Brewing outdoors with propane for the first time

[BuglessDuster]

I've been brewing beer for close to 20 years, but have always done it indoors on an electric stove. I finally bought a pot large enough to do a full boil of 7 or 8 gallons and a burner/stand with a propane connection.

Any tips or pitfalls to avoid would be appreciated. My biggest concern is controlling the flame/temperature. Do I ease into it gradually or just crank it up and wait for it to boil?

 

[RedlegEd]

Besides the obvious concern for CO (carbon monoxide) in an enclosed space, your biggest concern may be with boil over, which can occur pretty fast during the hot break (unless you have plenty of headspace.) [edit: I know, you said outdoors, but I think garage.] I usually watch carefully for the hotbreak, ready to turn down the heat, and then relax after the boil has settled down. Fermcap drops are excellent for keeping down excessive foam, as is a cheap sprayer for knocking down foam. The other caution is not to put anything on the bottom of the kettle during the boil (i.e. hop basket.) It can/will create a super hot spot that will scorch your wort and create all kinds of nasty, burnt flavors that you cannot age out of the beer.

 

[PADave]

Not much different than a gas stove, just doesn't take as long. If all you got is wort in the pot, crank it up.

 

[masskrug]

Crank it up until you get to a boil, drop it down to rolling and then monitor it closely as you add hops. Boil overs happen quickly.

I also use Fermcap-S.

 

[estricklin]

Crank it up until you get to a boil, drop it down to rolling and then monitor it closely as you add hops. Boil overs happen quickly.

I also use Fermcap-S.

He said it.

 

[EcuPirate07]

If you haven't bought a burner yet do yourself a favor and spend the money up front for a good one. I made this mistake and started with a turkey fryer type burner and upgraded after 2 years, it's a world of difference. Wish I would have just bought the bullet to begin.

 

[BuglessDuster]

Thanks everyone. I have an 11-gallon pot, so I have plenty of head space and the amount of wort being boiled will likely be around 6 to 7 gallons. I have a Bayou burner and pot.

Another thing to consider that I hadn't thought of until today is pollen. I live in North Carolina and we've had a warm couple of weeks and the pollen is starting up. Any concerns with pollen in the beer? Will the steam from the boil expel any pollen that may be trying to fall in the wort and will it matter anyway?

 

[RedlegEd]

I'd say not until flame out when you are starting to cool your wort. Once it drops below ~150*F, it becomes really susceptible to infection/inoculation by unwanted (read wild) yeast and other little nasties living in the air. IMO, the best thing to do when cooling is cover the pot as well as you can until you've transferred the wort into a sanitized container. That's the point when I close the garage door to prevent a gust of wind from ruining my brew.

 

[NoIguanaForZ]

Another thing to consider that I hadn't thought of until today is pollen. I live in North Carolina and we've had a warm couple of weeks and the pollen is starting up. Any concerns with pollen in the beer? Will the steam from the boil expel any pollen that may be trying to fall in the wort and will it matter anyway?

I'd been meaning to ask a similar question, actually: those of you who do brew outside already; how do you keep random airborne crap (and bugs - the macroscopic, multilegged kind) out of your pots?

 

[bolus14]

I have only ever brewed outside (wife only agreed to let me start brewing if I did it in the garage she hates the smell of the mash...).

So, 3 yrs later I only do BIAB, waiting to move into a new house before I invest into new equipment, but as far as the burner goes here's my process. I also have an 11 gal kettle but have boiled over multiple times so don't assume the 4ish gal of space will eliminate boil overs.

After your sparge, crank it, when you start to get a thick foam on the top you know your close to starting to boil, keep the heat all the way up but use a mash paddle or spoon to "pull" the foam back until you see "boiling bubbles." at that point I turn mine down to about half, as long as you aren't throwing in a bunch of hops at 60min this should keep you from boiling over and give a good rolling boil. First few brews I would keep my eye on it though and figure out what works for you.

If you can I would put a desk fan on something close by ready to turn on to blow at the top of your kettle, if the foam starts to get close to the top, turn the fan on. This should prevent boiling overs until you figure out how far to turn down your burner.

