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What is the wisdom on bottling with zero headspace? I did this on my last ipa and they haven’t blown up yet :ban: Is this a terrible idea - if so, can you explain why?

My basement is sitting right around 72F, and I have no temperature control. I’m aware that all it takes is some ice in a bucket or a wet t-shirt to cool down a ferment, but there’s also something to be said for going with the flow. What would you brew at 72?

What about Breiss midnight wheat? Can anybody contrast this with carafa 3?

I hadn’t considered the heat load of condensation before. I can see how that could be substantial.

How much heat load do you estimate you are dealing with from heat leak through your insulation, and from the actual fermentation? I’ve seen estimates that active fermentation can generate 10-50W. I imagine that peltiers are the preferred solution below a certain cooling power level where there...

I’m not a chemist, but It seems to me that even dilute concentrations of impurities could matter when talking about crystallization. Couldn’t these impurities serve as nucleation sites?

Are there other compounds that come into play with respect to the crystallization (besides just the sucrose)? For example, the H2O in my ice cube tray is identical to the H2O in my glycol chiller tank, but the freezing points are rather different.

So this build has got me reconsidering.. I like the ability to reconfigure your fermenter for just the cost of some sheet insulation. Recently, I bought about 8x 1gal jugs from uline with the idea of doing splits. I’m wondering how hard it would be to build a multi chamber fermenter capable of...

I knew that one:ban:

Didn’t know that - thanks

I’ve fermented in the bottling bucket a few times, but started to feel like it was too hard to be sure I was getting the spigot clean between batches.

+1 on improved bottling concepts, particularly ones that can help to minimize oxygen exposure. Another thing that would be neat is a low cost device for dry hopping without opening the fermenter. Some folks have envisioned various schemes using strong magnets to actuate an internal mechanism...

Sui Generis recommends adding a bit of corn syrup - a few Tbsp per kg of sugar. The claim is that the glucose and dextrose help prevent crystals

Looks really good - I see that you have a lip on the lid - that ought to help with air infiltration and thus condensation. I had wondered about different ways to seal a lid. The magnetic rubber strips in fridge doors are pretty nice, but I wonder if some sort of a drape over the lid, secured by...

I wrapped a 25-30w seedling heat mat around my fermenter and secured it with a wide latex exercise band. Assuming you have a reasonable control algorithm, having a heater improves transient response and probably reduces temperature ripple compared with using only a cooler

Yup

How did it turn out? I don’t see a lot of wee heavy recipes & reviews on hbt - can you tell us more about this ?

Interesting - is your preference for AG vs LME in these two beers related to fundamental differences in those styles, or is it more due to how you originally began those recipes? E.g. by the time you’ve refined a recipe to how you like it, you probably aren’t interested in completely...

I suppose a compressor and fill valve could be scavenged from any old, defunct junker fridge? What’s the lowest coolant volume you can get away with? Presumably that’s a function of your coil size, which in this case is much smaller than a full fridge.

Could you summarize what you learned for us? I don’t have a copy of Brewing Engineering - I take it you are a fan?