Best Return on Investment for Mead Making Equipment

[Todd Peterson]

Good morning folks. As the title of the thread inquires, what is the gear that you have purchased to support your mead making hobby that was a game changer and worth the investment?

I’m a “buy once cry once” kind of guy. I do not mind the cash outlay (within reason) for good gear that provides a notable improvement in process or quality of final product.

I’m still relatively new to the hobby.

The gear that I have purchased so far that was worth the cost includes:

An Italian bottle capper constructed of metal. Seems like it is gear I could hand down to my kids one day. Does a great job, adjustable for all bottle sizes, and is very well built.

CO2 tank and regulator. I use this to purge headspace. I know it’s not a perfect science, but it helps me to not worry about oxidation in secondary or tertiary if the carboy is not full to the neck.

Insulated brewing bag. Primitive way to manage low temp of fermentation. Also serves as insurance policy against overflow. Mopping the ceiling = end of my hobby more than likely.

Things that I am looking to purchase:

PH Meter
AMMA membership


What have you found to be a game changer as far as gear is concerned.

Looking forward to hearing back from you all.

Thanks!

Todd Peterson

 

[Maylar]

The number one game changer for me was temperature control. Being able to pitch the yeast at 68°F so it starts strong with a short lag phase. Then drop the temp and hold it to the bottom 25% of its range. I do my mead & cider in the winter and have had a lot of trouble pitching at cold temps. Temp control allows me to choose virtually any yeast and ferment at its ideal range.
I bought a Cool Zone and Inkbird:

 

[DBhomebrew]

Best ROI for me was the investment in time learning and understanding nutrient protocols. I make mead in a $5 bucket.

 

[Todd Peterson]

The number one game changer for me was temperature control. Being able to pitch the yeast at 68°F so it starts strong with a short lag phase. Then drop the temp and hold it to the bottom 25% of its range. I do my mead & cider in the winter and have had a lot of trouble pitching at cold temps. Temp control allows me to choose virtually any yeast and ferment at its ideal range.
I bought a Cool Zone and Inkbird:

View attachment 817734

Nice set up! Does the ink bird have a heating element? In my limited experience, temp control has been pretty important to the outcome of the final product.

Best ROI for me was the investment in time learning and understanding nutrient protocols. I make mead in a $5 bucket.

I’m also part of the bucket gang for primary. No question time and experience are priceless. When things go wrong, it’s normally the person at the helm and not the gear. Every now then, I run across a piece of gear in my other endeavors that I wish I had bought much earlier due to efficiency or QC.

Thanks for the responses!

Todd Peterson

 

[DBhomebrew]

I'll be honest. That $5 bucket goes in an Inkbird-controlled freezer.

 

[MightyMosin]

pH Meter so I know how much K-Meta is needed for stabilization.

My SS BrewTech Keg Cleaner. I use it more for my carboys than I use it on my kegs. It saves me a lot of effort, cleaner and sanitizer.

The manufacturer says that it cannot be used for carboys, but it can if you take off the horizontal bar that goes into the keg and screw the base nut all the way up so the spinning CIP ball gets up into the neck of the barboys and fermonsters.

 

[MightyMosin]

The number one game changer for me was temperature control. Being able to pitch the yeast at 68°F so it starts strong with a short lag phase. Then drop the temp and hold it to the bottom 25% of its range. I do my mead & cider in the winter and have had a lot of trouble pitching at cold temps. Temp control allows me to choose virtually any yeast and ferment at its ideal range.
I bought a Cool Zone and Inkbird:

I guess you use a heatpad or similar to warm.
What is the CoolZone? Is that the insulated bag or is it something that actively cools in warmer weather?

 

[Todd Peterson]

pH Meter so I know how much K-Meta is needed for stabilization.

My SS BrewTech Keg Cleaner. I use it more for my carboys than I use it on my kegs. It saves me a lot of effort, cleaner and sanitizer.

The manufacturer says that it cannot be used for carboys, but it can if you take off the horizontal bar that goes into the keg and screw the base nut all the way up so the spinning CIP ball gets up into the neck of the barboys and fermonsters.

I’m sure that reduces the amount of pbw and starsam used. I’ll eventually look into a carboy cleaning system. Has to have benefits over the 24 hour soak with the carboy all the way full of cleaner.

Can you tell me which ph meter you use? Would you buy the same model again?

Todd Peterson

 

[MightyMosin]

I’m sure that reduces the amount of pbw and starsam used. I’ll eventually look into a carboy cleaning system. Has to have benefits over the 24 hour soak with the carboy all the way full of cleaner.

Can you tell me which ph meter you use? Would you buy the same model again?

Todd Peterson

There are several videos on YouTube about making your own carboy cleaner if you want to go that route, and I have to say that several I have seen look like they would do an incredible job.
As a side note, if you have cleaned the carboy well, a soak with a hot PBW cleaner for 30 minutes is likely more than enough. As you say, with the keg cleaner using ~2gallons of a cleaner over several carboys is a lot less cleaner and water than individual soaking. I'll usually do a 20 minute carboy clean, 10 minute rinse and a 5 minute sanitize. There are plenty of times I skip the sanitize at the end, as I am going to sanitize again once I go to use the carboy again.

I use the HM Digital PH-80, which runs about $30 on Amazon.
I purchased 4.0 calibration liquid as well as Electrode storage solution at almost the same time as purchase. I have used it for ~ 2 years and it remains accurate.

