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Hey everyone! I am gearing up to make a belgian tripel recipe I found, and it called for invert sugar. Using the interwebs, I found the following recipe Table sugar: 1kg water: 2 cups lactic acid 88%: 3ml I raised it slowly to 113c, and ended up with a light coloured syrup, a little yellow...

Around the fermenter or loosely beside seems like a great idea, I'll try that. Much simpler than what I was thinking. Thanks!!

Hey everyone - my seed mat came. Question: do people tape it to the side of their ferm chamber, or, put it on the bottom with the fermenter on top? I'm switching from glass carboys to a SS bucket (4 legs), but don't want the weight to ruin the mat.

oh those o rings! I thought you meant the seal for the spigot mount. Apologies. I wonder if you can lubricate it with something.. it says to use starsan, but I'd imagine after it's fermented it'd be wet in there.

I did order the SSBT today, and I was thinking about the dip tube. Then I noted you said the two o-rings. Just to confirm, the instructions say to only use one o-ring in installation, the other is extra. check out page 2...

Thanks for the tip on the extra O rings. I agree, the anvil's use of a teflon washer seems to be meant to swivel. I was worried with the SSBT that the nut would come loose and it'd leak while I was turning it...

I do the same cleaning as you, but I always give my bottles a good soak in diversol sometime before using. I've never used a bottle brush. I do this because my bottles can collect dust, spiders, and other things along the way. Also, sometimes I get "gifted" bottles and they get mixed in. My...

Hey everyone! After noticing some weird etching on my glass carboys, then googling "are glass carboys actually dangerous", I decided to ditch them and move to SS (I'm done, decided- let's not argue about that decision here :) ). FWIW, I'm debating between the SS brewtech 7 gal brew bucket or the...

I bought a cheap one ~$30 on Amazon and regretted it. It never calibrated well. Also, probes take maintenance (keep them in solution, etc.) and you need to replace them. Ph meters are a chore and I advise you to be ready to buy a better one with replaceable probes. I also recently started using...

Thanks. I assumed the lag phase would have been fine, and thought it'd drop to temp in 1-2 hours - I was wrong. It still dropped to 12c before the main fermentation hit so I hope it'll be OK. The beer tasted fine, but certainly smelled buttery. I'm in the middle of the rest now (after a near...

Hm. Would you mind giving a little more info? I'm curious. Wyeast posts a very small information page on the strain (Munich Lager | Wyeast Laboratories), but not much else. It also suggests a "thorough diacetyl rest" which is why I made this one a little longer than I did last time. What do you...

Yeah, I'm worried about my garage in the winter - it gets fricken cold in there (down to -10c). I just ordered a 45w seed mat. If it's not enough I can add another 17w one, maybe taped to the side of the fridge...

I just may try the seed mat. I'm a little nervous of fire now, I noticed that there's some damage on the roof of my freezer (it's < 2 weeks old.. my old freezer broke). In terms of energy needed, check this out. The two bumps in fridge temp are me putting in a boiling coffee cup of water on...

Hey - would you mind telling me a little more about your setup? I'm using propane - in the garage - and it never sits well with me. I have a 220 socket about 15ft away, and have been considering induction. How fast does it take to get up to speed with 3500w? is it a brand name coil? etc.. Thanks!!

Thought I'd share this picture: --- --- yes, it's melted out. So here's the story. I used that for years but got a new fridge (old one broke), and positioning changed. Late last night, I checked my lager and decided I needed to start my diacetyl rest early, so I start cranking it up. Light...

Awesome thread! I'm interested in trying my hand at sake.. did you collect stories and tips online, or, did you have a good book to start from?

I drank the sample I took to test the gravity... so yeah, "Hell yeah". I thought the fridge would cool the wort faster than it did. Next time, I'll put both the starter and beer in the fridge and let them both fall before pitching.

Thanks!! you're right, I should have checked earlier. Another indicator I use for fermentation is to watch the temps in my beer fridge. When fermentation is vigorous, the fridge is always well below the beer. As it slows down, the fridge cools less as there is less heat generated:

Hi everyone.. Sanity check please - only my second Lager, and first in about 4 years. I'm making a lager, Wyeast #2308. Used a large (2.5L) starter for a 19L batch, decanted. Pitched at 18c, it fell to target 12c within 10 hours. Air lock was bubbling by morning, and it was a very active...

UPDATE - rotten rubber / plastic. The hose started leaking at the house end, and so I finally decided to chuck it. But first, I grabbed a carpet knife and chopped it open. The white rubber inside was breaking down like cheap / old rubber does, and I could rub it off into a white paste with my...