Building a brewery in an unfinished basement

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Feldmann

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Hey everyone,

So I recently bought a new house with an unfinished basement. I'm looking at building a brewery and I'm starting to compile a list of things I want. What are things in your brewery you couldn't do without and what are things you ended up not needing or wish you had done differently?

What application did you use to plan your layout?

I'm going to be brewing 10Gal electric and I have around 700 sq ft to work with (but I'd like to leave some of the space for family storage). The previous owner had a hot tub outside that they're taking with them so I think I can use the electrical from that for my brewery.
 
What I’d do differently then that I do now (had to learn):

started with induction instead of a propane burner.

got a stainless mash tun instead of a plastic cooler

added a prime/bleed valve to my pump day one

Bought ingredients in bulk to save $

Harvested yeast
 
I am in the process of switching to electric and finishing the unfinished part of my basement and here is a few things on my list. My goal is to keep the space universal enough to be used as a workshop or other when I sell down the road.

-floor drain
-space for grain and ingredient storage plus equipment storage
-smaller fridge/freezer for hops/yeast
-hood vent on outside wall that i will be adapting a window opening for vent
-easy to clean floor and area around brew vessels
-plenty of power and lighting
 
A couple years ago I brought everything into my unfinished basement. Few things that I've learned and like:
~Floor drain is so nice! I have a sink down there and can rinse everything right there.
~I have a plain concrete floor. This is nice because if I have any spillage, I can just rinse the floor and it all goes to the drain.
~I went electrical, best decision I have every made. I vent through a range hood and out a window I have directly above the brewery. If I could do it again, I would do the no-vent boil condenser that you see floating around here on homebrewtalk.
 
~I went electrical, best decision I have every made. I vent through a range hood and out a window I have directly above the brewery. If I could do it again, I would do the no-vent boil condenser that you see floating around here on homebrewtalk.

This was one of the things I was having the most trouble deciding on. I wanted something effective enough for 10Gal but didn't really want anything super permanent. I think I'm going to do more research into boil condensers.

My goal is to keep the space universal enough to be used as a workshop or other when I sell down the road.

This is really important to me as well. I'm probably not going to be in my new place for ever so having an adaptable space for when I sell is important.
 
I had a slop sink installed which is nice for so many reasons. That and a 220 outlet. Propane in a basement just seems like a really bad idea. The previous owners had an old fridge which they were happy to leave behind.
 
  • A big sink is amazing
  • Building a permanent grain mill cart and motorizing the mill at the same time has been huge for me
  • As mentioned, storage for grains, parts, kegs, bottles etc.
  • Lots of electrical outlets-- having an outlet exactly where you want it without having to move stuff is a nice luxury. Make a list of all of your equipment that needs an outlet, plot where you want the stuff, and then make sure you install outlets near there
  • Good lighting
  • Did a mention a big sink?!? ;)
 
My actual brewing space, including sink, bench for kettles, room for two ferm chambers (one large, one small), and conical fermenter is about 6 x 12 feet. That doesn't include the grain mill, buckets and such of grain and other ingredients, nor other storage. I'd say that adds....maybe another 40 square feet. So my brewing setup takes up...112 square feet? More or less.

I'd take more room if I had it, but I can brew comfortably within those confines, so I'd suggest that as the minimum. In fact, since you have 700 feet, I'd probably be inclined to set aside 200-250 square feet for that. I'd be thinking about a keezer or other way to keep beer cold and serve through taps on the other side of the wall as part of a bar. Not sure if you want to go there, but if you did, 300 square feet would be more than enough--15 x 20 would be fine.

What would I want if I was spec'ing out a new brew space? I'd have a sink with a sideboard on it, and that sink would NOT be a low stainless or utility sink. I have one that's higher and I wouldn't give it up for anything.

That sink has a normal sink sprayer on it, which I added along with some other plumbing work I had done. It's very easy for me to lay a kettle or a keg on its side and spray it out.

