Just bought a Cooper's Mikro Browar 1.

[framedlink]

Hey guys. This will be my first time brewing a beer, brewing anything in fact, but before I do I decided to check with the experts here to make sure I don't do anything stupid.
Now I also do some reading myself here: http://howtobrew.com/
And I am familiar a little bit with the process of brewing from this website. But I still have giant holes in my knowledge about brewing.

So here are the problems I'm having right now:
​

1. Equipment​

As I said, I bought 'Cooper's Mikro Browar 1' to brew 20L or 23(It says 23)L of beer and here is the equipment that was included.
-Fermentation bucket 30L
-Airlock
-Hydrometer
-Tap for the fermentation bucket
-Sugar measuring cup
-Bottle caps 100
-Bottle capper
-Beer bottle brush
-Large stirring spoon
And it also comes with:
-Coopers DIY Beer Lager Brewing Extract

Here is the picture of the kit:
https://www.neoshop.lv/starta-komplekts-mikro-browar-1.html
And just in case an amazon link for the extract:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001D6KP14/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

And I also bought a:
-20L Stainless steel pot

So I'm thinking I will also need:
1. A syphon and a bottle filler.
2. A thermometer for the pot.
3. A measuring cup. (What kind is the most useful for beer brewing?)
4. A jar just in case
5. And a tablespoon.
So is there anything I'm still missing?
​

2. Cleaning and sanitizing equipment​

I don't have anything for cleaning and sanitizing yet.​

As I understand I need a cleaning agent, and a sanitizing agent.​

Currently I'm thinking:​

1. Chlorine bleach for cleaning​

2. Star San for sanitizing. It looks pretty expensive for 473ml bottle but as I understand I will need just 30ml for 20 litters so that's 15 uses right?​

3. Some sponges...​

Is that ok?​

​

3. Ingredients and a recipe​

Here I have no idea. I don't have a lot of time or money so I really don't want to end up with 20L of urine...​

I haven't yet looked at the recipe for the lager but I probably wouldn't trust it anyway so I'm hoping for people here to guide me.​

​

Now I only have the 'Coopers DIY Beer Lager Brewing Extract' but the can recommends I get 'Coopers brew enhancer 2' and 'Coopers carbonation drops' should I listed or add something different?​

What about the boiling stage​

should I even boil?​

should I add hops?​

​

Where should I put the fermenter, they say lagers should ferment longer and in the cold temp...​

Like I said, I'm lost here for now.​

Anyway I think this is it for now, sorry for the long post but better safe then sorry.​

 

[IslandLizard]

Hi, @framedlink, welcome to HBT!
I recommend reading around a bit here especially the stickies in the Beginners Forum.

Your post is very detailed, thank you, it really helps answering many of your questions.

I you don't mind me asking, what country are you in? What are your brewing resources there? Are there any (local) homebrew shops around, where you can buy ingredients? EU23 for a can of malt extract (LME) sounds really expensive. Here's something similar for EU10 for example. When I brewed with extracts I paid around $4 per pound of LME, freshly poured from a 20-30 gallon barrel.

It's very good that you're reading Palmer's How to Brew to get a better understanding of the basics of homebrewing. Mind, the online version is almost ancient. His fourth edition book came out 2 years ago, with many updates and modernizations. The basic science of brewing is still the same, though.

Most beers brewed from extract are best when using only malt extract, 100% maltose ("malt sugar"), and none or only a small amount (say 10-20%) of "regular" sugar. Regular sugars such as sucrose and dextrose, only increase alcohol, but leave no or very little flavor, basically thinning out your beer. Malt sugar (maltose) however, leaves lots of "malt" flavor. It's made from (mostly) Barley.

What's called "Brew Enhancer" is mostly sugar (dextrose which is another word for glucose). You can use whatever white sugar you have in the kitchen, it's sucrose, the same sugar you put in your coffee or bake cookies with. The yeast won't know the difference. Don't use brown sugar. But again, better tasting beer is made using 100% maltose, not regular sugar, so you may want not want to add any sugar to your brewing wort, or only a small percentage.

Cans of malt extract are the easiest way to brew, but you have to make sure they are fresh (check expiration date) and were always stored cool, which is the bigger unknown question. Old extracts get a weird flavor. If you have a local homebrew store they may sell cans of extract too, possibly different brands. There is also dry malt extract (DME powder), which can be stored much longer and remains much fresher over time in heat sealed bags.

