Hey everyone, i know this has probably been asked 1000 times on here and answered just as many times, so i apologize in advance.
So i just completed my first brew last night (Brooklyn Brew Shop's 1 gallon Everyday IPA), which i think went pretty well. I woke up this morning to what seems to be pretty active fermentation, so i took that as a good sign
My question is, what is the best ambient temperature i should be trying to keep the ferementer in? I live in a basement apartment with several different rooms that all tend to be different temperatures... The living room / kitchen area is usually as low as 66 degrees at night, and during the day when we have the space heater going (when we're home) its around 70-72. We have a third bedroom / storage room that has the vents blocked off and it usually stays i would say anywhere from 64-66 degrees. And then there is the small furnace room (where i have my fermenter right now), which is dark, and i would say stays probably in the 64-68 range, though i will need to check that more. We also have a cold cellar, but that is significantly colder. I know ales are supposed to ferment at 68-72 (i believe), but i also know that once its fermenting the temperature of the liquid in the fermenter will rise (though im not sure how much using only a 1 gallon fermenter would affect that), so i figured it would probably be best to stay closer to 68 or slightly below for ambient temperature than closer to 72. Would this assumption be correct? Also, i was wondering how can i monitor the actual temperature of the fermenting wort, just to make sure its not getting too high? I only have a lab thermometer, and i didn't know if its a good idea to be taking the air lock off frequently to take temperature readings of the wort, as i would be worried about contamination... Is there another way to do this? Right now all i've been doing is keeping my thermometer beside the fermenter to watch the ambient temperature...
Thanks for any advice you guys can offer me!
So i just completed my first brew last night (Brooklyn Brew Shop's 1 gallon Everyday IPA), which i think went pretty well. I woke up this morning to what seems to be pretty active fermentation, so i took that as a good sign
My question is, what is the best ambient temperature i should be trying to keep the ferementer in? I live in a basement apartment with several different rooms that all tend to be different temperatures... The living room / kitchen area is usually as low as 66 degrees at night, and during the day when we have the space heater going (when we're home) its around 70-72. We have a third bedroom / storage room that has the vents blocked off and it usually stays i would say anywhere from 64-66 degrees. And then there is the small furnace room (where i have my fermenter right now), which is dark, and i would say stays probably in the 64-68 range, though i will need to check that more. We also have a cold cellar, but that is significantly colder. I know ales are supposed to ferment at 68-72 (i believe), but i also know that once its fermenting the temperature of the liquid in the fermenter will rise (though im not sure how much using only a 1 gallon fermenter would affect that), so i figured it would probably be best to stay closer to 68 or slightly below for ambient temperature than closer to 72. Would this assumption be correct? Also, i was wondering how can i monitor the actual temperature of the fermenting wort, just to make sure its not getting too high? I only have a lab thermometer, and i didn't know if its a good idea to be taking the air lock off frequently to take temperature readings of the wort, as i would be worried about contamination... Is there another way to do this? Right now all i've been doing is keeping my thermometer beside the fermenter to watch the ambient temperature...
Thanks for any advice you guys can offer me!