specialkayme
Well-Known Member
I'm looking for a little help with my "fermentation chamber" options, and figured it might be helpful for me to talk this out with the group.
Current set-up: I use a chest freezer with an inkbird as my fermentation chamber. I don't know the cubic space, but I can just squeeze two 5 gallon carboys in it. I have an old refrigerator next to it, where the top freezer stores my bulk hops, and the refrigerator portion acts as my "cold crash station" or "lagering station." I also store my yeasts in there.
Issues with current set-up:
- I don't like lagering at fridge temps. I would like to lager at 50 degrees, but I can't change the temp in the fridge to where I'd like without loosing the freezer up top. If I set my fermentation chamber to lager temps, I can't make any ales. So I can either lager at fridge temps, or lager in my chest freezer and not ferment. For 6 week vienna lagers, I may be able to make do, but for longer lagers that isn't an option.
- I also have a need for an actual chest freezer (for beekeeping and general food storage stuff). When I'm fermenting, I can't use the freezer. So I have to time my fermentations around my other freezer needs. It's easier to do when I'm timing 10 day ale fermentations. Much harder, if not impossible when I"m timing 6 week to 6 month lagers.
Possible solutions:
1. Throw my lager beers in my crawl space. Continue with the limitations I have now with alternating between fermentations and food storage, but frees up my fridge some.
Downside: My bottle neck really isn't my fridge, it's my freezer. But also my crawl space is typically cooler than my house in the summer, and above freezing in the winter time, but it isn't an ideal and consistent temp. I have no control over the temps.
2. Get two more chest freezers. One large, one small (to complement my medium one now). The small one can act as my fermentation chamber (as I'll probably only be fermenting one beer at a time), the medium one will act as my lagering station (allowing me to lager one long term beer like a Russian Imperial Stout and one short term beer like a vienna lager), and the large one as my actual freezer. In addition to my fridge which is cold crash station.
Downside: 3 freezers and a fridge is a little bit much.
3. Build a "cool-bot" small lagering room. Keep the temp at 50 degrees, and add a fermwrap on all carboys I want to ferment at ale temps. Use the chest freezer as a freezer, and the fridge as the cold crash station.
Downside: Building a "cool-bot" room in my shed isn't exactly a "cheap" option. Cheaper than some other options though, for sure. But also not really temporary. If I don't like it, I can't resell it like some of the other options. I have to rip the new walls out of the shed, throw the insulation away, and sell the window ac unit. Building it will also take some time that I may not have.
4. Slowly acquire a few conical fermenters with a glycol system. Eventually probably end up with three conicals (one for regular fermenting ales, one for regular lager beers, and one for long term lagering that I'd like to try out). Although probably start off with just one.
Downside: $$$$$$ Probably $1k for the glycol chiller and $760 for each conical (with heating and everything set up). A few thousand dollars (total) is some significant coin to drop.
I wouldn't say money is an issue. I obviously don't have unlimited funds, I can divert some bonuses/house upgrades and things to make whatever I want to do work, but I don't want to spend cash on something when a cheaper and just as effective option will work. But time is probably more of an issue than money. I'd love to build my own gycol system, but I really don't have the time to commit to it, both figuring out how to do it and physically building it (with an infant and two jobs, I'm lucky to be able to ferment a couple times a month).
So I guess I'm leaning more toward the conicals, but don't feel comfortable taking the plunge.
But what do you think? What would you do? What am I not considering?
Current set-up: I use a chest freezer with an inkbird as my fermentation chamber. I don't know the cubic space, but I can just squeeze two 5 gallon carboys in it. I have an old refrigerator next to it, where the top freezer stores my bulk hops, and the refrigerator portion acts as my "cold crash station" or "lagering station." I also store my yeasts in there.
Issues with current set-up:
- I don't like lagering at fridge temps. I would like to lager at 50 degrees, but I can't change the temp in the fridge to where I'd like without loosing the freezer up top. If I set my fermentation chamber to lager temps, I can't make any ales. So I can either lager at fridge temps, or lager in my chest freezer and not ferment. For 6 week vienna lagers, I may be able to make do, but for longer lagers that isn't an option.
- I also have a need for an actual chest freezer (for beekeeping and general food storage stuff). When I'm fermenting, I can't use the freezer. So I have to time my fermentations around my other freezer needs. It's easier to do when I'm timing 10 day ale fermentations. Much harder, if not impossible when I"m timing 6 week to 6 month lagers.
Possible solutions:
1. Throw my lager beers in my crawl space. Continue with the limitations I have now with alternating between fermentations and food storage, but frees up my fridge some.
Downside: My bottle neck really isn't my fridge, it's my freezer. But also my crawl space is typically cooler than my house in the summer, and above freezing in the winter time, but it isn't an ideal and consistent temp. I have no control over the temps.
2. Get two more chest freezers. One large, one small (to complement my medium one now). The small one can act as my fermentation chamber (as I'll probably only be fermenting one beer at a time), the medium one will act as my lagering station (allowing me to lager one long term beer like a Russian Imperial Stout and one short term beer like a vienna lager), and the large one as my actual freezer. In addition to my fridge which is cold crash station.
Downside: 3 freezers and a fridge is a little bit much.
3. Build a "cool-bot" small lagering room. Keep the temp at 50 degrees, and add a fermwrap on all carboys I want to ferment at ale temps. Use the chest freezer as a freezer, and the fridge as the cold crash station.
Downside: Building a "cool-bot" room in my shed isn't exactly a "cheap" option. Cheaper than some other options though, for sure. But also not really temporary. If I don't like it, I can't resell it like some of the other options. I have to rip the new walls out of the shed, throw the insulation away, and sell the window ac unit. Building it will also take some time that I may not have.
4. Slowly acquire a few conical fermenters with a glycol system. Eventually probably end up with three conicals (one for regular fermenting ales, one for regular lager beers, and one for long term lagering that I'd like to try out). Although probably start off with just one.
Downside: $$$$$$ Probably $1k for the glycol chiller and $760 for each conical (with heating and everything set up). A few thousand dollars (total) is some significant coin to drop.
I wouldn't say money is an issue. I obviously don't have unlimited funds, I can divert some bonuses/house upgrades and things to make whatever I want to do work, but I don't want to spend cash on something when a cheaper and just as effective option will work. But time is probably more of an issue than money. I'd love to build my own gycol system, but I really don't have the time to commit to it, both figuring out how to do it and physically building it (with an infant and two jobs, I'm lucky to be able to ferment a couple times a month).
So I guess I'm leaning more toward the conicals, but don't feel comfortable taking the plunge.
But what do you think? What would you do? What am I not considering?