The can you have contains "hopped" extract. Those are perhaps OK to get started with, as they're simple to use, but better beer is brewed by boiling real hops in the wort. With hopped extracts, key is, do not boil or even heat the wort made with hopped extracts above 30°C, it will kill their flavor! Use merely luke warm water (~30°C) to dissolve it. But much better hop flavors can be had by using actual hops and unhopped extracts in the boil. Pay good attention to sanitation here, as you will not boil this, so any bacteria that drop into your wort can cause the beer to spoil (turn sour and worse).

Some gravity calculations:
1.7 kilo = 3.75 pounds. At 36 points per pound, that can will give you 3.75 * 36 = 135 points. When added to 5 gallons (~21 liter) of water, that yields 135/5 = 27 points per gallon, which will give you a gravity of 1.027. That would make for a very small (light) beer. 1.040-1.050 is much more common, but plenty of exceptions noted.
By adding 2.2 pounds (1 kilo) of common household sugar (sucrose), you add 46 points per pound, so that's 2.2 * 46 = 101 points. In 5 gallons that would equate to an additional 101/5 = 20 points per gallon. So your beer will have a gravity of 1.027+1.020 = 1.047. Much more respectable!

For reference, that's why many of these kind of brews are referred to as "kit and kilo."

 

[IslandLizard]

2. Cleaning and sanitizing equipment
I don't have anything for cleaning and sanitizing yet.
As I understand I need a cleaning agent, and a sanitizing agent.
Currently I'm thinking:
1. Chlorine bleach for cleaning
2. Star San for sanitizing. It looks pretty expensive for 473ml bottle but as I understand I will need just 30ml for 20 litters so that's 15 uses right?
3. Some sponges...Is that ok?​

Unless you need to kill molds or bacterial infections from your equipment, stay away from using chlorine on brewery equipment in general. Any trace of it that gets into your beer will ruin it. Besides, chlorine is NOT a cleaner, you need something alkaline.

Although PBW has the name, Washing Soda (Sodium Carbonate), also known as "Soda," is a very good cleanser too, at a fraction of PBW's price, and safe for brewing and brewing equipment. Chances are your grandmother used it back in the days in her laundry. You can add some TSP to that for some extra oomph. Many regular household soaps contain agents (surfactants) that can kill the head (foam) on your beer, so avoid using them on your brewing equipment. But they're great for countertops, sinks, walls, floors, etc.

You cannot sanitize something unless it's already clean. So clean ==> rinse well ==> sanitize.

Although relatively expensive, Starsan is a wonderful sanitizer.
If you prepare your working solution with RO (Reverse Osmosis) or distilled water it will remain clear forever. Regular water, depending on its hardness, may turn it cloudy. It still seems to works fine when cloudy, I never had any issues there.
You can keep a working solution in a bucket for months. Instead of preparing a whole bucket, you can fill just a spray bottle with it, easy to use and very economical. Maybe have a small 2-3 liter container with it too to dunk/submerge small items in such as stoppers, lids, airlocks, etc.
Use 6 ml of the concentrate per US gallon (~3.8 liter). Use a (small) 10 ml syringe (or small graduated cylinder) to measure it out.

A good alternative is an Iodine based sanitizer such as Iodophor, but for ease of use and longevity, it's hard to beat Starsan. A 32 oz bottle of Starsan lasted me 8 years, and I brewed and used it a lot. Still do.

I'm not a fan of sponges, synthetic or not. I feel because they stay wet or damp for long times, they get loaded with bacteria, and many cannot be boiled without falling apart. I use (stiff) nylon, non-scratching brushes in various shapes and forms to clean crud off equipment with help of washing soda or homemade PBW.

I use small washcloths to mop around with Starsan, like the insides of (brew) buckets. The power is in the foam it creates. As long as the surface remains wet with Starsan (or its foam) it remains sanitized. Now that's some peace of mind!

 

[framedlink]

Oh man. Thanks for the detailed response!

I live in Latvia.
My brewing resources here are:
https://www.neoshop.lv/atputai-un-hobijam/dzerienu-pagatavosana/alus-daritava
http://www.akciza.net/lv/7-alus-sidra-darisana
http://tavsalus.lv/8-15-pivovarenie
http://bruvepats.lv/bruvesana/
I believe that's it.

I was also trying to find a good shop outside of my country but the shipping cost usually makes it pointless.
The shop you linked gives me the shipping cost of 16.95.

