and seemingly everything. But i know there is some cool toy to help my brewing I am missing. Refractometer? Not sure.

Ideas please!!!!

look up the tilt it looks like a pretty sweet gadget.

I love my refractometer, I would look for a cheaper one for juice that reads in brix (easily converted into SG by multiplying by 4), they're just as accurate.

That is pretty neat! Would be cool to study the attenuation on the fly.

more food safe buckets + gamma lids, more carboys

eSePeludo said:

look up the tilt it looks like a pretty sweet gadget.

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Fairly certain I know what's on my list for my next purchase.

Wish big!

Ph meter?
Starter flask(s)?
Stir Plate?
Temp Controller?
AHA membership?
Homebrew talk membership?

Everything above isn't that "big" but could really help you out. If you don't have it already.....
Consider yourself lucky that anyone is considering getting you brew gear as it must be a sign of love. 'Tis the season for giving.......

therma pen
a few inkbird 308's?
spare fridge ferm chamber?
SS mashtun?
some SS brew buckets (my wishlist item atm)

I thought you didnt want her to get you anything?

brick_haus said:

I thought you didnt want her to get you anything?

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Lol I dont but she wont take no for an answer and if she is going to get me something regardless id rather it be something i want/need. Like the beer gun would be nice but not necessary. Id rather her not waste money if she is going to spend it regardless.

kh54s10 said:

Wish big!

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What's the microwave for?

kh54s10 said:

Wish big!

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Walks toward the light "SWMBO whispers don't walk into the light"
That is so dang cool.

brewcat said:

What's the microwave for?

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heating stuff.....

Atlmustang said:

Lol I dont but she wont take no for an answer and if she is going to get me something regardless id rather it be something i want/need. Like the beer gun would be nice but not necessary. Id rather her not waste money if she is going to spend it regardless.

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I agree with your view. I have a pH meter on my list, I keep on top of water additions for better beer. Also my gf is getting me 2 of those mini brew buckets. I want to split batches and ferment with different yeast. I know the brews will taste different but which will I like better?, or decide which to use at given times in the year. Who knows? I hope to find out in 2017!!

Atlmustang said:

Lol I dont but she wont take no for an answer and if she is going to get me something regardless id rather it be something i want/need. Like the beer gun would be nice but not necessary. Id rather her not waste money if she is going to spend it regardless.

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[emoji106] I dont bottle much, but when I do I use/love my beer gun. She'll be happier if her idea is a winner!!!

I like the setup that Morebeer has. Three way valve, could see that as a bench top with a little work.

Atlmustang said:

Lol I dont but she wont take no for an answer and if she is going to get me something regardless id rather it be something i want/need. Like the beer gun would be nice but not necessary. Id rather her not waste money if she is going to spend it regardless.

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Don't be selfish. She's your mom. I've got 10 years on you and my mom still buys me Birthday and Christmas gifts, and she will until the end. You may be grown up but you're still her baby and she wants to take care of you. It's what mothers do and it's why we love em (not the buying us stuff part but because they'll do anything to take care of us). Unless she is financially strapped let her enjoy it.

My mom usually stocks up on gift certificates to the LHBS. Easy and She knows I'll enjoy em.

I can't speak to what you need, but I have the same mom situation and pointed her towards cornykeg.com. I put a strong emphasis on the nitro coffee setup, but also said any and all ball lock kegs of various sizes would be welcome too. Just tossing ideas out there.

I do want more kegs but I dont have any more room to put them in the fridge. I need a bigger fridge dammit! You guys warned me about this.

You could ask for kegs and if you have the space buy yourself a larger fridge off craigslist. I have a chest freezer that'll fit 22 kegs that cost me $120 delivered off craigslist.

Ill have a look! Id pay $120 for enough space for 22 kegs. Thats great!

Id ideally get one big enough to fit 6 or so. Id like to always have an IPA, stout, Pale ale, blonde ale and random specialty beer on hand at all times. Im constrained with only two.

6 is an easy mission for under $100. I have another smaller chest freezer thatll fit about 11-12 kegs that cost 100 delivered. Just make sure you run it and see that it gets cold. Also make sure the seals/gaskets are intact (obviously youll have to do a little cleaning, but no more than you do every time brewing) as those are pointlessly pricey to replace.

Although if space isnt a concern try to go as big as you can. I have no intention of ever having 22 kegs haha, but the extra space serves me well for grain storage, extra bottles of beer and whatever else needs to be at refrigerator temps.

Also thought i'd mention that i didnt buy the first thing i saw. May have taken a few weeks to find what i wanted but i just check every time im on the computer, takes 2 minutes to take a look at craigslist, eventually you find what you want. Craigslist is loaded with fridges/freezers. (could also take a look at the site offerup)

Great idea Thor. I will start checking and see what comes across.

I've been brewing for a year; just finished my 24th batch (21 were all-grain, that's where I'm currently at in the brew cycle).

If you don't have a refractometer, it's time. My son does a lot of 1-gallon batches and he was unwilling to use a hydrometer because he didn't want to take such a large proportion of beer out of the end result. A refractometer was a gift last time; now he can at least assess initial gravity with just a few drops.

