Yet another newb equipment list

[Mach]

I want to try my hand at homebrewing, and I want to make sure I'm not getting equipment that I will just replace later and not get my money's worth from. I have enough spare cash to buy a huge polarware brewkettle and a full kegging setup, but I'm not sure I'll want to deal with all that or if I'll even like brewing that much. If I like the hobby I will invest in the good stuff then.

I'm planning on buying this:
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/products/ProdByID.aspx?ProdID=6874
or this:
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/products/ProdByID.aspx?ProdID=6876
and this:
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/products/ProdByID.aspx?ProdID=5883

I already have a big aluminum turkey fryer (very clean, only used once so far) and have been slowly choking down Grolsch to get the flip-top bottles (I know brown glass is better, but these are cheaper in the long run for me, I will upgrade later).

Would it be recommended to go for the glass carboys or the better bottles? I'm leaning towards glass for the peace of mind and ease of sanitation. I'm a big boy and can carry a heavy load, plus I'll probably get one of those slings for it anyway. Would it make more sense to buy the kit with two glass carboys, or just buy another one later if I need it? I assume that having two carboys just allows me to brew more often. Is this the case?

My plan is to brew a couple of batches with this equipment and see how it goes. I'm excited about homebrewing and think I'll like it, so I plan on upgrading to a polarware-type brewkettle and at least an immersion wort chiller fairly soon. Is there anything in the above kit that I'll end up replacing later anyway? I'd rather just buy the good stuff up front if there's better stuff out there. Do most people use plastic buckets or a glass carboy for a primary fermentor? I know that a secondary fermentor should be a glass carboy due to the possibly long lagering time and oxygen permeability of the plastic. I've also heard that plastic primary fermentors are easy to scratch and hard to sanitize, and it's nice to see the fermentation happening in a glass carboy, so if fermenting in a carboy is preferable I'll just buy a 6.5 gallon carboy and blowoff hose setup.

What kind of sanitizer should I get, or should I just use what comes with the equipment kit? Will I use up what they give me on one batch and have to buy more soon anyway?

So in summary:
1. Glass carboys or better bottles?
2. One or two carboys?
3. Plastic bucket primary or glass carboy primary?
4. What kind of sanitizer, and how much will I need?

Just looking for some feedback. Thanks all!

 

[rdwj]

So in summary:
1. Glass carboys or better bottles?
2. One or two carboys?
3. Plastic bucket primary or glass carboy primary?
4. What kind of sanitizer, and how much will I need?

Just looking for some feedback. Thanks all!

You're going to get a bunch of varied answers on this, but...

1 - I like glass. Keep them in milk crates and you'll be fine
2 - Two - you'll use them
3 - again, I like glass, but it's a personal preference. Also, you can watch the yeast work, which is cool
4 - I like Star San because it doesn't stain and keeps when stored properly. You can buy the smaller bottle for starters. You only use a 1/2 z or so at a time.

 

[Mach]

3 - again, I like glass, but it's a personal preference. Also, you can watch the yeast work, which is cool

So what works well for a glass primary? I'm guessing a 6.5 gallon carboy with some kind of blow-off tube setup. Do you even need a blow-off tube? Could I just get away with a big carboy and an airlock?

Are there any kits out that that comes with a glass primary? I'd rather not buy everything individually to get exactly what I want but I will if I have to.

 

[rdwj]

So what works well for a glass primary? I'm guessing a 6.5 gallon carboy with some kind of blow-off tube setup. Do you even need a blow-off tube? Could I just get away with a big carboy and an airlock?

Are there any kits out that that comes with a glass primary? I'd rather not buy everything individually to get exactly what I want but I will if I have to.

Ya, the 6.5 is going to be your primary. The 5 gal is a secondary. Most people here use a secondary on many of their beers, but it's not mandatory.

In MOST cases, just an airlock is fine. But, every once in a while you get one of those crazy fermentations and having a blow-off tube really pays off. In a pinch, you can use the bung your airlock goes in and a siphon hose.

 

[El_Borracho]

Great thread.

I think it would be cheap to go all glass, if shipping prices were not so damn ridiculous. I think I'm going to take a drive north, there is a shop like 70minutes away..think I'll call and verify prices first though..

 

[Liquidicem]

That is the one thing I don't like about the midwest starter kits. Only the keg kit comes with a glass primary. Check out www.northernbrewer.com for their kits. The prices are comparable when you start comparing them. I did quite a bit of research comparing the kits and decided to go with northern myself.