I will update my reading material...

Regarding what you said about sugar and gravity.
So instead of adding just sugar should I maybe use, lets say, another can of malt extract, OR, add a different can of malt extract?
What about just adding extra 500g or 1kg of DME?(You don't need to boil to mix the dry malt extract right?) I presume the things will improve the gravity as well as the beer.
But what about when bottling, should I not add sugar for carbonation?

The Coopers LME expiration date says it's good till 2019.

Ok so no boiling.

When you made your gravity calculation where did you get 36, 46 numbers?
And dose 1.027 mean per 1 gallon?

So for cleaning washing soda and star san.
Nylon brushes(non scratching) and some washing cloths.

 

[RM-MN]

Oh man. Thanks for the detailed response!

I live in Latvia.
My brewing resources here are:
https://www.neoshop.lv/atputai-un-hobijam/dzerienu-pagatavosana/alus-daritava
http://www.akciza.net/lv/7-alus-sidra-darisana
http://tavsalus.lv/8-15-pivovarenie
http://bruvepats.lv/bruvesana/
I believe that's it.

I was also trying to find a good shop outside of my country but the shipping cost usually makes it pointless.
The shop you linked gives me the shipping cost of 16.95.

I will update my reading material...

Regarding what you said about sugar and gravity.
So instead of adding just sugar should I maybe use, lets say, another can of malt extract, OR, add a different can of malt extract?
What about just adding extra 500g or 1kg of DME?(You don't need to boil to mix the dry malt extract right?) I presume the things will improve the gravity as well as the beer.
But what about when bottling, should I not add sugar for carbonation?

The Coopers LME expiration date says it's good till 2019.

Ok so no boiling.

When you made your gravity calculation where did you get 36, 46 numbers?
And dose 1.027 mean per 1 gallon?

So for cleaning washing soda and star san.
Nylon brushes(non scratching) and some washing cloths.

Either liquid malt extract or dry malt extract will be better than plain sugar as it will have flavors the sugar is lacking and will also have unfermentable sugars that improve the taste and mouth feel of the beer. If you want to add a full can or jug of malt extract that works well and is usually a little cheaper but dry malt extract is easier to measure small quantities and it stores better than liquid malt extract after it has been opened (except that it clumps up in time).

When bottling sugar is usually used as it carbonates quickly and there is so little quantity of sugar used it doesn't really affect the taste of the beer.

The 1.027 is the specific gravity of the solution and it doesn't matter if it is a thimble full or thousands of gallons.

 

[IslandLizard]

I checked out your supplier links. If you can get any of those ingredients, you're all set for brewing.

A few thoughts on general brewing process preferences:

• Beer is made from 4 (main) ingredients:
  1. water
  2. malt
  3. hops
  4. yeast
• Make sure they are all good!
  
• Use good sanitation practices. Your beer will be better because of it.
• Do NOT use a secondary fermentor

1. Water:

Make sure your water is fresh and good. If you can drink it as is, it's probably OK for brewing. When in doubt, heat to pasteurization temps (71°C) or boil for a minute. Then start your brewing process or let cool off first if needed.

Unwanted elements in water:

• Iron and manganese
• Poisons
• Lead and other heavy metals
• Chlorine or chloramines. Often added by your water company to keep it better sanitized on its way to the customer (you).
• Salt in tasteable amounts (often from water softeners)
• Off flavors and off aromas. If your water smells or tastes weird, it's probably not suitable for brewing.

2. Malt:

• Use unhopped extracts over hopped extracts.
• Malt (malted grain) is the origin of beer (wort).
  • Liquid malt extract (LME) is condensed wort.
  • Dry malt extract (DME) is dried condensed wort, and much more stable (remains fresher) than LME in well (heat) sealed plastic bags.
  • Use of steeping grains with extracts lets you create many more kinds of beers. Not every flavor comes from a can or bag.
• Malts (grain) tend to cost less than extracts.
  • But brewing from grain takes more time and effort as they need to be mashed.
  • Malt extracts are processed wort and thus more expensive, but more convenient.
• You can brew equally good beer from either grain or extracts.
• You can brew more kinds (styles) of beer from grain than extracts.
• Some beer cannot be brewed from extracts.
• All-malt beers taste better than beer that had large amounts of sugar added (for fermentation).

