Fermentation chamber dirt basement

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Jloewe

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 10, 2020
Messages
197
Reaction score
74
Not sure if this is the right place for this post but best shot.

I am moving into a new house this weekend finally a home owner! Finally a new stand up freezer! Finally get my chest freezer as a fermentation chamber!!

Here’s the catch. Really the only place to put the chest freezer is in the basement as it’s rather a decent sized one at 21x37. Basement is dirt floor and dank. Low ceilings and such. If I clean up the cobwebs and put down some rubber mats and such will my beer be ok in that sealed chamber? Or do I need to start begging the wife for a plan B?
 
Congrats on the new house! Don't worry about it. Practice common-sense hygiene and it will be fine.

I moved into a house two years ago, and while my basement floor isn't technically dirt, the walls leak and flake off, there are lots of creepy crawlies, and it is generally dirty looking. Not only do I store my beer and equipment down there, I even brew and ferment in it and I haven't had any issues. Again, practice common sense hygiene. Your bottles and kegs are sealed and positively pressurized.

You may be surprised at how nice you can get it to look too, with some time and creativity. Relax, don't worry, and enjoy your new space.

P.S. I too have been grateful for the plastic LED bulbs.
 
You might consider laying down some heavy plastic directly on the dirt. Let it overlap about 6 inches up the walls. Then simply lay plywood or rubber mats on top of the plastic. The plastic underlayment will serve nicely as a vapor barrier and the plywood makes a better surface to work on plus it protects the plastic from damage. I did that once in a storage shed and it kept it dry and made for a suitable dry storage space area.
 
Just don't be opening your actual fermenter while it's in conditions where contamination from dust and dirt falling off the joists above or floating in the air is an issue.
 
You might consider laying down some heavy plastic directly on the dirt. Let it overlap about 6 inches up the walls. Then simply lay plywood or rubber mats on top of the plastic. The plastic underlayment will serve nicely as a vapor barrier and the plywood makes a better surface to work on plus it protects the plastic from damage. I did that once in a storage shed and it kept it dry and made for a suitable dry storage space area.
Yes we were thinking of doing that. Plus I even considered sticking peal and stick lenolum to the ceiling to try and add another layer of “niceness” at least for a little while.
 
To add what Murph4231 posted, instead plywood or rubber mats put down landscape pavers on top of that plastic to make it a more permanent floor. Be careful about drips and spills on a floor like that though. You could still use plywood or rubber mats under your fermentation to contain any issues.
 
A little late here, but here's a few ideas I've used to "handle" dust in garages and spaces... also probably after you do some coverage of that dirt floor.

1. Shop Vac, if you have one, to vac up everything loose, cobwebs, etc.
2. Shop Vac, again, though backwards, i.e. the hose blowing through the exhaust as a blower to knock loose dust and or blow it out/off of places you didn't get, or cant reach.

Repeat those two, a time or three, for the first major cleaning. Hand dusting also, as well.

3. 20" classic square Window Fan. (and you can use one for the above step 2, to blow things loose if you don't have a Vac.) Get a 20"x20" cheap furnace filter, it will suck onto the intake side and sort of hold itself there, tada, basically functional air filtration system. Aim in a way that will circulate air in the space, run a few hrs, it will suck a lot of floating dust up. I wouldn't bet my lungs on it, like for a basement woodworking shop, but it will do a decent amount of mid size particle removal.

Once your cleaned out, should only need occasional attention from there.
 
Think about your process. Any liquid spills will make mud. Can you use catch basins? Also, you can dog out the floor more to make it deeper. I have family that dug out a crawl space into a full basement.
 
Back
Top