Thanks to everyone for all the valuable info. I guess I'll be buying a starter kit then.
Thanks to everyone for all the valuable info. I guess I'll be buying a starter kit then.
osagedr said:If you plan to stick with this hobsession, get something decent right off the bat. People often regret they didn't get a better stirplate, or a bigger flask, or a heavy-duty stirbar.
Ok! Now I gotta ask......What all do I need so I don't sell myself short and regret it later like I did going with extract instead of all grain?
Golddiggie said:Welcome to the Brewvana... Where there's always something great on tap or in glass.
Where to go next depends on where you wish to focus on next. IMO, get yeast wrangling down. At the same time you can start experimenting with your own recipes. If you're not already using software to help figure things out, get some.
Personally, once I got the stirplate (one from Hanna) I was able to make starters faster, and smaller (and still get the colony size I needed/wanted). I'm getting ready to build another stirplate, so that I have two. Getting the pure O2 setup was another boon. Then setting up my keg mash tun and going with Blichmann burners. :rockin: A refractometer will be your best friend pre-fermentation (and post if you use the software).
Read a few of the more choice books while you're at it. Yeast is a great one, as is Designing Great Beers.
Try some other fermentations such as mead. Do yourself a favor there though, ditch the methods listed in the Joy of Homebrewing book. Read up on the more current techniques followed on the Got Mead? forums. Irish moss/whirlfloc has NO place in mead, as does heat. Keep it under 110F and the mead will thank you with extreme greatness.
Once you get over the fascination of watching your beer/mead ferment through clear carboys, or get over the low cost of buckets, start looking into stainless steel fermenting. You don't need to go for the budget wrecking conical fermenters though. I'm using sanke kegs with great results/success.
I started off bottling my brews, but have since moved over to kegging. There's benefits to both, you need to decide which way to go, or if/when to transition. You don't need to be 100% in either method, you can do both if you decide to. Personally, I like the level of control over the carbonation that kegging (and force carbonating with CO2, but not rapid force carbonating) gives me. I can pretty much nail the CO2 volumes I want in a keg simply by knowing it's temperature (easily done) and referencing a chart to get how much pressure/gas to give the keg. Give it a couple/few weeks and BAM, you've got it nailed. No more worries about bottle bombs, over-, or under-carbonated brews either.
There's more that you can do, but you need to decide where to focus first. It could take years, decades, or even lifetimes to get to it all (depending on how old you are now)...
Golddiggie said:Welcome to the Brewvana... Where there's always something great on tap or in glass.
Where to go next depends on where you wish to focus on next. IMO, get yeast wrangling down. At the same time you can start experimenting with your own recipes. If you're not already using software to help figure things out, get some.
Personally, once I got the stirplate (one from Hanna) I was able to make starters faster, and smaller (and still get the colony size I needed/wanted). I'm getting ready to build another stirplate, so that I have two. Getting the pure O2 setup was another boon. Then setting up my keg mash tun and going with Blichmann burners. :rockin: A refractometer will be your best friend pre-fermentation (and post if you use the software).
Read a few of the more choice books while you're at it. Yeast is a great one, as is Designing Great Beers.
Try some other fermentations such as mead. Do yourself a favor there though, ditch the methods listed in the Joy of Homebrewing book. Read up on the more current techniques followed on the Got Mead? forums. Irish moss/whirlfloc has NO place in mead, as does heat. Keep it under 110F and the mead will thank you with extreme greatness.
Once you get over the fascination of watching your beer/mead ferment through clear carboys, or get over the low cost of buckets, start looking into stainless steel fermenting. You don't need to go for the budget wrecking conical fermenters though. I'm using sanke kegs with great results/success.
I started off bottling my brews, but have since moved over to kegging. There's benefits to both, you need to decide which way to go, or if/when to transition. You don't need to be 100% in either method, you can do both if you decide to. Personally, I like the level of control over the carbonation that kegging (and force carbonating with CO2, but not rapid force carbonating) gives me. I can pretty much nail the CO2 volumes I want in a keg simply by knowing it's temperature (easily done) and referencing a chart to get how much pressure/gas to give the keg. Give it a couple/few weeks and BAM, you've got it nailed. No more worries about bottle bombs, over-, or under-carbonated brews either.
There's more that you can do, but you need to decide where to focus first. It could take years, decades, or even lifetimes to get to it all (depending on how old you are now)...
OK I just ordered a magnetic stir plate and 2L flask. I read about and watched some videos of yeast starters and I think I will be ready to use it for my next batch. Is the pure O2 setup for aerating the wort? And if so is it a whole lot better than a drill attached mixer? I have a 6.5 gallon glass carboy and a 5 gallon carboy. I am going to read the books that you suggested. I really appreciate all the information, help and advice that you and everyone on here has provided!
Ok. Thanks again! I guess I'll be looking into investing in an O2 system next then. I like beersmith better than the iPad app but it's also helpful.
Golddiggie said:Parts for an O2 setup that won't make you replace tanks/bottles often (depending on how much you push through the bottle you get from HD, it could be gone in <10 batches)...
O2 flow meter regulator options:
Video Link: http://www.amazon.com/Oxygen-Regulator-CGA540-colored-protector/dp/B006980H1O/ref=wl_it_dp_o_npd?ie=UTF8&coliid=I2810UNJ8SQHNW&colid=25ZQ256WPSZH4
Video Link: http://www.amazon.com/Oxygen-Regulator-0-8-Liters/dp/B004UTRP3W/ref=wl_it_dp_o_npd?ie=UTF8&coliid=I1Y60HA5JYCFJ9&colid=25ZQ256WPSZH4
O2 stone on wand
Tubing to connect wand to regulator
O2 tank: Check your local welding gas suppliers/stores. A 20 cubic foot tank usually runs about $100 for the first one (with gas in it). Refills are typically tank swaps, so you don't need to worry about getting them re-certified later.
You should also be able to get a brass fitting to go from the 3/16" ID tubing to the threaded fitting on the regulators listed above. Shouldn't be more than a dollar or three.
Look at this as a set of hardware that won't need to be changed. Once you have the O2 tank, it's just a matter of swapping it as they become empty. With how little O2 you'll use from each tank you should get a lot of batches oxygenated before you need to swap it.
You just oxygenate for a few minutes before pitching the yeast?
Golddiggie said:I normally do 1-1.5lpm for 60 seconds in a 'normal' OG batch (for me, that's about 1.060-1.070). Bigger brews get 1.5-2lpm for 60-90 seconds, depending on the OG and yeast.
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