brewing beginner kit?

Hello everybody, first post here on the forums, been lerking here for some time and just abought ready to drop some money on some equipment. Looking for your opinion on this starter kit. Does everything in this kit seem to be of some quality? What would you upgrade in this kit if you were to purchase it? Or should I just purchase evrything seperate? Sorry for the NooB ?'s I know the search function is my friend but, hey..

Its the $99 one
http://www.undergrounddigital.com/beginners_kits.htm
Cheers Scott.

The prose is a bit overwroght (I think that most brew kits have sealed fermenters, for example and I have yet to hear of someone selling something other than sanitizer) but the basic kits appears to be perfectly adequate, with all the important pieces at a decent price. I would start with that and as time and opportunity arise, pick up additional odds and ends.

Pretty much my thoughts as well. These guys are 15minutes from my place so I wont get hit with shipping charges. I dont really care for the double handed bottler, looks like a pain to do by yourself. Other than bottles, caps, cooking equipment and cleansing products I think IM all set. What about an air vent for the second fermenting stage? Which one is generally a good one with a cap for the plastic carboy? Sorry for the questions guys, just tryin to get settled in with equipment.

Cheers, Scott.

The stopper and airlock are fine for the carboy, and that's what you should use. I'd buy an extra airlock so you can start your second batch, or if the first one gets all gunked up. Airlocks are under $1. Also, an extra grommit for the lid on the fermenter. Almost everyone pushes it through into the beer the first time- they are about 50 cents. Don't forget that you need about 50 bottles - that capper's not so bad. I use that one and it works fine. I have NO upper body strength and can easily cap a couple of batches quickly.

It looks like a good price for the things you need. You don't have your ingredients listed, though. What's your first batch going to be?

Lorena

Thanks, Lorenae, Hows this lock and stopper grab you. The one for a $1.29
http://www.undergrounddigital.com/fermentinghardware.htm

I think IM gonna try a wheat beer first, got any recipes that taste like Hacker Pschorr.

Any airlock will do- but remember that you need to get a stopper to fit. So try the stopper on and make sure it's snug. Better bottles take a big stopper- off the top of my head I think it's a #10 size but I'm not sure.

Can't help with the recipe (I'm not much into hefe's) but I'm sure others will be able to help you out.

Lorena

I would spend the extra ten bucks and get a bench capper.

I've never used better bottles, but the glass is actually cheaper! Hm...

Hefewiezens are pretty easy to make and the recipes are pretty simple. You should be able to search one up pretty easily, even on these forums. They have a light hop load (normally an ounce of Hallertau for a five gallon batch), no compelling need for steeping grains, a couple of cans of plain old wheat/malted barley extract and the right yeast.

scottmc said:

Hello everybody, first post here on the forums, been lerking here for some time and just abought ready to drop some money on some equipment. Looking for your opinion on this starter kit. Does everything in this kit seem to be of some quality? What would you upgrade in this kit if you were to purchase it? Or should I just purchase evrything seperate? Sorry for the NooB ?'s I know the search function is my friend but, hey..

Its the $99 one
http://www.undergrounddigital.com/beginners_kits.htm
Cheers Scott.

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Hello,
You still around?
Looking for a good starter kit.
Any recommendations mate.
Thanks...

For some reason I couldnt open up your link. I dont know what it consists of but if it has all the necessary stuff go for it. Depends on your budget as well . Some of the best deals for really nice equipment I've seen different places like morebeer ect.. free shipping on 60$+ orders.

As for a hefe I used white wheat and 2 row as that's what I had . .5 oz of northern brewer hops and wlp300 . 5 gallon brew. Slight banana notes with a nice mouthfeel, smooth with a touch of bready taste . Some have tasted slight clove spice on back end , but my pallet isnt the greatest lol. Good luck with your purchase and happy brewing.

Jag75 said:

For some reason I couldnt open up your link.

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Link is 13 years old..

Novacor said:

Link is 13 years old..

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Good grief .....I guess I just got cat fished lol

This is a little more current. I just checked it today, February 17th, 2019.

https://www.midwestsupplies.com/brew-share-enjoy-homebrew-starter-kit

It seems to have everything needed to get started including the 5 gallon pot and a recipe kit. The only thins I notice missing are bottles. You can save up bottles if you drink a lot of beer but watch that the bottles are pop-off top, not screw tops as some people have trouble getting those to seal properly or you can simply buy a case or 2 of empties. While it may seem wasteful to buy empty bottles they can be reused for a very long time making them a bargain.

Thank you so much for tour time.
I will order one asap.
And I don't mind buying empty bottles as long as I can fill them later...

I'm still somewhat new and started with NB's starter kit. It has basically everything you need but the bottles.
I also have an extra 5 gal bucket for sanitizing bottles, a couple extra air locks and I snagged a 5 gallon Culligan water jug from work that makes a great secondary if you want to use one.

devilssoninlaw said:

I'm still somewhat new and started with NB's starter kit. It has basically everything you need but the bottles.
I also have an extra 5 gal bucket for sanitizing bottles, a couple extra air locks and I snagged a 5 gallon Culligan water jug from work that makes a great secondary if you want to use one.

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I'd recommend not using a secondary at all unless you know when and where to use one. Many recipes or kits say to move the beer to secondary after a few days or maybe a week when that is the wrong thing to do.

I usually don't use one but when my primary buckets are full and I want to start a new batch, it certainly frees one up.

devilssoninlaw said:

I usually don't use one but when my primary buckets are full and I want to start a new batch, it certainly frees one up.

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One infected batch of beer that you dump would buy several buckets. Just saying.