Dorm Brew

[tmabbotutep]

So Im about to start brewing my first beer and was just wondering if there were any dangers (ie harsh smells or beer spray when an airlock pops) involved in fermenting in a closet.

 

[Dark_Ale]

No dangers you might want to keep an eye on it when your cooking so you dont boil over, If there were any dangers I'd be dead along time ago, not sure what you mean when the airlock pops? If your airlock stops up it might blow the lid off or the stopper out....It will just make a mess, your closet might smell like hops, and co2 but nothing dangerous. Good luck

 

[olllllo]

So Im about to start brewing my first beer and was just wondering if there were any dangers (ie harsh smells or beer spray when an airlock pops) involved in fermenting in a closet.

Yes, Mr. 19 Year old college student. Your RA will smell the beer and you will be tossed out of the dorms.

 

[Whelk]

Yes, Mr. 19 Year old college student. Your RA will smell the beer and you will be tossed out of the dorms.

Sad, but probably true. Move off-campus!

 

[Cap'n Jewbeard]

Word. I speak from some degree of experience here. (Though I was making a pseudo absinthe, sans wormwood, and not beer).

You have two options:

1) Keep it locked up tight in your closet- use some towels, as the good Lord made them to be used. (You know, stopping up the door).
To minimize risk of Ka-Boom-Ery, DON'T use a bucket/airlock. Use a carboy with a blowoff tube- then when the heavy fermentation is over, throw an airlock on there and breathe easy.

2) Accept that you'll be found out, and pre-empt it. Make it an "open secret" - if your RA is cool, be like "Hey, I've got 5 gal beer coming up in a few weeks. What rhymes with... gribe... and would convince you not to can my ass?"

Try option 1 first unless RA is confirmed to be cool, and not an EAC.

 

[FrewBrew]

your RA will probably think you're running a meth lab, if he sees what you've got going, a million years before he thinks you're brewing.

as long as you're 21, most schools won't do much of, especially since it IS legal.

 

[the_bird]

as long as you're 21, most schools won't do much of, especially since it IS legal.

The OP isn't, which is one issue. Some campuses are technically dry, as well.

 

[SteveM]

I betcha that UTEP is a dry campus. Any takers?

 

[olllllo]

I'd bet that all DORMS are dry.

 

[Cap'n Jewbeard]

I'd bet that all DORMS are dry.

Not so- many (at least in hipper, lib-arts schools) permit booze for of-age people. But they may be watching more closely.

 

[todd_k]

I don't know if advising a minor on how to make/hide hooch is a great idea and I think it may be against board rules. (although it's not clear that he's a minor)

 

[the_bird]

I don't know if advising a minor on how to make/hide hooch is a great idea and I think it may be against board rules. (although it's not clear that he's a minor)

Check his profile.

 

[todd_k]

I did earlier but I did not scroll down that far. Ok, so he is 19. Can we lock this thread now? It isn't really serving any real purpose.

 

[uwmgdman]

buy a fake ID

mine served me well, just don't get caught

 

[Nemanach]

Just make sure that it is 65 plus so you can get the 25 cent senior coffee at McDonalds.

 

[Genghis77]

What's a hell of a note is that 18 year olds are being sent to Iraq and Afghanistan. But they still have to be 21 to brew or drink legally. Definitely not fair.

 

[Desert_Sky]

you guys are acting like you never drank in the dorms. If he can pull it off, well nice and more power to him. Personally I would make friends with someone who has a house off campus and stick to BMC in the dorms

i rememebr coming into the dorms with my laundry basket. And in between all my laundry was always at least a case of beer

 

[SkaBoneBenny]

Just brew off campus. You have to have some friends living in an apartment or a house or something. Make a deal that they get 25% of each batch or somehting like that. Everyone wins...
-Ben

 

[uwmgdman]

We used one of those move-in/out carts from the front desk, go to the loading dock, but a 1/2 barrel from someone's car into it and put an empty TV box over it. Looked like we were bringing a new TV into the place. Kept the keg in the closet. Then again our RA was on the other wing of the hall by the girls and was so completely airheaded, she never had a clue. We even told her at the end of the year, and she was like, oh I would have known if you guys did that.

But yeah, having some friends out of the dorms was nice, never had to worry about being harassed by any other RAs walking around.

 

[olllllo]

you guys are acting like you never drank in the dorms. If he can pull it off, well nice and more power to him.

1. We didn't have the internet. We figured it out on our own.
2. I don't feel obliged to help him.
3. Obviously he lacks the skills to pull it off since he posted his age and he identified it as a dorm.

 

[Brewpastor]

I don't think brewing is illegal, just drinking, or at least that is what you could claim.

 

[DeadYetiBrew]

It is illegal to brew and drink under the age of 21... However you can buy all the equipment and ingredients...

 

[Orfy]

I'm surprised people are allowed to register for the forum without indicating they are over 21.
It's obviously not illegal to read, or talk about brewing. But I guess it is illegal to help some one under 21 to brew.

 

[the_bird]

I'm just wondering where the OP is planning on brewing (clearly, not his dorm room).

 

[Brewpastor]

If somebody wants to take information and use it in an illegal manner that is not my fault as the author.

 

[Genghis77]

In some countries a person might be allowed to brew and drink alcohol at a lower age. I believe it is the University of California that has a brewing cirriculum.

 

[the_bird]

We have this conversation every time a young 'un comes here looking for info. If somebody wants to search the threads and find information that I may have provided (worthless as it is), I have no problem with that. But at the same time, I'm just not comfortable giving out information directly.

Is that a bit hypocritical? Maybe.

But you know, every single question that will be asked has already BEEN asked and answered probably eight thousand times on this and other web forums. If someone who is 19 wants to brew and has some questions, the answers are out there; if they have to look a little harder to find them, BFD.

 

[Brewpastor]

Is it really against the law to brew under 21. I find that hard to believe. I know somebody under 21 can be employed as a brewer and take course work in brewing.

 

[olllllo]

At some point, it will be possessable and therein is the problem.

Edit: I'm in the bird's camp on this.

 

[todd_k]

Wow, I can't believe a moderator would encourage minors to make beer. I think that is reckless and irresponsible. I know we all drank as minors but that didn't make it any more legal. If he wants to search this forum or any other internet site then that's fine, that is his right. But when you start providing information on how to make beer then you get into a gray area that I don't think you should be getting into.