 

[Sailingeric]

I would get a second tank of gas just in case you run out mid brew.

 

[pshankstar]

I would get a second tank of gas just in case you run out mid brew.

This is on my list! Also someone else mentioned get a better burner first. I did the turkey fryer one and then a year later I received a Blichman burner and it is amazing!! Pony up now and make sure you get a good burner!!

 

[Dixon9717]

^^^^^
What he said a Blichmann has been my best investment so far.

 

[MattyIce]

I agree with getting a second tank. I recommend finding a place that refills vs exchanges them. I save like 40%, and I have been told you get more propane with refill rather than exchange.

 

[JohnSand]

I'd been meaning to ask a similar question, actually: those of you who do brew outside already; how do you keep random airborne crap (and bugs - the macroscopic, multilegged kind) out of your pots?

You don't. Just fish them out when they are dead, then name your brew Jellow-Jack, or whatever fell in.
I have had trouble with the flame blowing out on really windy days. I wrapped aluminum flashing around the legs, bending the corners to keep it there. This also keeps the heat under the pot.

 

[balrog]

+1 Two tanks. You will run out 20m into a boil. It's almost a guarantee.
+2 Watch boilover. Spray bottle StarSan nearby, but vigilance is important.
+1 Garage door closed when cooling. If you are truly outdoors, suggest not brewing when raining.

 

[BuglessDuster]

I have only ever brewed outside (wife only agreed to let me start brewing if I did it in the garage she hates the smell of the mash...).

So, 3 yrs later I only do BIAB, waiting to move into a new house before I invest into new equipment, but as far as the burner goes here's my process. I also have an 11 gal kettle but have boiled over multiple times so don't assume the 4ish gal of space will eliminate boil overs.

After your sparge, crank it, when you start to get a thick foam on the top you know your close to starting to boil, keep the heat all the way up but use a mash paddle or spoon to "pull" the foam back until you see "boiling bubbles." at that point I turn mine down to about half, as long as you aren't throwing in a bunch of hops at 60min this should keep you from boiling over and give a good rolling boil. First few brews I would keep my eye on it though and figure out what works for you.

If you can I would put a desk fan on something close by ready to turn on to blow at the top of your kettle, if the foam starts to get close to the top, turn the fan on. This should prevent boiling overs until you figure out how far to turn down your burner.

I brewed inside my screen porch which has a ceiling fan. I ended up with six gallons of wort in my pot and was surprised that as soon as it started to boil, even before I did my first hop addition, it foamed up all the way to about the 10-gallon mark before finally settling down to a rolling boil. I backed off the flame a little too.

All in all, it was a great experience and my house doesn't stink inside. The only issue I had was with the mash temperature. I intentionally over shot my desired mash temperature, but I didn't realize how long it would take for me to drop it back down to the desired temp (153 degrees).

 

[JohnSand]

It will be fine. I've overshot, undershot, overcorrected mash temps. Beer was still good.

 

[NoIguanaForZ]

You don't. Just fish them out when they are dead, then name your brew Jellow-Jack, or whatever fell in.

Did you just discover the recipe for Coors?

 

[BuglessDuster]

Whoa.

OG - 1.086

 

[casualbrewer]

Don't think the pollen will give you any trouble. shoot I have had a fermentation bucket with about a gallon of my last beer in it outside with the lid off for almost 2 weeks. Got pollen in it but it isn't infected yet. Kind of an experiment

 

[MattyIce]

I'd been meaning to ask a similar question, actually: those of you who do brew outside already; how do you keep random airborne crap (and bugs - the macroscopic, multilegged kind) out of your pots?

Not a concern. I have had a few bugs fly in here and there after flameout. Scooped em out. I have yet to have a problem.

 

[NoIguanaForZ]

Not a concern. I have had a few bugs fly in here and there after flameout. Scooped em out. I have yet to have a problem.

Well, I'd already planned on bringing the pot inside for wort chilling, I have a spatter screen that almost fits...