Allow my idiocy to save you the trouble

I have went WAY overboard on brewing and have at times ( including bottle conditioning) 7-8-9 batches going. I put 4 swamp coolers in my bedroom ( wife is very accomodating to my hobbies) and just kept switching brews in and out. The past two weeks my wife and I have been having sinus and respiratory issues and the swamp coolers never crossed my mind. we had been gone all day yesterday and the bedroom was closed up. She opened the bedroom door and the stagnant moldy water smell was overwhelming. I guess we were like the people whose house smells like cat piss that don't notice it because they have grown accustomed to it. Anyway pulled the brews out and dumped the swamp coolers last night. The crud in the bottom of them was gross and STUNK. SOOOO if you have a swamp cooler or coolers, PUT BLEACH IN THE WATER.

Might I suggest an old freezer from Craiglist with a temperature controller. You could pitch it to the SWMBO like this:

"Keeps us healthier and the beer will be much better."

or star san

WrongCoastBrewery said:

Might I suggest an old freezer from Craiglist with a temperature controller. You could pitch it to the SWMBO like this:

"Keeps us healthier and the beer will be much better."

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already on it lol.

Had you at least been swapping the water out with fresh each batch?

OK I am looking for a chest freezer on craigslist. I will be putting it in an unheated building and it will need to be heated and cooled. I know some of you wire up your own dual controllers but that is beyond my feeble mind to do lol.. what is a GOOD dual controller that I can hook the freezer and a heat source to?

IrregularPulse said:

Had you at least been swapping the water out with fresh each batch?

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no
but given 3-4 weeks in primary even that might not be enough.

If you had that many batches going, you probably were being affected by the CO2 also.

The controller II & space heater would probably do the trick for you.

http://www.williamsbrewing.com/TEMPERATURE_CONTROL_C100.cfm

Also might be time to consider scaling back production until you drink up some of your inventory. You really can't keep brewing more than your dwelling can handle. Plus homebrew doesn't last indefinetly. There is an experation date on some stuff.

I have a full basement and I wouldn't have tried brewing so many batches in need of swamp coolers. I just had the one swamp cooler. I have a full size fridge now thats allowed me to carb 4 kegs at a time now and I ditched the swamp cooler. But I still plan my brewing out accordingly so that I don't overwhelm myself or my facilities.

No offense since I understand the temptation and the addiction to keep brewing but you almost seem like a home brew hoarder Resist the compulsion to brew more.

OHIOSTEVE said:

OK I am looking for a chest freezer on craigslist. I will be putting it in an unheated building and it will need to be heated and cooled. I know some of you wire up your own dual controllers but that is beyond my feeble mind to do lol.. what is a GOOD dual controller that I can hook the freezer and a heat source to?

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If you want to buy something all wired up, go with the two stage ranco.

I really like the version morebeer.com sells (go look at it, you'll see what I mean), but it is a few bucks more expensive than some other places that just run extension cord type wires off of them.

IODINE will stop the funk. There are other things like bleach but that can be bad if you get a leak or drip it on the floor. A little Iodine goes a long way and is cheap.

akthor said:

Also might be time to consider scaling back production until you drink up some of your inventory. You really can't keep brewing more than your dwelling can handle. Plus homebrew doesn't last indefinetly. There is an experation date on some stuff.

I have a full basement and I wouldn't have tried brewing so many batches in need of swamp coolers. I just had the one swamp cooler. I have a full size fridge now thats allowed me to carb 4 kegs at a time now and I ditched the swamp cooler. But I still plan my brewing out accordingly so that I don't overwhelm myself or my facilities.

No offense since I understand the temptation and the addiction to keep brewing but you almost seem like a home brew hoarder Resist the compulsion to brew more.

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It gets drank by EVERYONE...I give away far more than I drink.. just sent a 12 pack with a friend not 5 minutes ago.. I just really like brewing.

akthor said:

Also might be time to consider scaling back production until you drink up some of your inventory. You really can't keep brewing more than your dwelling can handle. Plus homebrew doesn't last indefinetly. There is an experation date on some stuff.

I have a full basement and I wouldn't have tried brewing so many batches in need of swamp coolers. I just had the one swamp cooler. I have a full size fridge now thats allowed me to carb 4 kegs at a time now and I ditched the swamp cooler. But I still plan my brewing out accordingly so that I don't overwhelm myself or my facilities.

No offense since I understand the temptation and the addiction to keep brewing but you almost seem like a home brew hoarder Resist the compulsion to brew more.

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Says the guy with 7 going, 6 tapped, and 4 planned.

"Do as I say, Not as I do"

4 batches going in your bedroom ? Dude, CO2 isn't exactly healthy for you, no wonder you had respiratory issues (and probably headaches).

Not to mention the smell.