I have the last straw beer gun from Northern Brewer. I've used it once. I also have the poor-man's beer gun, and it works great, especially for just doing a few bottles of beer. If I ever fill a lot of bottles off a keg, the last straw will be faster, but I haven't yet.

To me, two indispensable brewing tools are a refractometer and a PH meter.

Kegs are always good.you can fill them and condition your beer in them

Thorsbrew said:

You could ask for kegs and if you have the space buy yourself a larger fridge off craigslist. I have a chest freezer that'll fit 22 kegs that cost me $120 delivered off craigslist.

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Atlmustang said:

Ill have a look! Id pay $120 for enough space for 22 kegs. Thats great!

Id ideally get one big enough to fit 6 or so. Id like to always have an IPA, stout, Pale ale, blonde ale and random specialty beer on hand at all times. Im constrained with only two.

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To me, Craigslist is like fishing; you have to keep dipping your line in the water to find a lunker.

If you don't absolutely need something immediately, it's well-worth checking Craigslist for a couple weeks or so.

I ran into the deal of a lifetime on Craigslist last year. For $150 I got 2 glass carboys, fermentation fridge, cooler mash tun w/ ball valve and screen installed, fastrack bottle drying system, Inkbird 308, bottle caps, capper, 16 22-oz bomber bottles, 5-gallon kettle with lid, milk crate, and a host of small stuff. I figured it was $400-worth of stuff.

I sold the Carboys for $25 (yeah, they were worth more, but I got rid of them which is what I wanted), so my net on the rest was $125. This was the kick-start I needed to get me going with all-grain.

If you search Craigslist for brew, beer, brewing, kegerator, keezer (unlikely, but might hit), freezer and refrigerator, you'll find all sorts of interesting stuff.

Here's an example from the Dubuque area Craigslist: http://cedarrapids.craigslist.org/for/5884439342.html

Mash tun, burner, kettle--$40. The guy puts these together and sells 'em cheap, proceeds to a local food pantry.

Keep fishing!

Atlmustang said:

That is pretty neat! Would be cool to study the attenuation on the fly.

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A refractometer is great for measuring your SG before & after the boil. Once fermentation starts & alcohol is present they're not accurate. You'll need a hydrometer.

I like to always have an extra keg on hand. Makes it easy to store/dispense starsan. Also a good place to let one age while you finish off the other two.

I have a brew list on Northern Brewer and will send that to anyone who asks, along with emails for their discounts.
If MoreBeer had such a feature, I'd do the same for them. But they don't seem to have it, and are definitely not in the habit of sending out discount codes.

I always keep consumables on the list like sanitizer and PBW. They're obviously not glamour gifts, but save me money in the long run.

Northern Brewer has a kit with a Digital Ph meter, refractometer, 2 packs of ph booster and various theifs for sampling on sale for $100. Seems like a great idea for nailing down Ph and various gravity readings.

therma pen, refactometer, mill, floor corker, parts to a nitro setup, etc etc etc. You need all these things. you just don't know it yet. Haha.

Or how about a gift card for some hops/grain/yeast? or just to save for a rainy day?

Went with a refractometer. Neat!

eSePeludo said:

look up the tilt it looks like a pretty sweet gadget.

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I blame you for this and when the wife flips, I'm pointing her in your direction. I'd not head of the Tilt until I saw your post. I just pulled the trigger and ordered one. I've got three weeks to find a good hiding spot until SWMBO cools off.

mongoose33 said:

To me, Craigslist is like fishing; you have to keep dipping your line in the water to find a lunker.

If you don't absolutely need something immediately, it's well-worth checking Craigslist for a couple weeks or so.

I ran into the deal of a lifetime on Craigslist last year. For $150 I got 2 glass carboys, fermentation fridge, cooler mash tun w/ ball valve and screen installed, fastrack bottle drying system, Inkbird 308, bottle caps, capper, 16 22-oz bomber bottles, 5-gallon kettle with lid, milk crate, and a host of small stuff. I figured it was $400-worth of stuff.

I sold the Carboys for $25 (yeah, they were worth more, but I got rid of them which is what I wanted), so my net on the rest was $125. This was the kick-start I needed to get me going with all-grain.

If you search Craigslist for brew, beer, brewing, kegerator, keezer (unlikely, but might hit), freezer and refrigerator, you'll find all sorts of interesting stuff.

Here's an example from the Dubuque area Craigslist: http://cedarrapids.craigslist.org/for/5884439342.html

Mash tun, burner, kettle--$40. The guy puts these together and sells 'em cheap, proceeds to a local food pantry.

Keep fishing!

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Nice. I got a keg setup with 4 ball lock corny kegs, 5lb co2 tank, 2 gauge regulator, 4 way manifold and some other odds and ends for $250. Not the best but decent. That giant chest freezer for $120 delivered was really the great deal.

Definitely agree on lurking craigslist as well. Woodworking is another one of my hobbies and i cant wait to get a trailer so i can haul larger items of wood and electronics like dryers to salvage the motors etc from free items off craigslist to make my own tools and more (got plans to make my own huge band saw).