Lagering a Dunkel on a Winter Porch?

it's winter in Michigan, and i'd like to use the freezing weather to try a lager.

i know your supposed to lager most dunkels (at least the recipes i've seen) for 2-4 months at temps from 33-45. since i don't have a dedicated fridge to condition a fermenter, i'm going to just set the bucket on my porch and hope for the best.

impressions?

i tested my porch's temps last winter and came up with everything from 17-42. obviously much of that range is perfect, but it's the sub-zero portion of the range that has me wondering if my business is going to freeze out there, and how my yeast might feel about that.

if you've spoken with my yeast, and you know how it feels, hook me up. please and thank-you.

 

I used an enclosed porch to do it, but I live in PA and it's not that cold. It's also attached to my house so it has a bit of radiant heat.

So it can be done, with good success. But you may have a hard time fermenting so cold, which just takes a little longer, with no ill effects. Freezing might not be so good.

 

If your lager freezes and thaws even once it will impair/kill your yeast and you will not get proper attenuation to complete the lagering cycle.

Sorry, but I wouldn't recommend putting your beer out on the porch to lager. It won't ruin it but it would defeat the purpose of the process.

 

I live in MI and there is no way I would do that outside with no wind protection. Do you have a garage, you could try it in there instead. If wind hits that, it could get below zero temps hitting it.

Is this an enclosed porch? If so, maybe you could hook up a temp controller to a small heater to go off when temps drop below a certain temp.

 

yeah, it's an enclosed porch, but like i said it gets wicked cold, sub-freezing, even during the day. (it's north-facing.) i doubt a space heater would do much given the size of the porch.

i was going to bring it inside during the night, thinking that the lager yeast would take longer to warm up too much, given its 5G volume, but maybe this is foolish.

how'd the ancients Teutons do this in the dead of winter? dig a hole in the dirt beneath the frost line and let it hang out there?

indeed, go spartans. that ensuing riot saturday looked like a blast.

 

No basement? I did my first lager in am Iowa basement. Fermented at 48, racked into a keg and lagered at 48 for a month, came out very well even tho it wasn't a "true" lagering temp

 

Couldn't you use something like this:

http://morebeer.com/products/fermwrap-heater.html

Add a temp controller:

http://morebeer.com/products/fermwrap-heater.html

If needed, throw in a plastic garbage can to block wind. Wouldn't this work? The temp differential listed for the Fermwrap heater pad is 20F, so if you are getting down to 17, this should work. Much lower than this and you might risk freezing, but extra insulation (e.g. some blankets or sleeping bags) would help.

 

You could also try buying a heating belt, I don't think those cost too much. Would help if you had a temp controller too though.

My Spartans are idiots when they celebrate Whether they win or lose, they still flip over cars and start fires

 

Check out your local craigslist for a cheap fridge or chest freezers and grab a temp controller and never look back. I got my fridge and controller for under 100. My controller does hot and cold control and the fridge will hold 3-4, 6 gal carboys if I squeeze them in. It's nice just leaving whatever in there and know it's at the temp I want and ill check it or in a few weeks

 

i think that's what i'll eventually do. ultimately i'm more interested in a consistent, controlled response and there's nothing to replace a fridge. though i like having an excuse to buy electric blankets for my carboys, the pioneer ethos of using a cellar and a porch to get things done.

do you use the fermentation/conditions paradigm listed at the wyeast site (3 temperature stages for primary, secondary and conditioning)?

 

Not quite sure what you are planning to do on the porch.

Do you want to ferment on the porch, or just lager?

If you plan to ferment, those temperature swings (nevermind sub-zero) will beat the crap out of your yeast. I would recommend a basement for fermentation.

If you want to lager outside, I don't see a problem. If temps do dip into the sub-zero range, take a sanitized slotted spoon and scoop the ice out - make an ice beer!

Alternatively, if you can't get into the 50F range, try using California Common yeast. Its a lager that can ferment in a slightly warmer range without producing esters.

 

I was going to lager in my garage but it quickly got into the 20's in the garage and -4 outside right now. My jug of starsan froze in the garage so I'll need to lager the best I can in my kegerator. It will only be around 39F but its the best I can do right now.

Yes, I do try to primary ferment within the range that wyeast lists. I don't care about secondary. Who secondary's anyway? And then when cold crashing, I just want the yeast to settle to the bottom.

 

No offense, but that's horrible advice. I hope you were being sarcastic.

 

Ill usually do something in the 50s for primary, cold crash and rack to secindary, then keg. I use same temps for secondary and force carbing, around 32ish

 

Have you thought about a swamp cooler? Don't even need to buy ice if you have snow and ice cycles outside for free! 39 is prolly to low for even lager yeast, they will most likely go dormant unless you have a very low temp strain.

 

Why is that horrible advice?

 

Oh you could do it with a swamp cooler in the cold too if you get fish tank heaters and maybe a pump to move it around so you don't have hot/cold spots. If your heating you should get a pretty consistent temps