I second the Dual stage Ranco. You can buy them pre-wired. Just plug them into the wall and plug your fridge or heater into them.

OHIOSTEVE said:

7-8-9 batches going. I put 4 swamp coolers in my bedroom ( wife is very accomodating to my hobbies)

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Very accomodating???? That's like saying the pope is a little catholic.

SHE'S A SAINT!!!!!!!!!

I'm still chuckling over the mental image I formed of the two of you lying in bed, hacking your lungs out, infected with a rare form of fungal pnuemonia, surrounded by 4 swamp coolers blowing out clouds of spores.

And let's not forget the 8 or 9 carboys bubbling away that the coroner will have to navigate through just to retrieve your bodies.

OHIOSTEVE said:

I know some of you wire up your own dual controllers but that is beyond my feeble mind to do lol..

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If you can use a screwdriver and needle nose pliers, you can rig up the Ebay Aquarium Temp Controller. I did it two nights ago! and it works great! Total cost was like $55-$60 bucks. I strongly recommend it, plus when you look at your beer fermenting, you can say "I did all of that!" (beer and temp controller).

I hear Co2 is very good for plants. Maybe you should invest in some to help scrub the Co2. Gee, I wonder what kind of plants REALLY like Co2...

The Ranco or one made by Johnson Controls. You can get a digital temp controller for $60-$70.

JJL said:

The Ranco or one made by Johnson Controls. You can get a digital temp controller for $60-$70.

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Maybe for a single stage, but I never saw anything in that price range for a dual stage. Ohiosteve said he needed heating and cooling....but ya, if you can find a 2-stage for that price, Jump on it!

But I have a full basement that stays at 64 F ish I only used the swamp cooler to carb till I got my fridge. I meant for having no garage or basement and brewing in the living areas that was excessive.

And I got ONE tapped the rest are just in the kegs waiting to be tapped $ of us kill a keg in 4 or 5 hrs of drinking easy. So I gotta have spares :cross:

GilaMinumBeer said:

Says the guy with 7 going, 6 tapped, and 4 planned.

"Do as I say, Not as I do"

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I like the drinking more than the brewing I wish you lived nearby so you could do my brewing for me

OHIOSTEVE said:

It gets drank by EVERYONE...I give away far more than I drink.. just sent a 12 pack with a friend not 5 minutes ago.. I just really like brewing.

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I use a small amount of Star-San in my cooler. Keeps everything clean and the flies that decide to drink from it don't live very long.

wigglyscuds said:

i use a small amount of star-san in my cooler. Keeps everything clean and the flies that decide to drink from it don't live very long.

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+1

I would say the smell of bleach would be very overpowering. Also I agree that is a lot of CO2 being put out in your sleeping quarters.

I once took somebody's bad advice to use potassium metabisulfite in my swamp cooler to keep the mold down. Don't do it! The thing smelled like rotten eggs and it corroded the handle on my ale pail very badly. What a mess!
Now I use a chest freezer on a Ranco controller.

brettwasbtd said:

Maybe for a single stage, but I never saw anything in that price range for a dual stage. Ohiosteve said he needed heating and cooling....but ya, if you can find a 2-stage for that price, Jump on it!

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I got this one about 6 months ago. It works both for heating and cooling, but it looks like the price went up a little. I think I paid like $59 or $69 at the time.

JJL said:

I got this one about 6 months ago. It works both for heating and cooling, but it looks like the price went up a little. I think I paid like $59 or $69 at the time.

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that won't do both at the same time however... a dual can be hooked to a heater AND the fridge simultaneously. so the heater kicks on if it drops too low then the fridge kicks on if it gets too hot.

OHIOSTEVE said:

that won't do both at the same time however... a dual can be hooked to a heater AND the fridge simultaneously. so the heater kicks on if it drops too low then the fridge kicks on if it gets too hot.

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Guess i've never had a need for it. I've never had the temp swing enough in a 24 hour period to need something like this. By the way, what type of contraption are you going to hook this to that heats and cools? Are you just going to buy a brew belt type heater and a fridge and hook them both up to the temp controller?

JJL said:

Guess i've never had a need for it. I've never had the temp swing enough in a 24 hour period to need something like this. By the way, what type of contraption are you going to hook this to that heats and cools? Are you just going to buy a brew belt type heater and a fridge and hook them both up to the temp controller?

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Ya, Brewbelt, Heating Pad, or Space Heater. People mainly need this function if their fermentation chamber is an say an unheated garage where it can get pretty cold at night. The heating option is coupled with a fridge or freezer so you can have automatic temp control any time of day/year

Homercidal said:

I hear Co2 is very good for plants. Maybe you should invest in some to help scrub the Co2. Gee, I wonder what kind of plants REALLY like Co2...

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Um


hops?