Fermentation Temps in a Condo

[user 79142]

I'm very new to brewing have been learning a lot from these forums. Some of the reading that I've done has led me to wonder about fermentation temperatures and whether my conditions are acceptable. I live in a condo that stays a pretty constant 70 degrees throughout the year. Unfortunately, I can't afford to keep the temperature much lower than this, especially in the summer months.

Is 70 degrees OK for fermenting ales? Or should I look into getting the temperatures even lower? Is there significant benefits to bringing the temperature down in the 60s? (I've got two batches bottle conditioning now, so I haven't even tried my first batch). If so, what are some of the recommended methods for achieving and consistently maintaining lower temperatures where space is a premium?

 

[maffewl]

70 is on the high side... if you add the increased temperature that fermentation causes, it can definitely be too high. A simple and inexpensive solution is to buy one of those large tubs from Wal-Mart or Lowes for around 10 dollars and fill it with water and place your carboy in there. Freeze several plastic bottles (enough for at least two/three shifts) and place/replace them in as you can during the day. This should hold the temps around 62-66 degrees depending on how often your replace the frozen bottles. Another nice thing to this approach is that if you have an immersion chiller, you can use the tub as an ice bath to help with the cold break.

 

[Hang Glider]

+1
don't sweat your first few batches, but Temp Control will definitely improve your beer, and Maffewl's suggested methods are very common, and inexpensive. Of course, you can buy a used refrigerator, hook it up to a temp control unit, ... you can go as automated/expensive as you want, but you can also make very fine beer with the tub/frozen water bottle method.

 

[Zen_Brew]

Maffewl nailed it. Use those large tubs, or for a slightly longer time between ice changes, you can use an Igloo cube cooler which will hold temp a little longer. Works very well as an alternative to refrigeration.

 

[Boleslaus]

I'll third the suggestion to use a swamp cooler. I didn't use one on my first batch, but then bought one for my second. Definitely saw improvement. I just used a big rubbermaid trash can. Fill it with water til just before the bucket starts floating, and swap out frozen water bottles. It can keep your beer in the low 60's even when ambient temp is near 80.

 

[cruckin78]

I use a wine fridge as a fermentation chamber...on setting 1 it maintains about 65* on it's highest (or lowest setting) of 7 it gets down to 45*

works perfect, stores 1 6.5 gal carboy with a airlock.

 

[user 79142]

Thanks! Great suggestions that should work well in my condo and when I move to India in 6 months.

Should I leave the primary in the cooler temps throughout the fermentation process, i.e. continue to change out the ice for 3 weeks (or potentially longer for certain beers)?

 

[Boleslaus]

Thanks! Great suggestions that should work well in my condo and when I move to India in 6 months.

Should I leave the primary in the cooler temps throughout the fermentation process, i.e. continue to change out the ice for 3 weeks (or potentially longer for certain beers)?

Yes. Some styles you'll want to raise the temp. gradual towards the end of fermentation to help it finish dryer or get a few more gravity points down. But most beers are fine in the 65-69 range for the extent of their time in primary.

 

[TopherM]

I ferment at about 74 in the summers (all ales) at my house here in Central FL. Peeps at my brew club that have been brewing in Florida for 30+ years tell me that even though I'll initially have some esters and diacetyl due to the higher temperatures, a longer primary (extra week or so, I primary for 3-4 weeks total, no secondary), and longer bottle conditioning (an extra 2-3 weeks or so, I bottle condition for about 5-6 weeks) eliminates the esters and diacetyl and will make a beer just as good as the most tightly controlled fermentation chamber.

So, as most things in this hobby, it's all about patience!

 

[Misplaced_Canuck]

70F is not a bad temperature to ferment at. I would look into the Wyeast documentation (or White Labs, whatever you use) and find the yeast that do better in the low to mid-70's and experiment with those.

M_C

 

[Wakadaka]

I am in Richmond, VA, and my condo is 68-73 pretty much all year. The swamp cooler has worked well for me. I only really try to keep it cool for the first 3-4 days of fermentation. After that I get lazy, but the bulk of fermentation will be done, and most off flavors occur during the reproduction phase anyways. Also, the water in the tub will still keep your beer below 70 degrees for the rest of the time its in there. I also keep the swamp cooler in a closet that I somewhat rarely open. It seems to stay a few degrees cooler in there all the time, but that might just be wishful thinking.

70 degrees is a pretty reasonable temperature, and you could get away fermenting some yeasts at room temperature. But with a swamp cooler and ice, you should have very little problem getting your beer down to the low 60s.