3. Hops:

• Again, Use unhopped extracts over hopped extracts!
• Add bittering hops for bittering (early in boil) and flavor/aroma hops late in boil. Or even "steep" some hops for 20-30 minutes after the wort has cooled somewhat, to say around 80-70°C ("hop stand").
• Very hoppy beers are typically dry hopped. Hops are added to the fermentor after fermentation has (about) finished.

4. Yeast:

• I would not use the yeast that comes with a can of malt extract.
  • It's some cheap generic that is probably old and was stored under unfavorable conditions (warm).
  • Dry yeast should be stored in a fridge or freezer.
• Buy a package of (dry) Safale US-05 (US Chico strain) yeast for hoppy beers, or S-04 (British Whitbread) for maltier ones. If you want to brew lagers use W-34/70 or S-23. Those are a good solid start. There are many others you can use, read about them here on HBT or elsewhere.
  • If your sanitation practices are good, you can harvest the yeast from the bottom of your fermenter after fermentation is over, and pitch some of the slurry in a next batch. And so on.
  • Store the saved yeast slurries in lidded mason jars in the fridge (2-10°C), not in the freezer.

General guidelines:

• Use fresher ingredients over potentially old ones. An expiration date (e.g., on cans with extract) means little if you don't know how it was stored before. It may have been sitting in a hot warehouse somewhere for a year.
  
• If money is tight, look for cheaper sources of ingredients. Often enough the "main brand" is much pricier than lesser known ones, while quality may be the same or even better on the off brand. I think EU20+ for a 1.7 kg can of malt extract is surely pushing it. That won't even get you 5 gallons of good beer. You'd need 2 cans.
  
• Temperature control during fermentation is essential. Each yeast has a preferred temp range, try to stay within that range until fermentation slows well down, after a few days to a week (sometimes longer).
• Do a lot of reading and research. Inform yourself.
• Join a homebrew club if there's one in your area. Or brew with a beer loving friend. 2 know more than one.
• Good luck, and enjoy your brewing adventure!
• RDWHAHB (look it up)

 

[framedlink]

Sorry for such a long silence, but I still feel unsure on how to proceed with the wort making...
So now my ingredients are:
Coopers DIY Beer Lager Brewing Extract - 1,7 kg
Light Dry Malt Extract - 1 kg

Because the liquid malt extracted is hopped I should not boil it, so I will simply pour a clean, room temperature, distilled water (about 2 - 3 gallons) into the fermenter then mix in the LME.

But should I boil dry malt extract because I don't think it contains any hops? if so, how long, and should I also add hops to the DME?

 

[IslandLizard]

Sorry for such a long silence, but I still feel unsure on how to proceed with the wort making...
So now my ingredients are:
Coopers DIY Beer Lager Brewing Extract - 1,7 kg
Light Dry Malt Extract - 1 kg

Because the liquid malt extracted is hopped I should not boil it, so I will simply pour a clean, room temperature, distilled water (about 2 - 3 gallons) into the fermenter then mix in the LME.

But should I boil dry malt extract because I don't think it contains any hops? if so, how long, and should I also add hops to the DME?

First off:
If you haven't done so, please read: How to Brew at least till the end of Section 1 (Brewing with Malt Extract).

Do you have any loose hops you intend to use in this brew? If so, which?
DME should be boiled or at least pasteurized when dissolved (160-170F for 10').
If you want more bittering from the extra hops they should be boiled (or steeped above 170-180F) for some time (10-60') in the wort.
If you want more hop flavor and aroma from the extra hops those should be steeped around 150-170F for some time (10-30') in the wort.

Here's a plan:

• Warm the can with hopped LME up by putting it in a separate pot or container with some warm water. Try to keep it around 120F, but don't exceed it!
  
