LHBS screw up and my dilemma

So the LHBS forgot to include the LME for my upcoming dry stout Partial Mash.

They shipped it right out to me the next business day, but Fedex is taking its sweet time delivering the goods. This meant i'm delayed in brewing and i find myself in a bit of a dilemma.

I want to brew this before we leave town for a week for the holiday, but i also don't want to keep my house heated while we are gone. I know i need to keep the fermenter in the the 60° range, but i'm worried that if i brewed on friday and left town saturday, fermentation might stop if we set out heat to 55° and then leave.

Anyone offer any suggestions or weigh in on this? I thought about getting an aquarium heater and a water bath to keep it at the right temp, but i live in a small town and coming up with a descent pump at a descent price on short notice isn't always easy.

Would it be better to just wait and brew when i get back do you think?

is there a furnace room in the house I know mine stays a good 5-10* higher than the rest of the house. Just from the oil fired hot water

Furnace is in the attic. I could put the fermenter in the room with the hot water heater. The room seems to stay about the temp of the house (i assume since it has a vent and received hot/cold air like the rest of the house). It didn't appear to be any warmer than the rest of the house, but maybe the hot water heater (which is gas) would keep it warm enough to keep the fermentation up. Good suggestion, i might take some temp readings tonight and see how it holds heat.

Pitch at the high end of the temperature range for the yeast and pile old blankets around it. By the time the wort & the house have cooled, the fermentation should have started & that will generate enough heat to hold 60F.

Stick it in the bath tub, just in case.

If i keep the house at 55 do i really need to worry? I mean i know it's on the low end of fermentation temps, but if i wrap it in a blanket is there any danger in the set it and forget it approach?

I know fermentation might take longer and i might have to rouse the yeast when i get back, but off-flavors really only appear when the yeast is stressed at the high-end of the temp range, right?

Put the carboy in a small closet. Put a crock pot filled with water in the same closet and leave it on. Wrap blankets around the carboy and make sure the closet is insulated.

Brew the stout, pitch in the mid sixties, toss a blanket or towel around the fermenter before you leave if the house will be a bit cool...enjoy your vacation!

I say don't worry, the yeast will be working while your not.

Mike

I'd say don't worry about it, the yeast will generate its own heat, worst case it will slow or stop, once you warm it back up it will pick right back up.