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And now, other than some minor tweaks to the shelf setup inside the fridge to maximize bottle storage, yeast storage, and having some space for hops and yeast packets, etc. we can call the fridge done! Right now, on tap we've got a Breakfast Stout, an Irish Red and an American Ale. Three are...

I've only washed yeast once, and very recently, but that looks similar to mine after I let it sit too long. If I let it sit too long, the yeast was no longer in suspension in the beer, and made it difficult to pour off - as suggested, shake 'em up and wait 15-20 minutes. What I saved when...

Yeast washing is significantly easier than I ever expected it to be. After the layers start settling out in the main jug (and later in the jars, depending on how careful you are), pouring off the yeast in solution is really easy. The trub/debris that we don't want seemed to be much thicker and...

Our very first keg (5gal corny) through the new kegerator was a wakeup call. My brother and I kicked that very first keg in less than a week. It was disappointing but also helped us realize how quickly we can consumer the beer. I think we were just excited about having something on tap, and...

This is how I go about it. I usually wait the two weeks or so before I take my first reading, and then a few days later take another one. Sometimes though, curiosity sets in and I feel like checking more frequently. This was the main reason I bought a spray bottle and have a starsan solution...

That's how my first brew-a-long went. I was observing before diving in on my own, and they "initiated" me by having me try a hop pellet. Wasn't so fun at the time, but now when others come over to do the same, they also give it a shot. Its more fun on this side :p

I don't know what I thought was so difficult/mystical about the whole process, but I'm kicking myself for not doing this before. I washed the yeast from an Irish Red I brewed a few weeks ago, and then re-used two jars right away for a modified version of the Cream of Three Crops yesterday...

I haven't actively monitored the temperature of the beer, in my fridge. Some beers I prefer ice cold though and in some cases, between the fridge temp and the chilled glasses in the freezer, we get little ice crystals in the beer. Typically though the beer does sit in the glass for a few...

Find a local brewpub that fills cornys if you keg. My kegging kit came in a month before we were able to fill all 4 kegs, so for the interim we paid the $35-40 to have the keg filled with Michigan Brewing Company's beers. We've got 3 of the 4 in the fridge now full, one ready to keg this...

I'm pretty sure I'll be getting a non-insignificant return this year, though part of that is due to how my employer paid out bonuses. They effectively tacked on an additional paycheck one month, which bumped everyone to the next tax bracket (feds thought I was making twice as much as I was...)...

:mug:Get some buckets! I used to think carboys were the most awesome thing in the world, and even now its fun to watch things happening, but the buckets are significantly cheaper, easier to carry around, and I've never almost had a bucket slip out of my hands. I won't get rid of my carboys...

My first two brews had months/years between them, just because I was busy between work, college, and fixing a house up. That, and my first batch was... interesting. It was beer, that's for sure, but not beer I'd happily purchase. Now that I've graduated, got another house in progress but...

When I first started pricing out my fridge conversion a few months ago, I was sure I was going with pin-lock just because I could get them for $15 each at a local place, and the cheapest ball locks were $30. Duh! Except, when I got down to it, it was cheaper to buy a whole kit (kegs...

Very organized hoses in that fridge. Might have to use that as motivation to finally get my act together and route the hoses in a logical fashion. Thumbs up!

My first brew was with a smack pack, and it definitely felt more authentic, but since then I've been using dry yeast for the ease. Never made a starter for that first batch, but after some reading I probably should have. But my inner Tinker-er wants to build a stir plate, pick up some flasks...

I just kicked the first keg of this yesterday, and this was my first all grain. The first few days the beer had a very corn-like flavor to it, but it mellowed quickly and became a very nice lite-like beer. My mom, who is pretty much solely a Miller Lite drinker enjoyed it, thought she did say...

It's been long enough, eh? My brother and parents stepped up the seriousness of this fridge for Christmas and bought me four shanks with tailpieces and four faucets. That meant I had to go out and buy a 1" hole saw and some hose clamps but in the end, we're nearly done! I think we're...

Depends on how you want to do it and how long you want to wait to get everything setup. My brother and I had a garage sale this past summer, and it wasn't until early November that we got everything all set up. We hunted around for a cheap, yet decent, refrigerator on Craigslist that whole...

My brother bought me two shanks with tail pieces and faucets, and my dad got my two more faucets. I'll be purchasing the other shanks right quick and completing the conversion of the beer fridge in short order. New years bash at my place with 20 gallons of homebrew? Why yes, thank you!

A lot of these services are crap, in my opinion. Some of them allow anyone to go in and punch in their salary without any corroboration whatsoever. Others don't take into account experience (so they throw those with 1 year experience into the same bucket for averaging with those who have 15...