• Meanwhile, heat 2-3 gallons of your distilled water to around 180F in your large pot, turn heat off.
• Add your 1 kg of DME to that hot water and stir until it's all dissolved.
• If you have extra hops and want to get somewhat more bitterness (plus flavor/aroma) steep 1-2 oz of them in that wort, do either but not both:
  • At 170F for 15-30', for more bitterness and less aroma. Stir every 3-5 minutes.
  • At 150F for 30', for less bitterness and more aroma. Stir every 3-5 minutes.
• Chill that wort down to around 120F.
  • Please mind: You need to keep adequate sanitation once the wort temp drops below 140-150F. So only clean and sanitized equipment should come in contact with your wort from here on.
• Now add the content of the can containing your hopped LME:
  • Sanitize the outside of the (now warm) can well, especially the lid area. Open the can and pour the content into the pot with 120F wort.
  • Stir well to completely dissolve.
  • Make sure to rinse the syrup clinging to the inside of the can by ladling in some of the warm wort, and stir (with a sanitized spoon) until it's all dissolved, then add that to your pot as well. These are your sugars, you don't want to waste them.
  • Again, keep good sanitation during this part of the process.
  • Cover your pot by putting a clean, sanitized lid on it. It should have chilled down to around 100-110F by now.
• Sanitize your fermenter.
• Depending on what kind of fermentor you use:
  • If a glass fermentor, chill the wort in the kettle down to 70-80F, and pour into your fermenter.
  • If plastic fermenter (bucket, plastic carboy, etc.) pour the 100-110F wort from the kettle into your fermenter.
• Add cool/cold top up water to the volume you want.
• Stir well.
• Make sure temperature is in the correct range for the yeast you're using.
• Pitch yeast.
• Add airlock.
• Put in cool dark place that's suitable to stay within your yeast's fermentation range.

There are a few more details that should be addressed before proceeding...

 

[framedlink]

Thanks allot man. Your detailed replies are really helpful.
I wanted to get through the entire book before I start but I didn't have the time, being a student an' all.
I am thinking about buying extra hops and adding some for flavor.

Also about the yeast, lets say this yeast that came with the LME fails, can I lets say add a different one later?

 

[RM-MN]

Thanks allot man. Your detailed replies are really helpful.
I wanted to get through the entire book before I start but I didn't have the time, being a student an' all.
I am thinking about buying extra hops and adding some for flavor.

Also about the yeast, lets say this yeast that came with the LME fails, can I lets say add a different one later?

Dry yeast is very hardy and isn't likely to fail but if you don't have fermentation after 72 hours, you can use any yeast you like. It may not give you the same flavor so you might want to ask before choosing the yeast.

Quick ways to tell if your beer fermented are to look for a ring of gunk (krausen) above the level of the beer or to use a hydrometer. Bubbles or the lack thereof do not indicate fermentation for sure.

 

[IslandLizard]

You don't have to go through the entire book right now, only the first section which is on homebrew basics (sanitation, etc.) and extract brewing.

What yeast came with the can? How old do you think it is? Right!
If you get some hops, also get a fresh package of yeast, just in case.

Since this is meant to be a "lager," a lager yeast would be appropriate such as Safale/Fermentis W-34/70 or S-23. But they take longer, and can you keep your fermenting beer cool like around 55F for a couple weeks? Then even colder at around 35F (2-4°C) for another 2-4 weeks?
If not, use an ale yeast like US-05.

Some Saaz hops would be good, but there are many others that could work just as well. Get 2 oz for this brew.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

What Islandlizard said. I would add that in using extract use distilled water because the extract should have the proper mineral content for the style.

 

[kh54s10]

Assuming this is a kit... My guess is that although called a lager, the kit is really an ale. A lot of the lager kits come with ale yeast.

If it is a kit there should be instructions. Kit instructions are notorious for skimming over certain details like gravity taking and fermentation temperature, but if followed you will get beer.

If separate ingredients. The chapter in how to brew and the advice from IslandLizard should be enough to get you through the first brew.

Go for it, you will learn a lot and it will bring up a lot more questions. But it will also educate you so you are asking more informed questions and you should get a better understanding of what the answers mean.

 

[IslandLizard]

I would add that in using extract use distilled water because the extract should have the proper mineral content for the style.

Totally!
As long as the OP can easily buy distilled or RO water at a decent price in his country.

I'm quite sure times have changed in Europe too, where distilled water used to be sold only through pharmacies (sometimes by drugstores) in 1/2 liter glass bottles. Good old 60s and 70s...

 

[kh54s10]

I do all my brewing with tap water. When in RI where my town water was very good I didn't even use Campden Tablets. I did my first beer ever using distilled on my last finished beer. Batch #102. It made no difference in the beer.

That said, I think my town water was exceptional. My beers have not been quite as good since moving.

 

[IslandLizard]

My beers have not been quite as good since moving.

Using local tap water there? As you know, that could make a lot of difference.

