Basement in Winter

[Gopher40]

Well I am trying to plan ahead for the coming winter but I have a dilemna. My basement like many others is where I keep my fermenting beer. Not a problem in summer wher the temp down there will run 65-70 degrees. But in the winter seeing how it is an unfinished basement the temp is much cooler. Not sure exactly but probably in the 56-62 degree range depending on outside temp. I know this is a litle on the cool side for fermentation. I have read some of the lager kits that state that they can be brewed at ale temps and still deliver a very good tasting beer, albeit with different flavor. Question is I will not be at normal ale fermenting temp or at lager temp. What do other folks do. have seen the brewbelt and I suppose that is an option, but the less things to buy, the better.

 

[pwndabear]

I usually tuck my primary away in a nice closet in the winter to keep it warmer than in the basement.

 

[shecky]

Don't forget you're going to get some exothermic energy from the fermentation that will bump the temps up into optimal range for most ale yeast based on what you say the ambient temps are.

Beyond that, you could always wrap your fermenters in a blanket to keep them cozy.

I have roughly the same basement temps in the winter and usually do most of my brewing during those months. Works out well.

 

[Yooper]

I have an Igloo cooler that I use in the summer for water baths and ice bottles to keep the temperature down, and in the winter I use it with an aquarium heater to keep the temperature UP! I float a thermometer in the waterbath to make sure it's not too warm. The aquarium heater goes into the water bath. I think it would work even better with a way to circulate the water in the water bath, but it works fine the way it is.

The heater is very small- 15w I believe, and it works perfectly to keep my cool basement and house great for fermenting ales in the winter. I usually ferment at 62-65 degrees, in a room in the 50s.

 

[Hang Glider]

+1 to Aquarium heater in water bath.

blow a couple dollars on a tiny pond-pump and just drop it into the water bath to keep the water stirred up. $10 at Harbor Freight like this

 

[abracadabra]

I built a small fermentation (4'x6') room in the basement. And use a small 110volt ceramic heater to keep the room at temp. They are cheap ($15-$20) usually have built in thermostats.

I try to go with the flow if the average temp is around ale fermentation that's when I start brewing. And this year I plan to do some Lagering when the temp gets to that point so I'll run ale in the fall and lager in the winter and will probably have more beer than I can possibly drink by spring, but if not I'll do some more ale when spring rolls around and the temps start to warm back up.

I don't like brewing in the summer it's too hot :cross: for me !

 

[JJL]

Before I got my temp controller, I just moved my carboy upstairs in a closet. Now I use a temp controller and a fermwrap heater. It costs a few bucks, but the temp controller is invaluable for brewing, and the heater wasn't too expensive.

 

[pcollins]

Heating pads work well. Low setting and just put them in a cupboard in the basement with your primary. Keep a thermometer handy to check the temps and away you go.

 

[tenchu_11]

I wrap a towel/t-shirt or even a blanket around your fermenter and use one of those black big papper clips that look like little jaws or a cloths pins to hold the blanket/tower in place. Might bring up your fermenter up a few degrees to get away with a nice cool fermenting ale like kolsch.

 

[tvtoms]

I have a small landing at the top of my basement staircase that I have my eye on if needed. Did my best to seal up gaps and drafts in the basement this summer. Hopefully that'll help some and I can keep operating in the basement too.

 

[Grinder12000]

Your fine - those are my temps. Just plan on making beer that uses yeast that enjoy cool temps. You can pitch a little warmer and then the wort will cool to a good temp - once fermentation starts you it'll warm 3 or 4 or 5 degrees - wrap a blanket around it.

DO NOT use an electric heater - those baby's will spin the knobs in your electric meter.

 

[Gopher40]

What yeasts are good to use for cooler fermentaton temps?

I sort of wonder about the principle of using a lager yeast and just have it ferment at a little warmer temp than normally reccommended for a lager yeast. Isn't that basically all a Steam beer is?

 

[lschiavo]

I built a small fermentation (4'x6') room in the basement. And use a small 110volt ceramic heater to keep the room at temp. They are cheap ($15-$20) usually have built in thermostats.

I have been thinking of doing this for about a year now. My thought was to build a small insulated chamber that would fit into one corner of my basement (two walls and a lid) and add a temp contoller and heater.

If you have bare concrete walls it seems likely that even in summer you could maintain quite cool temperatures (ground temperatures at 6-8 ft deep) but I never got around to building/testing yet.

 

[tenchu_11]

What yeasts are good to use for cooler fermentaton temps?

I sort of wonder about the principle of using a lager yeast and just have it ferment at a little warmer temp than normally reccommended for a lager yeast. Isn't that basically all a Steam beer is?

I beleive White Labs 029 Kolsch yeast heard of people fermenting as low as
62F. I also think you might not need to have a heating pad since alot of ice boxes use dead air space. So if you would build a wooden box and line it with a blanket and dress your carboy/bucket in a tshirt and put it next to a furnace the dead air space would be over all warmer than outside the box. I beleive this also works the other way if you build an ice box (out of plywood) and line it with styrafome and put it in the coolest part of the basement the dead air space inside would be colder than the air around it. You can also wet the tshirt to increase the cooler temps.

 

[camatt2989]

i use a cerramic heater as well they are very efficient and don't really move my electric bill running most of the day effects me ellectric by as little as 15 or 20 bux a month

 

[wedge421]

I use a fermentation heating belt with a temp controller. Works great. My basement gets around those temps as well but I can hold 68-70 no problem at all.