 

[mnstorm99]

Is homebrewing legal in India? I didn't think it was.

 

[user 79142]

Is homebrewing legal in India? I didn't think it was.

Yes, it is legal, as long as it's for personal consumption.

 

[mnstorm99]

Good to know, good for you

 

[jwplessner]

If you're like me and are low on cash AND space, you can still have hands-off temp control for cheap. I got a presentable-looking mini fridge that fits one carboy after bending the freezer tray and added a $30 Lux Win100 temperature controller. You need to mod the lux a tiny bit: splice or solder a wire to extend the temp probe. You don't, however, have to add a power supply. The controller is great if you just need ale fermentation temps (the controller only goes down to 45*F). If you buy the fridge used this setup is a clean-looking digital temp control system with a $60 price tag.

 

[Qhrumphf]

I live under almost exactly the same circumstances (apartment that I can keep 70 at the coolest) and the water-filled bin works perfectly for me. I was even able to pseudo-lager a California common at 50-52 degrees for a few weeks this way (that took swapping out 2 gallons of ice every 8 hours, but it was doable). I'm able to hold the low to mid 60s with very little effort. It'll also help if you keep it stored the coolest place possible, or right next to an AC unit/vent.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

My house is about a constant 68^ and most of my beers hit 70^ during primary. The things I do to control diacetyl and undesirable esters are pitch yeast at the very low end of it's suggested temp so that fermentation kicks off below room temp and then rises. And I leave most ales in primary up to three weeks before racking to secondary. Longer for English styles brewed with known diacetyl producing strains. The added time on the yeast cake lets the yeasties clean up their mess.
Also, some American ale strains don't seem to produce as much of these off flavors even at the higher end of the recommended temp range, so I brew more American styles when it's warmer.

 

[user 79142]

Thanks for all the great info/suggestions! This thread leaves me with some great options. I'll probably start with the low cost swamp cooler option and then potentially upgrade, if I can make it work in India (it will be hellishly hot). I'll also pay closer attention to what yeast strains I'm using.

 

[Clann]

It'll also help if you keep it stored the coolest place possible, or right next to an AC unit/vent.

Keeping your primary next to the AC vent will keep you plenty cool if your thermostat is at 70. Its what I do and I can keep tamps in the mid 60s. might work better if you use a swamp cooler.

 

[grace1760]

I've attached some pics of my setup*. Even though I understand that water (swamp cooler) is a better conductor of heat than air; however, do you think I could build a "cap" of foam insulation board, continue swapping out frozen bottles of water, and keep temps** in the optimal range for ale brewing? I don't exactly know why, but I'm trying to avoid the swamp cooler/tub filled with water strategy.

*I'm planning on getting another primary bucket asap...this bucket holds a kolsch, which is my first solo brew.

**I don't have a fermometer, I've heard differing opinions on whether or not submersion in water will ruin it. Thoughts? Is there another cheap option? I'll probably get a few anyway, since they are only a couple bucks each.

 

[johnmcc]

I basically have the same setup as you do, but I have the 2nd bucket in the container, i have cold water in the bottom along with a few blocks of ice

 

[grace1760]

Yeah, I know I can do the ice-water, but please re-read my post. Can I do a foam-board insulation "cap" and skip the water (but keep the ice water bottles)??

Any comments on the fermometer?

Thanks all...

 

[tvtoms]

Well, I can tell you that I use the box from a 42 inch plasma tv as a fermenting chamber. 2 plastic totes fit in there so 2 fermenters in swamp cooler rigs, plus there's room for a couple of old coffee cans with frozen bottles sitting in them. They stay ice for surprisingly long and cardboard is actually a pretty good insulation in a pinch. Foamboard over frozen bottles should keep it quite cold in there I think. Might as well go for it and put a thermometer in there so you can see how well it's working.

 

[Hang Glider]

regarding the fermometer getting wet, I have heard stories also - but Wally World (and others) sells indoor/outdoor thermometers quite cheap. Maybe not critically accurate, but probably fine for fermenting. The outdoor portion is usually a weatherproof (!) probe on a wire that you could drop into the chamber or tape against the bucket without harm from liquids.

 

[cactussam]

Another really good cheap option (and less work than the frozen bottles) is to place the carboy in a tub half full of water, and wrap a towel around the carboy. From here, place a small fan to blow air on the towel wrapped carboy. The evaporation will cause the towel to cool significantly, which in turn will cause the carboy to cool down. You can maintain pretty chilled temperatures like this only having to occasionally add water to your tub/bucket.

Cheap and easy