I would certainly purchase it again unless I find that I need a more accurate meter, though it has met my needs well, to date.

https://hmdigital.com/ph-80/

 

[bushpilot]

Beehives.

 

[MightyMosin]

Beehives.

That's pretty hard to beat

 

[Todd Peterson]

Beehives.

I have those already. In my experience, beekeeping is a labor of love. While it’s an interesting hobby and beneficial for the environment, the return can be sketchy.

Todd Peterson

 

[Maylar]

I guess you use a heatpad or similar to warm.
What is the CoolZone? Is that the insulated bag or is it something that actively cools in warmer weather?

It's a heater jacket and water circulator on the carboy and an insulted enclosure. I can do both heating and cooling.
Cool Zone Adv (InkBird Controller)

 

[madscientist451]

A cool zone fermenter cooler is priced at $95 at one retailer I found. For $200, you can get a small chest freezer and then a temperature controller and you can have a much better fermentation chamber. When you're not fermenting you can keep kegs cold or produce and other things or even use it as a freezer when the next pandemic hits. I'd say that is more bang for your bucks.
However, my best investment in mead making is taking time to gain information about best mead making practices.
I have a long commute, and so have listened to the mead made right podcast, the mead house, ricky the mead maker on the basic brewing podcast and many others. You get small nuggets of information here and there but a big changes for me was improving yeast handling, and using staggered nutrient additions. I recommend using the TONSA method found on the mead made right website, using that made a huge difference for me. Your results may vary, good luck.

 

[MightyMosin]

A jacket around a fermenter fits my available space better than a chest freezer, though I do like that idea.

 

[bushpilot]

I have those already. In my experience, beekeeping is a labor of love. While it’s an interesting hobby and beneficial for the environment, the return can be sketchy.

Todd Peterson

Nothing sketchy about it, I am losing my shirt.

But this year, I am going to break even ...

 

[beren]

Get everything you can used if you aren’t in a rush. I have 4 co2 tanks for sale I ended up with, oops lol. That’s not including the 2.5, 5, and 20 I’m not selling.

 

[OregonMEAD]

I'm a small hobbyist mead maker, trying to transition into a business of making mead.

I have purchased eight 3 gal. glass carboys, and one 5 gal. glass carboy. The glass carboys have always yielded great results, but the 5 gal. turned into a workout when trying to move it around.

My most recent purchase is a self-priming diaphragm pump with a filter attached. It's great for filtering the mead to almost complete clarity.

Gravity testers are a must need too.

 

[Rish]

@OregonMEAD ,
You might want to see if you can contact these folks. I was at their meadery last year and they were doing 5 gallon batches in an area not much bigger than a walk-in closet. Might get some ideas as they had transitioned from home to commercial not to long before.

http://www.ravenwoodhuntsville.com/meadery/

 

[OregonMEAD]

@OregonMEAD ,
You might want to see if you can contact these folks. I was at their meadery last year and they were doing 5 gallon batches in an area not much bigger than a walk-in closet. Might get some ideas as they had transitioned from home to commercial not to long before.

http://www.ravenwoodhuntsville.com/meadery/

Rish, you are awesome, thank you very much for that info.

My plan was to tour a winery that made mead and get info from them, but this could be alot better for me.

Again, thank you.

 

[thepixiesighs]

@OregonMEAD ,
You might want to see if you can contact these folks. I was at their meadery last year and they were doing 5 gallon batches in an area not much bigger than a walk-in closet. Might get some ideas as they had transitioned from home to commercial not to long before.

http://www.ravenwoodhuntsville.com/meadery/

Hey
It's Roo from Ravenwood Meadery. Haha, we have in the meantime expanded our production, but yes... our production area is super tiny. We are, after all, a micro meadery And anyone who wants to come and visit is welcome to do so, come on a Wednesday or Thursday when we are usually quiet. Thank you for the shout out

 

[Rish]

Hey, Roo. Welcome to HBT! I knew y'all were getting ready expand based on conversation with my server. Glad to heard you did. Really enjoyed the flight of your meads. All very tasty!

 

[OregonMEAD]

Hey
It's Roo from Ravenwood Meadery. Haha, we have in the meantime expanded our production, but yes... our production area is super tiny. We are, after all, a micro meadery And anyone who wants to come and visit is welcome to do so, come on a Wednesday or Thursday when we are usually quiet. Thank you for the shout out

Hi Roo
If I ever get the chance to go to Alabama, I will definitely stop by! I'm in the NW area of Oregon.

I have alot of admiration for you and another small time meadery coming up in the world. Congratulations.

If you wouldn't mind, me pucking your brain for a little info, i would greatly appreciate it. If not, thats fine too.

All the best of luck

Hey
It's Roo from Ravenwood Meadery. Haha, we have in the meantime expanded our production, but yes... our production area is super tiny. We are, after all, a micro meadery And anyone who wants to come and visit is welcome to do so, come on a Wednesday or Thursday when we are usually quiet. Thank you for the shout out

 

[thepixiesighs]

Hi Roo
If I ever get the chance to go to Alabama, I will definitely stop by! I'm in the NW area of Oregon.

I have alot of admiration for you and another small time meadery coming up in the world. Congratulations.

If you wouldn't mind, me pucking your brain for a little info, i would greatly appreciate it. If not, thats fine too.

All the best of luck

Of course - I'll help where I can