Basement lager

[rewster451]

My basement right now is at about 50 degrees. It's about 40 outside. Assuming that when temperatures start to hover around 20 (mid jan-mid feb) it will be 35F in my basement, would it be possible to do a lager if I keep it in a water bath to insulate it from any major temperature fluctuations? Is one month of hell freezing over long enough to do a lager if that does work?

 

[usmcruz]

My basement right now is at about 50 degrees. It's about 40 outside. Assuming that when temperatures start to hover around 20 (mid jan-mid feb) it will be 35F in my basement, would it be possible to do a lager if I keep it in a water bath to insulate it from any major temperature fluctuations? Is one month of hell freezing over long enough to do a lager if that does work?

It would work if you kept it at 45 to 55 degrees, lower temps than 45 degrees might make your yeast quit. If you could keep it between those temps with a little enginuity then yes. Take's about 2 to 3 weeks for a lager. These are the times you have to remember rewster that i help you out and then later on you have a problem with me. If you feel my info is not useful to you then tell me, and I wont answer another question you have. By the way the water bath will take on surrounding temps so if your temp is at 35 then your water will be as well. cheers

 

[Kaiser]

I'd say go for it. As usmcruz said, you want to keep the temp around 50 for the primary fermentation. If your basement is colder, a blanket around the primary should help since the fermentation produces heat. Figure 2 weeks of primary fermentation for a ~1.050 gravity lager at 50F. Could be faster if you pitch lots of yeast. Once in the secondary, the closer to freezing the better. That's how they did it in the olden days

Kai

 

[rewster451]

It would work if you kept it at 45 to 55 degrees, lower temps than 45 degrees might make your yeast quit. If you could keep it between those temps with a little enginuity then yes. Take's about 2 to 3 weeks for a lager. These are the times you have to remember rewster that i help you out and then later on you have a problem with me. If you feel my info is not useful to you then tell me, and I wont answer another question you have. By the way the water bath will take on surrounding temps so if your temp is at 35 then your water will be as well. cheers

Dude if you don't want to help me, don't. This forum is not for personal attacks. You seem to have an issue with that. Be nice man. As soon as one person starts making personal attacks on people the whole thing can blow up, people taking sides and whatnot. I was merely saying that you, or anyone else, should be respectful of other people even if they disagree with you. I didn't read the whole thread, but I caught the bit where you called someone a name. That doesn't fly. We're mature adults. We make beer, not war.

Anyway... Aren't there yeasts that can work at temps close to 35 degrees? I was under the impression that 55 was the high end for lagers.

Edit: Oh, Kai, now I get it. 50 or so for ferment, lower for secondary. Thanks.

Second edit: Usmcruz never called anyone a name. This got all blown out of porortion, and I have issued an apology to him for any wrongdoing. I still stand by the fact that this is not a forum where it is acceptable to abuse people verbally. That is all.

 

[The Happy Mug]

A low wattage incandescent bulb near the fermenter would help keep up the temperature. I bet with a big box and adjustable air holes, you could get your fermentation temperature just right.

 

[FrewBrew]

Ive got a few lagers going in my basement right now. It's ~52 degrees down there, therefore, that's the temp of my lager. I expect it to drop another 4-5 degrees before they're done. Basement temps should be fine!

 

[Mikey]

I Once in the secondary, the closer to freezing the better. That's how they did it in the olden days

Kai

And that's how they still do it - almost all lagers are kept at near freezing temps for weeks or months. Lager is the German word for 'storage' and is where we get the English word 'locker'. In other words, lock em up and freeze' em!

Only the initial fermentation is done at the 10C (50F) temps, the lagering phase doesn't really start until you go into long term cord storage.

 

[Catfish]

I'd say go for it. Worst case scenerio, you end up with a well fermented steam beer. So long as you aren't brewing for style (I brew for fun... and beer) no worries.