First Time Brewer -- Some Dumb Questions

[kyoun1e]

Hello!

Was given a BSG Handcraft kit along with the recipe for a 5 gallon white pale ale for my birthday. I'll have everything I'll need to start the brew in a couple weeks and have read quite a bit including the recipe instructions but have some (dumb) questions.

1. Steeping Grains

* I have three different bags of grains...do you just dump them all in one bag or does each grain need it's own bag? I'm assuming dump them in one.

* Instructions aren't clear on if you put grains in the pot before or after the temp of the water reaches 155 degrees F. I assume after.

* Instructions indicate that the water should remain at 155 for 30 minutes, but the grains should be taken out after 15...does that make sense? Everything I've read says keep in for 30.

2. Malt -- I have three different malts. 2 cans x 3.3 lbs of PilsenLight and a 1 lb bag of Briess Wheat...do you just dump all these in? I assume yes, but it seems like a ton!

3. Yeast -- I have dried yeast in the kit. I've read that you should go out and get fresh yeast. Good idea? Or just stick with what is provided?

I know...dumb. Understanding how much time you have to put into this I don't want to screw up the batch!

Thanks in advance.

KY

 

[Yooper]

Hello!

Was given a BSG Handcraft kit along with the recipe for a 5 gallon white pale ale for my birthday. I'll have everything I'll need to start the brew in a couple weeks and have read quite a bit including the recipe instructions but have some (dumb) questions.

1. Steeping Grains

* I have three different bags of grains...do you just dump them all in one bag or does each grain need it's own bag? I'm assuming dump them in one.

It doesn't matter- unless the bag is small. You want enough space in the bag so that you can stir the grain bag and have the grain very loose in the bag- almost like it's not in the bag at all. If your bag is large enough to hold all of the grain, and for the grain to move freely, that's fine. If it takes two or three bags, that's ok too!

* Instructions aren't clear on if you put grains in the pot before or after the temp of the water reaches 155 degrees F. I assume after.

It doesn't matter, either way is fine. You can add the grains to the pot when you turn on the heat, but for many it's easier to get the pot to 160 (and not too much over) and then add the grain so it settles at 150-155. You'll be fine if it's a little more or less, but don't go over 160 degrees. If you are afraid you'll overheat the grain and water, adding it after the water is hot is the way to go!

* Instructions indicate that the water should remain at 155 for 30 minutes, but the grains should be taken out after 15...does that make sense? Everything I've read says keep in for 30.

No, that doesn't make sense at all. Leave it in for 20 minutes or so, generally.

2. Malt -- I have three different malts. 2 cans x 3.3 lbs of PilsenLight and a 1 lb bag of Briess Wheat...do you just dump all these in? I assume yes, but it seems like a ton!

What I recommend doing is adding one can when you get to a boil, and then adding the rest at the end of the boil when you turn off the flame. That way, you can boil more water in your pot, and not have such a condensed sugar solution. Adding the bulk of the extract at flame out makes a better tasting beer.

3. Yeast -- I have dried yeast in the kit. I've read that you should go out and get fresh yeast. Good idea? Or just stick with what is provided?

Depends on what the dry yeast is- it could be fine. Or it could be garbage. Let us know what it is, and the expiration date on the package (and the size of the package- some are 11 grams and some are 6 grams), and the type of the kit you are making, and we can give advise on that.

I know...dumb. Understanding how much time you have to put into this I don't want to screw up the batch!

Not dumb at all! Those are very reasonable questions!

Thanks in advance.

KY

My answers and comments are in pink. Let us know if you have more questions!

 

[BeerAddikt]

Not dumb questions at all.

1. For the steeping grains you can combine them all into one bag assuming they will fit. But you don't want to put too much into one bag as the grains expand as they steep so use as many bags as necessary. It really depends on the size of the bags and the weight of the grains. Put grains into water when you reach 155F but make sure you don't exceed 170F. I'm not sure why the directions contradict themselves, but steeping for 30 min is fine.

2. Yes you can dump them all in at the start of the boil, as that's not that crazy an amount of extract. But I'd advise that you save one of the 3.3 lbs cans of PilsenLight and add it with 5 minutes left in the boil. This will keep your wort from getting to dark.

3. Dry yeast is best for beginners. It should have a date on it that indicates when it was manufactured so you know if it's fresh or not. Check the date. If it's really old you may want to pick up another packet of dry yeast. But definitely start with a dry yeast.

Best of luck on your brew day.

Edit: Yooper beat me to it. She gives the best advise so roll with whatever she says.

 

[h22lude]

1) Yes dump in one bag. They are milled, right?
2) Some do before and some do after. Doesn't really matter that much. Either put them in, bring to 160° and let it sit for 20 minutes or so OR bring to 160° and let it sit for 30 minutes or so.
3) No leave them in.
4) Yes dump them all in. You can dump some in at the end of the boil but for now just dump them all in at the start of the boil.
5) What is the production date of the yeast? Has it been kept cold?

Edit: the other two beat me lol but we all have similar answers so it worked out

 

[kh54s10]

All in one bag.
It is not critical. I put the grains in the water when hot then leave them in while the water heats to 150, it usually takes the 20 minutes that I steep for.
I have always steeped for 20 minutes with the grains in the entire time.
The amount of malt is right. I would put half of each in at the start of the boil and the rest at the end. This will keep the color from getting too dark.
The yeast in a BSG kit should be ok, as long as it is not too old. Especially if it is an 11 gram pack from a yeast lab, and not repackaged yeast.

 

[kyoun1e]

Wow. What a great site this is. Glad I found it. You guys are great.

Gotcha on the grains.

On the malts...these instructions don't seem right. It says to bring pot to a boil then remove the pot from heat...then add the malts. This is to avoid scorching at the bottom of the pot. Then you put it back on the heat and bring to a boil.