 

[MaaZeus]

Contrary to what was said above, there is absolutely nothing wrong with Coopers ale yeast that comes with the can. It is a good, neutral ale yeast that is also pretty forgiving as far as temperatures go. Considering Coopers originates from Australia that makes sense because the country is not exactly known for its cool temperatures. However if the yeast is old and dead that is a different story. Its very rare that dry yeast gets completely dead but it can happen and consider yourself quite unlucky if it happens. There are better yeasts, sure but if this is your first brew, I say KISS. Keep It Simple Stupid or Keep It Stupid Simple. Use the can, use the brew enhancer and the yeast. If your hygiene, sanitation and fermenting temperatures are okay, you will end up with decent beer in a month, something thats IMHO much better than a typical cheap bulk Lager. Get your basics right and consistent first and then look into modding your brews with hops, malt extracts and so on. Learn to walk first before running.

 

[kh54s10]

Using local tap water there? As you know, that could make a lot of difference.

I'm sure that my water has something to do with it, but during the move I stopped brewing for almost a year. Most of my ingredients were bought before that so a lot of it is getting quite old. Some of my malts and hops are several years old. I expect it is the combination of these factors.

But then again the one brew that I made with distilled water and adjustments was not better than the ones from tap water.

 

[IslandLizard]

I'm sure that my water has something to do with it, but during the move I stopped brewing for almost a year. Most of my ingredients were bought before that so a lot of it is getting quite old. Some of my malts and hops are several years old. I expect it is the combination of these factors.

But then again the one brew that I made with distilled water and adjustments was not better than the ones from tap water.

Could well be the ingredients. Do a batch with fresh ones and see if it improves.

If your hops were stored frozen in well sealed bags, they should not deteriorate. I have a few left that are 7 years old (2012 harvest, from HopsDirect) and make great beer. Even when 5% aging applied (in total) seems too much.
Same for grain, stored cool and dry. You can taste some raw grain and easily detect off flavors.

 

[kh54s10]

Could well be the ingredients. Do a batch with fresh ones and see if it improves.

If your hops were stored frozen in well sealed bags, they should not deteriorate. I have a few left that are 7 years old (2012 harvest, from HopsDirect) and make great beer. Even when 5% aging applied (in total) seems too much.
Same for grain, stored cool and dry. You can taste some raw grain and easily detect off flavors.

Hops have been frozen. Grains are dry but in a hot garage. The grains are firm and taste as I think they should.

The difference in the beers from my old place to new is small but noticeable. The latest one had quite a bit of new grain, maybe that will tell me if it is the grains.

I have enough hops for more than a year so I will not be able to see the difference there for quite some time, unless I buy fresh just to see.

 

[framedlink]

It is 2 am, I'm exhausted but finally done, at least with the 'making wort' part of the process. Currently the wort is in fermentation bucket awaiting the yeast.

So this wasn't without flaws and mishaps but I'll describe what happened from the beginning.

First, because I wanted to get this done first, I cleaned my equipment and I cleaned everything, the pan, thermometer,..., everything. But here is the thing:
I used this: https://nuko.lv/astonish-traipu-tiritajs-350g.html
I'm pretty sure now that that is the wrong thing to use, so after I cleaned, I spent like an 1,5h of rinsing everything.

Next thing was sanitizing, here I think I did everything right, I sanitized everything with starsan, I used 6ml with 3.8 L of water. I left the solution in the fermenter until I needed it. Didn't rinse the foam.

Then came the part where I needed to warm the water for the LME, I changed the plan here also. I thought that it would be better to heat the water to the boiling point and then while I do the other stuff it will cool and I will place the LME later...
Turns out I underestimated the ability of water to keep it's temperature so I had to add cold water to the extra pot to reach the needed temp., and placed the LME for couple of minutes...pretty sure it didn't make the LME flow better...

While the previous step was happening, I was dealing with the DME.
I poured 10L of distilled water into the pot and started heating it until it reached the needed temp. then I poured the DME.
note1: DME is very, very sticky...should not cover the entire spoon and hands with the stuff...
note2: DME smells amazing.
I stirred until I it dissolved, then cooled it. Now here is where I made another mistake, I think I might have added the LME to 10 - 15 C* hotter wort then needed...hopefully that wont damage things too much... After I've done that I poured 5L of extra distilled water in the pot to cool it faster.

After the wort cooled, I poured it in the fermenter and added the rest of the water, and stirred and I guess that's it...

So I poured 4 5L containers of water and 2L bottle water but it added up to almost 24 Liters...