I wish I had a drain right at my brew space; I have one on the other side of the garage and the floor drains to it, but I'd rather have one there. Brewing is messy at times, and while I use a mop to clean things up, spraying it down would be better. Don't know how easy or hard it'll be for you to add a drain if there isn't one. If you had an existing one, maybe you could run a trench drain over to it. I thought about doing that to mine, but it's a long stretch to do that.

You'll want some sort of exhaust system, even if you're doing electric brewing.

Design the space up front for electric. Add capacity for later on if you might need it. And along those lines, having more receptacles is better than having fewer--with several different circuits and breakers. A spot to plug in ferm chamber(s). A spot for a keezer; whatever you think you might, in your wildest dreams, think you could possibly want.

A few pics below showing my brew space. They may give you ideas. The sink is an old metal sink like they used to have in the 30s and 40s. Found it in someone's driveway on junk day and I rescued it. It's terrific. If I were doing something new, I'd put in something similar, i.e., with a shallow bowl and a sideboard on the left side.

Left side of my brew area; the wall next to the green camoflage refrigerator is the left side of the 12' width.

setup10gallon.jpg


The sink arrangement; this is before I painted the walls behind to clean up the area and make it look more respectable. :) I'd be sure, if I were you, to use wall treatments that were bright and cleanable, as best you can.

sink1.jpg


The sink area after cleaning it all up. One benefit to this arrangement is that I have an RO filter under the sink, fed by a separate line from the sink faucet. I run the water into an Aquatainer to await the next brew day (I fill the kettle with water, then set the RO system to refilling the Aquatainer).

The boil kettle is always on the right; I have it set up with a Steam Slayer so I can drain the effluent right into the sink. It also provides me an easy water source for that Steam Slayer.

Here's a pic that shows some of that:

brewarearightside.jpg


and a pic showing the Steam Slayer setup. You can see the drain line going back into the sink (the silicone hose). The 1/4" white line from the sink is the RO water filling the Aquatainer. If you look closely you can see the 1/4" translucent line I use to connect to the steam slayer.



rowatersetup.jpg


A pic showing where the RO system is, pic taken before I added the Steam Slayer stuff:

rosystem2.jpg


And the permanent connections, one feeding the RO filter, one feeding the Steam Slayer:

rosystemsupply2.jpg


**************

You asked above what kind of application I used to plan my layout. The application is housed in the six-inch space between my ears. I have limited space to work in for brewing, so everything has been to create the greatest use out of the limited space, and some of this has been borne of necessity, rather than planning.

Whatever you do, plan for additions and upgrades, to electric, plumbing, whatever. Allow yourself the flexibility to add things as you may wish to later on.

Good luck and have fun!
 
I'm glad I sealed my cellar floor, no matter how careful, I get spillage from time to time. Untreated concrete is quite porous.

I used Watco brand water based non-slip industrial floor paint called ''safetycoat'', but there are others. Try to stay away from the really toxic stinky stuff for indoor use.
 
Awesome set up! Thanks for all the pictures, I'm going to be taking a few things from your space.

My actual brewing space, including sink, bench for kettles, room for two ferm chambers (one large, one small), and conical fermenter is about 6 x 12 feet. That doesn't include the grain mill, buckets and such of grain and other ingredients, nor other storage. I'd say that adds....maybe another 40 square feet. So my brewing setup takes up...112 square feet? More or less.

I have 700 to work with but I don't intend to occupy all of that space. I want to leave a good portion of it available for something that benefits the entire family. I'll probably end up only occupying 200-300sqft max.

I'd be thinking about a keezer or other way to keep beer cold and serve through taps on the other side of the wall as part of a bar. Not sure if you want to go there, but if you did, 300 square feet would be more than enough--15 x 20 would be fine.

Its really funny you should mention that because there is a wall framed in and this is what my wife is pushing for. I'm on the fence about doing this or having a keezer bar.

What would I want if I was spec'ing out a new brew space? I'd have a sink with a sideboard on it, and that sink would NOT be a low stainless or utility sink. I have one that's higher and I wouldn't give it up for anything.

