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  1. R

    All grain tools

    In order of importance: 0. Notebook (write everything down, you'll need these notes to tune your process) 1. Beersmith (or other equivalent) 2. Thermapen 3. Fermentation chamber (I use "Son of Fermentation Chiller") 3.5 Wort chiller 4. Good excuse to give wife to escape for 5 hours
  2. R

    Bottling Temps

    You could also go the way of putting the bottles in a big water bath with an aquarium heater. I used this method for years.
  3. R

    Questions on Campden tabs

    I've had problems with too much campden causing stuck fermentations. I use it to remove chloramine from tap water. When I used too much (1 tab per 5 gallons), I couldn't get FG's below 1.020. Cut back to 1/4 tab per 5 gal (recommended dose) and FG's were fine.
  4. R

    Help with grain mills

    +1 on the Corona Mill. It's all I've ever used for all-grain. I think mine was less that $30. Lot's of threads here about it. Here's a classic: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/my-ugly-junk-corona-mill-station-90849/
  5. R

    new fermentation rig w/pics

    This is the same setup I've used for years to bottle condition in my cold (~50F) basement. I also added a small submersible pump from Harbor Freight to keep temps uniform. Works great. Add a splash of bleach to the water to keep it from getting nasty. Also: the cheap aquarium heater...
  6. R

    Less Campden = Better FG

    Hope this helps somebody... I've always had a problem getting my beers to finish dry enough. I would routinely end up with FG's over 1.020. I have great temp control and add a few seconds of oxygen before pitching. Since we have a lot of chloramine in our water, I have always used...
  7. R

    how many degrees F is your fermenting beer higher than its ambient temp?

    I've also found this to be a nonlinear problem. Higher fermentation temps mean more vigorous fermentation which releases more heat which increases temps. In other words, cooler fermentations have less temp increase than warmer fermentations.
  8. R

    I caved in and got BeerSmith...

    I've had Beersmith for a couple of years now. I use it for every recipe. Works great and is really easy. It takes me about 10 minutes to enter and dial-in a recipe for my AG process.
  9. R

    first all grain ever. low gravity. advice please?

    I didn't get good, consistent efficiencies until I started taking really good notes and lots of careful measurements (volumes, temperatures, etc.) at several points during the brewing process. I made lots of tweaks, but all were suggested by looking at the data.
  10. R

    What's your source for heating your fermentation chamber

    I use a water bath with an aquarium heater. Last year, I put this setup into my Son of Fermentation Chiller. I also added my Love TSS2 controller so I can control cooling and heating at the same time. This setup worked great for controlling temps, BUT the warm water bath made tons of...
  11. R

    Propane - how much on a tank?

    Full tank = 40 lbs = 11 hours at full power (for my burner) Empty tank = 18 lbs = no hours Linear in between An all grain brew session uses around 2 hours of propane.
  12. R

    chlorine

    Dealing with chlorine is easy. Just use campden tablets in mash and sparge water. (Also, cities tend to use chloramine now, instead of chlorine. It's more stable, and harder to get rid of, but campden works great.) Before I started using campden, I'd get a rubbery taste that was from...
  13. R

    Whats the best Thermometer?

    +1 for Thermapen I went through about 6 thermometers (floating, dial, digital) trying to get accurate, repeatable results. I did several calibrations with boiling/ice water. Now with the thermapen, I don't worry about temps any more. It's quick, easy, and accurate. I don't recall the...
  14. R

    Home Brew Books

    I still refer to "How to Brew" and "Brewing Classic Styles" all the time. I need to pick up "Designing Great Beers"...
  15. R

    Effeciency and the steel braid???

    +1 on putting a coil of copper wire inside the braid. I had floating/crushing issues, so I put in a spiral of solid copper wire (12 gauge house electrical wire). No more issues. Also, your braid looks really long.
  16. R

    German Brew Recommendation

    Light: helles, hefeweizen Medium: Marzen, alt Dark: Dunkelweizen, Aventinus (but don't let him/her drive afterward...)
  17. R

    So who's brewing this weekend?

    American Amber from "Brewing Classic Styles" (all grain). Last weekend (Extra Special Bitter) was my first brew day in 10 months. It's good to be back...
  18. R

    Corona Mill Clone

    I've been using my mill from Discount Tommy for over a year now. Works fantastic. Got 80% efficiency on Saturday. No tannins (unless my sparge water is too hot).
  19. R

    Corona mill + electric drill. how?

    It's metric. Close to 5/16", but metric. Take your handle bolt to the hardware store and get the correct sized bolt, then drive it with a drill and a nut driver attachment. I have much better success with my corded drill. My high-end portable drill is no match for my cheap corded drill...
  20. R

    Brewing in CT...

    Hi from Wethersfield. There are more CT brewers on here than I thought... I like the guys at the East Hartford store and I try to buy from them when I can, but I get most of my ingredients online. I'll never go back the Murphy Rd. store.
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