I think that is all, I'll add stuff if I remember anything else.

 

[kh54s10]

The only problem at all that I see is the 24 liters. Was the kit asking for 21 liters as most that I have seen. If so you beer is a bit diluted. No real problem there either.

You can boil, both the LME and DME. In fact if you are adding hops that is the normal procedure.

The Oxy cleaner is perfect as long as it has no perfumes. It also rinses very easily so it should have taken no more than 10 minutes at most.

 

[IslandLizard]

I think you did very well. Don't forget to pitch the yeast!
And put an airlock on your fermenter.

It takes a few times to iron out all the small wrinkles. Keep notes on your process and see where you missed things or could improve next time. Ending up with 24 liters will get you somewhat thinner, weaker beer. You can add some sugar to the fermenter once the yeast has established herself to "boost" the alcohol.

So you've got 3.3# of LME (36 ppg) and 2.2# of DME (44 ppg) in a 24 liter (6.3 gallon) batch.
((3.3 * 36) + (2.2 * 44)) / 6.3 ==> gravity of 1.034.
With 21 liters it would have been 1.039.

Adding 1/2 a kilo of sugar (46 ppg) will bring your batch to 1.042.

That Starsan working solution can be kept in a separate container for next use, such as when sanitizing your bottles. And possibly you next brew. It doesn't go bad and remains active as long as the pH remains under 3.4. If you keep it clean (some cloudiness is normal and fine) there's no reason it should rise above 3.0. Some cheap multi range pH paper on a roll can verify that. Frankly I've never had mine rise above 3.0 even after 3 months of use. I just make fresh from time to time when the solution becomes grayish and grimey. a 32 oz bottle of Starsan lasted me over 8 years.

You can boil, both the LME and DME.

Normally, yes. But in this case the OP used hopped LME, so it should not be heated much above 120F (140F is still fine, just not too long).

 

[MaaZeus]

A little hint on using Starsan, get yourself an empty spraybottle and put some Starsan mix in it. It makes sanitizing your equipment and working surfaces a breeze! This is good for sanitizing your bottles too when you get into that part.

 

[kh54s10]

Normally, yes. But in this case the OP used hopped LME, so it should not be heated much above 120F (140F is still fine, just not too long).

I didn't think about hopped LME. I have never used it. It too can be boiled without ruining the beer, though it would lessen the hop presence, maybe significantly.

To me pre-hopped kits are too much like making a pitcher of Tang.

 

[IslandLizard]

I didn't think about hopped LME. I have never used it. It too can be boiled without ruining the beer, though it would lessen the hop presence, maybe significantly.

To me pre-hopped kits are too much like making a pitcher of Tang.

When heating hopped extracts hop flavor and aroma reduces fast, while above 140-150F bitterness increases as alpha acid isomerization resumes. Not that there is a lot of hop presence to start with already. A lot of hop flavor and aroma is lost during the condensation process which, again exposed the wort to heat.

I certainly would not pay premium for hopped extracts. It's really not that difficult or all that time consuming to do a partial boil with real hops and add some late hops and/or a hop stand to get much better and fresher hop flavor and aroma. That's real brewing, dissolving instant products not so much, although either will make beer. This does require having an adequate sized pot, while the instant products can be dissolved in any vessel (Mr. Beer and Cooper come to mind).

More information for the OP to consider:
Because of a wide variety of canned extracts many kits use cans of LME as their main base, with the balance in DME to achieve the target gravity where an additional full can would have overshot it. I guess that's the easiest way to offer many different styles.

Especially with the much larger offerings of dry malt extracts now, I feel the better kits use all DME (better age stability), include vacuum packed or Nitrogen flushed hops (freshly added) from their refrigerator, and a pouch of good fresh dry yeast (buyers' choice) that was also stored chilled up to the moment of packaging the kit for shipping. That's what many local homebrew shops (LHBS) do when offering their own recipe kits here in the U.S. probably elsewhere too. They are not pre-boxed in fancy colorful packaging sitting on a shelf forever waiting to be bought.

Including steeping grains takes any of those kits up another notch or 2, but sometimes they include grains (e.g., flaked wheat, Biscuit Malt, etc.) that can't (and shouldn't) be steeped, but ought to be mashed (e.g., mini mash).

Some shops supply fresh LME (poured from very fresh bulk) when selling kits, so they need to be brewed rather sooner than later. I'd say no later than 2-3 weeks after pouring the extract.