New Brewer

[dbeach2003]

My name is Dennis and my brother and I are going to start brewing. Will brew the first batch in January. Going to buy a starter kit and a kit and go from there.

 

[SmokeyMcBong]

Welcome aboard

 

[TheCADJockey]

Welcome, good luck, and buy an auto-siphon when you get your kit!

 

[Melana]

Welcome aboard! This is a wonderful hobby and remember... sanitize EVERYTHING.

 

[dbeach2003]

Welcome, good luck, and buy an auto-siphon when you get your kit!

Thanks for t he info

 

[mkyl428]

Also, remember that cleaning & sanitizing are 2 different processes

Welcome to the best hobby you ever had

 

[titansvol]

Welcome.


Sent from my iPad using Home Brew

 

[dbeach2003]

Welcome, good luck, and buy an auto-siphon when you get your kit!

Thanks for t he info

 

[TheCADJockey]

You got it bud. Its a cheap addition.

 

[dbeach2003]

Is home bleach good enough for sanitizing?

 

[jschein]

Welcome. Don't do bleach get starsan it's easier

 

[Cyclman]

Welcome to the hobby, and the group, from CO

 

[dbeach2003]

Is there a correct temp to ferment at

 

[TheCADJockey]

Is there a correct temp to ferment at

I believe it depends on the yeast you use. A lot of recipes will note what temp. you should ferment at but I am pretty sure your yeast will say on the packaging. In the very least you can lookup your yeast online and find out. I'm sorry this isn't a very specific answer as I'm still learning as well.

 

[Gavin C]

Is there a correct temp to ferment at

There is a lot of different appropriate temperatures to ferment at dependent on multiple factors

1. Are you brewing an ale or a larger
2. What type of yeast is it
3. What flavor profile are you aiming for.

1.For starting out I would go with an ale (a simple amber or pale)
2.Use dry yeast for your first brew and hydrate it
3.Go to the website of the yeast you are using and find the temperature range for it
4.Ferment the beer in a part of your home as close to that temp as you can.

There are a myriad number of ways to doing this as you will find with most aspects of this hobby. Have fun and enjoy the exploration

 

[Barley_Bob]

It does depend on the yeast. The way I usually handle this is, whenever I buy a new yeast, I go straight to the manufacturer's website and look it up. They will give a recommended temperature range. I will then try to ferment on the low end of that range (or even slightly cooler). Without a dedicated fermentation chamber, that's what I would recommend. The internal temperature of the fermenter is going to raise above the ambient air temp as fermentation occurs, and you need to take that into account.

 

[brew_tq]

Welcome!

For cleaning and sanitizing, I usually use OxyClean for cleaning and then StarSan for the sanitizer.

 

[Salty-Dawg]

Is home bleach good enough for sanitizing?

Welcome to the madness,

I don't like bleach (see below)

I think that StarSan is the best way to go. You don't have to work so hard to make sure that you got all of the bleach residue out.

I don't like Idophor either because it stains your equipment.

StarSan is a great product and does not require rinsing.



You can get it at your local brew shop.

 

[dbeach2003]

thanks for all the info

 

[dbeach2003]

First batch is in the closet

 

[dbeach2003]

Looked in the closet this morning.. tem 70 degrees... and bubbling away

 

[eadavis80]

Yup - ferment on the cool range - especially in days 1-5 after pitching. I just use OxyClean for cleaning - works fine and I have had no issues - just be sure to rinse everything off plenty. I use Star San for sanitizing. I just made a 5-gallon batch and keep it in a designated bucket I got from ACE. You can reuse Star San over and over again as long as it continues to bubble when you pour it back and forth. I have been using the same 5 gallon batch since late summer without any problems.

 

[dbeach2003]

how do I know when the fermenting is done? thinking about leaving it in the fermentor for two weeks and then racking it to a Carboy for one week....

 

[madscientist451]

Eventually the bubbling in the airlock will stop, if you are in a rush you can bottle or keg it right away. Its best to get a sample and use a hydrometer to get a gravity reading. If you are using a recipe, the original and final gravity targets will be listed there. If its a little bit off its no big deal. But if its not close you have a problem that will need to be corrected.
You can also taste the sample at this point. Racking to a secondary fermenter is old-school, but I always do it.
Some people bottle or keg from the primary fermenter. Most of the brews I make seem better after some aging, so I rack the beer off the yeast and wait a few weeks or longer before bottling.

 

[dbeach2003]

does anyone bottle early right after the airlock stops bubbling?

 

[TheCADJockey]

Maybe with my first batch I did, and got lucky. Be patient. Start developing healthy practices. It is worth it in the end.

 

[Barley_Bob]

does anyone bottle early right after the airlock stops bubbling?

If you're checking all the right boxes, you can safely bottle in two weeks (depending on the style). Going by the airlock is no assurance at all, however, and you need to have faith in all of your practices to do it. Either way, there's no need to go to a secondary at all except in specific circumstances. If this is a fairly standard ale (not a monster stout or DIPA or sour, etc), just leave it in the primary. Here's what I do to have a standard ale in the bottle in two weeks:

1. Pitch a starter of healthy yeast prepared to spec using a calculator (like Mr. Malty).
2. Ferment cool for one week.
3. Raise the temp for the second week (68+).

Pretty simple. If you lack faith anywhere, however, you should let it stay in primary for at least 3 weeks and still raise the temperature towards the end. Better safe than sorry, especially starting out. Once you're confident you're doing everything else right, you can start to think more critically about your timeline. It's just not worth it to rush otherwise.

 

[dbeach2003]

thank you... will let it sit

 

[dbeach2003]

If we do our brew without it boiling will it cause a problem? Temp 230