 

[Mach]

I couldn't find a kit with exactly what I wanted, so I just took a trip to the local homebrew store and bought everything individually that I think I'll need. I decided on a 6.5 gallon glass (acid) carboy for a primary and a 5 gallon glass carboy for a secondary. Everything else was just the standard fermtech bottlers, racking canes, hydrometers, bottling bucket, etc that come with pretty much all the other kits. I got a decent discount for joining the local homebrew club, which put the price of everything a little below what I would have paid online plus the shipping. So it worked out pretty good. Thanks for the tips all

I'm on my way toward brewing my first batch tonight - a german altbier (hopefully). The homebrew specialist wasn't in so I took it upon myself to pick the ingredients. I just picked some german malt, some german ale yeast, and some german hops. Here's hoping it will mix up right. Wish me luck!

 

[rdwj]

You said you got a racking cane - hopefully the LBS hooked you up with an auto-siphon. Those things make racking simple.

 

[Mach]

You said you got a racking cane - hopefully the LBS hooked you up with an auto-siphon. Those things make racking simple.

Yep, I got an auto-siphon as well. To be honest, I'm not even sure what the racking cane is for but the only transfer tubing they had came in a bag with a bottle filler and a racking cane. I'm sure I'll need the tubing for tonight, so I figured I'd just get the bag and figure it all out later. What is the real purpose of a racking cane? I assume the plastic tip is to keep you from sucking trub into your secondary/bottling bucket. Other than that, I figure a fairly long piece of transfer tubing does the same job. Is it just to make transfering easier?

 

[El_Borracho]

I found this one at midwest, and it was then suggested to me, so I'm deciding on this kit.. I would have liked a carboy for primary but whatever.. This will let me have two brews going - I think. Problem is locally is really 70minutes away and the carboys start at 30 for a 5gal with out a airlock/stopper.. Everything else was about right in price.. When I asked him for a parts list, of what I found at midwest - minus the instruction booklets and such the guy told me 200 bucks! No thanks!

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/products/ProdByID.aspx?ProdID=6874

These are the goods:

Brewing Starter Equipment Kit List: Instructional Homebrewing Video or DVD • 71 page instructional book • 5 Gallon Glass Carboy • 6.5 Gallon Plastic Fermenter with Lid 6.5 Gallon Bottling Bucket with Spigot • 8 Oz. of Easy Clean No-Rinse Cleanser • Drilled Universal Carboy Bung Airlock (Keeps air out of the fermenter) • Hydrometer (Determines alcohol content) • Bottle Brush • Carboy Brush • Twin Lever Red Baron Bottle Capper • Bottle Caps • Liquid Crystal Thermometer • Bottle Filler • Fermtech AutoSiphon upgrade • Siphon Tubing • shutoff clamp

Do I need a racking cane, or does the spigot handle that function?

 

[Hopper31]

You should be good with just the Fermtech AutoSiphon that is what I use instead of a racking cane. Also get an 8 gal or more pot if you can, I got a 5 gal and moved to AG pretty quick when I started and now the 5 gal pot is sitting in my garage (waste of $50.00).

 

[Scimmia]

I found this one at midwest, and it was then suggested to me, so I'm deciding on this kit.. I would have liked a carboy for primary but whatever.. This will let me have two brews going - I think. Problem is locally is really 70minutes away and the carboys start at 30 for a 5gal with out a airlock/stopper.. Everything else was about right in price.. When I asked him for a parts list, of what I found at midwest - minus the instruction booklets and such the guy told me 200 bucks! No thanks!

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/products/ProdByID.aspx?ProdID=6874

These are the goods:

Brewing Starter Equipment Kit List: Instructional Homebrewing Video or DVD • 71 page instructional book • 5 Gallon Glass Carboy • 6.5 Gallon Plastic Fermenter with Lid 6.5 Gallon Bottling Bucket with Spigot • 8 Oz. of Easy Clean No-Rinse Cleanser • Drilled Universal Carboy Bung Airlock (Keeps air out of the fermenter) • Hydrometer (Determines alcohol content) • Bottle Brush • Carboy Brush • Twin Lever Red Baron Bottle Capper • Bottle Caps • Liquid Crystal Thermometer • Bottle Filler • Fermtech AutoSiphon upgrade • Siphon Tubing • shutoff clamp

Do I need a racking cane, or does the spigot handle that function?

The racking cane is part of the AutoSiphon.