That sink has a normal sink sprayer on it, which I added along with some other plumbing work I had done. It's very easy for me to lay a kettle or a keg on its side and spray it out.

You'll want some sort of exhaust system, even if you're doing electric brewing.

I think I'm going to go with a steam slayer. I was originally going to go with a big exhaust fan but for the price of a steam condenser and not having to listen to that fan for an hour I think I'm sold.

Which RO system did you go with? There seem to be so many available. I'm debating if I want to install an RO system just for my brewery or a big one for the entire house. The drinking water is less than desirable.

Thanks for all the solid advice!
 
Awesome set up! Thanks for all the pictures, I'm going to be taking a few things from your space.

Some borne of necessity, some from ideas I've seen elsewhere. Just paying it forward.... :)

I have 700 to work with but I don't intend to occupy all of that space. I want to leave a good portion of it available for something that benefits the entire family. I'll probably end up only occupying 200-300sqft max.

You could put a bar on the other side, a keezer there, whatever. Leave yourself flexibility; I've changed around my setup more than once, partly to accommodate new stuff, partly because I didn't get it right the first time.

Its really funny you should mention that because there is a wall framed in and this is what my wife is pushing for. I'm on the fence about doing this or having a keezer bar.

Take your time. I've found--this is my own experience, may or may not apply to you--that when I'm procrastinating on something like you're considering, it's a sign something is wrong, or I haven't considered something I should have, or there's a better idea out there. Don't know why my subconscious can't just tell me what the deal is, but that's not the way it works.

If it doesn't feel right, it's NOT, not until you figure out why and what to do or not do about it. Where do you want to be a year from now? Regretting a fast decision, or glad and proud you took your time and did it right?

I think I'm going to go with a steam slayer. I was originally going to go with a big exhaust fan but for the price of a steam condenser and not having to listen to that fan for an hour I think I'm sold.

Let me rein you in a bit here. <voice of experience ON> You will almost certainly find there are odors which you do not appreciate using that system. Not unlike brewing in the house conventionally. Your whole house will have this....weird odor, some say it's diacetyl, some say it's something else. You won't like it. You need some sort of ventilation to remove that from your brew space.

I love the steam slayer, it's made winter brewing heaven compared to what it was. But it's not a cure-all for ventilation, especially if you're brewing in-house.

Which RO system did you go with? There seem to be so many available. I'm debating if I want to install an RO system just for my brewery or a big one for the entire house. The drinking water is less than desirable.

I have a 75 GPD system that Russ at Buckeye Hydro helped me spec. I only use mine for brewing water and for water I use in a Keurig coffeemaker. It's not the fastest in the world, but it's effective for what I need.

If you are seriously considering something for the whole house, I'd encourage you to contact him and see what he says. They won't probably be the cheapest, but you'll get topnotch advice, and the system is great, and the support is as well. You can buy a cheap system at the home store, but then there's the support issue. I wouldn't hesitate to go back and do business with Buckeye again.

Now, having said that, you'll want to do some deep thinking on this. If you refer back to the pic showing my Aquatainer, you can see it's on the floor. Fits the available space I have. But--it's 7+ gallons and I'm at the point, after two back surgeries, that I don't want to be lifting that.

So I bought a self-priming pump I can use to lift that water into the kettle, or fill gallon jugs. Pic here:

reservoirpump.jpg


But...if I were doing this in the basement, and considering a whole-house system, I'd do this: I'd put the RO system on the first floor where it can feed the stuff you need to have RO water, build my brew space under that, put a 15-gallon tank at the ceiling near and above my brew kettle (probably above the sink), and use gravity to feed that water to the kettle. You can get potable water plastic tanks for that kind of thing.

If all you're going to do is a brew-water RO system then you have lots of flexibility, but if you're going to do both....set it up to feed a tank that stores enough brew-day water for you.

I wish I had that. But I don't brew in the basement.

Thanks for all the solid advice!

You're welcome. I got where I am with a big heaping dose of help from a lot of people, including on this site. Pay it forward! :)
 
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