Recent content by Batona

I am asking for time. I want one day to disappear so I can gather up some shutterspots in upstate New York. In addition to Father's Day, I have a birthday and an anniversary very near. I suspect with two little ones, this will not happen, therefore, there may be a burner on the horizon. :)

Good news! I just arrived home from work and found the pale ale happily bubbling along. :) I set up a table in the basement and got the bucket off the cement. I suspect that the cooler temperatures in our basement slowed the fermentation. I will look for thermometers so I can better monitor...

This is exactly my plan. The PA I have fermenting now I do not plan to rack to secondary, but rather plan to follow Palmer's directions. I am going to repeat this recipe this weekend and rack that batch. It serves the purpose of using the double ingredients I purchased (was sold) as well as...

Basement is cool and the AC was on over the weekend. The bucket is sitting on a concrete floor. So, the cooler temp may be delaying/slowing the fermentation? That makes sense. It should all work out in the end, correct?

I do have a hydrometer, but no thermometer. Does everyone think it's okay to pop the lid and take a reading? If so, I will do that tonight when I get home. I have been hesitant to open the bucket's lid and I can see nothing in the grommeted hole when I pulled the airlock.

No thermometer. My "gut" feeling is that everything is okay, but I never saw bubbles. At worse, I suppose it's a bad batch.

I am using a fermenting bucket stored in my basement. It has been cool down there. The lid is on very securely. Is it okay to remove the lid to view the krausen?

Saturday evening I brewed my first batch. It is Palmer's Cincinnati Pale Ale. Things went well. I have checked the airlock consistently and have not seen bubbling. It's been more than three days now and I am a bit concerned. But, the level of the vodka in the chamber has risen. As a...

After investigating, I have decided to forgo kegging for the time being. With a batch of pale ale in the fermenter, I have some immediacy to getting my bottling situation settled. I did not choose to purchase a basic kit from the LHBS as I was still looking into kegging and also wanted to...

Well, I have my first batch in the fermenter and I need to come up with some solution here rather quickly. :) I am willing to put a little money forward, but the fridge is the big stumbler. I have been looking on Craiglslist. I am resigned (and contented) to bottle. I had hoped to find a way...

Thanks folks. As I thought, I will be bottling for a while yet. I appreciate the links!

I have been reading a lot about kegging systems. It looks like I will not be able to move in this direction just yet. I do recall reading in passing about a kegging system that does not require a refrigerator. Of course, now that I want to read about it, I can find no information. Will...

Thanks. That is pretty much how I approached it. Things were getting late so I just tucked it in the basement.

I just pitched the yeast and all is looking good on my first batch. Before I carry this to the basement, am I supposed to take a reading with the hydrometer? I do not have a thermometer to measure the temperature. FWIW, the LHBS told me I did not need one. I have read that the temperature...

Thanks. I have plenty of ice on hand so I think I should be all set. Thanks!