Necessary? Or maybe just leave on the heat and adjust lower if necessary?

I like the idea of adding the malts in two stages as suggested. Per the recipe, I'm adding orange peel and coriander with 15 minutes left so maybe add after that.

As for yeast, I have dry ale yeast Safale US-05 with an expiration of March 2018. 11.5 grams.

Thanks!

 

[Enemygod]

On the malts...these instructions don't seem right. It says to bring pot to a boil then remove the pot from heat...then add the malts. This is to avoid scorching at the bottom of the pot. Then you put it back on the heat and bring to a boil.

Necessary? Or maybe just leave on the heat and adjust lower if necessary?

As for yeast, I have dry ale yeast Safale US-05 with an expiration of March 2018. 11.5 grams.

Thanks!

Yes, you do that to avoid scorching and to also help prevent boil overs, which can be nasty. I normally just turn the heat down, so you can do whichever you feel most comfortable with.

Your yeast is fine! I would place it in the fridge until brew day though.

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

Wow. What a great site this is. Glad I found it. You guys are great.

Gotcha on the grains.

On the malts...these instructions don't seem right. It says to bring pot to a boil then remove the pot from heat...then add the malts. This is to avoid scorching at the bottom of the pot. Then you put it back on the heat and bring to a boil.

Necessary? Or maybe just leave on the heat and adjust lower if necessary?

I like the idea of adding the malts in two stages as suggested. Per the recipe, I'm adding orange peel and coriander with 15 minutes left so maybe add after that.

As for yeast, I have dry ale yeast Safale US-05 with an expiration of March 2018. 11.5 grams.

Thanks!

I don't know what size pot you have, but here's a word of warning about the hot break. When you start your boil, there will be a point where it really foams up, then settles into a nice boil. You need to monitor initially for that point where it wants to foam up and either manage the heat and/or use a spray bottle with water to break up the foam. Boil over is a huge risk, especially if your pot is really full.

Then, if you save some of the malt extract to add towards the end, be aware that a second hot break with the newly added extract will occur, so you'll need to again monitor closely.

In general, relax and have fun. Follow the instructions regarding sanitizing things that come into contact with your wort/beer after the boil. Brewing isn't super hard if you can follow a recipe.

Relax, have fun and let us know how it turns out. I've found the people here very helpful and welcoming.

 

[kyoun1e]

Ok, another set of questions, mostly around reading temperature at various stages:

1. Pot Temperature -- I purchased a stainless steel thermometer to stick in the pot to gauge if I'm between 155 - 170 degrees. Good?

2. Wort Chilling -- Everything I've read says you need to chill the wort down to 60 F. I plan on using several ice bags (but will think about a wort chiller down the road). I'm guessing that opening the lid and sticking my stainless steel thermometer in there is a bad idea. I've noticed in some pics here the people just stick a thermometer next to the pot while cooling it. What's the best approach here?

3. Fermentor Temp -- I was given a strip thermometer to place on my carboy. Do I just place it anywhere? Vertically in the middle of the carboy? I've also read that these strip thermometers can get damaged with use and that some tape the thermometer on there, leave the back strip on, and take the thermometer on and off.

I'm also planning on sticking the carboy in a dark room in my basement. Unfortunately, it's going to turn 90+ here in the Boston next week!

4. Transferring Wort To Carboy -- I ordered a "no splash" funnel. Not loving the idea of pouring all that's in the pot in that funnel. Seems risky. Anyway, everyone talks about making enough of a "splash" during the transfer. Will the funnel do the trick? Or should I stir it after pouring in the funnel?

Thanks much?

KY

 

[Morrey]

The cliché saying "no question is a dumb question" holds true here on HBT. You have available to guide you many members with lots of collective years of experience willing to help you with these questions and others you'll have as your experience level increases. Very few folks here try to humble novice brewers to make themselves seem important. Quite the opposite is true as you'll find HBT to be a nurturing environment.

Your first brew will be very exciting, so please report back afterwards and tell of your experience.

 

[bernardsmith]

Hi kyoun1e - and welcome. I don't pretend to be an expert (I make mead and wines and brew beer only occasionally) but you might find that it is more efficient (that is, faster) to cool your wort from boiling to 60 F by
Filling a sink with cold water (no ice) and vigorously stirring the wort as it cools (the temperature gradient from say 212 - 50 F (the cold water) is large enough to allow the temperature to drop without ice. When the temperature of the wort falls to around 100 F THEN add the ice to some freshly added cold water. The new gradient will help pull the temperature of the wort down further faster. The idea being that adding ice to the water when the wort is near boiling is a waste of the effect the ice can have later when you REALLY want there to be a steep gradient in temps between the wort and the bath. Sticking the thermometer in the wort is fine (you want to stir the wort anyway - IMO) - BUT you need to make sure that anything that touches the wort is sanitized well so you want to use a solution of Star San suitably diluted per directions... Was that something that came with the kit?

 

[h22lude]

Ok, another set of questions, mostly around reading temperature at various stages:

1. Pot Temperature -- I purchased a stainless steel thermometer to stick in the pot to gauge if I'm between 155 - 170 degrees. Good?

2. Wort Chilling -- Everything I've read says you need to chill the wort down to 60 F. I plan on using several ice bags (but will think about a wort chiller down the road). I'm guessing that opening the lid and sticking my stainless steel thermometer in there is a bad idea. I've noticed in some pics here the people just stick a thermometer next to the pot while cooling it. What's the best approach here?

3. Fermentor Temp -- I was given a strip thermometer to place on my carboy. Do I just place it anywhere? Vertically in the middle of the carboy? I've also read that these strip thermometers can get damaged with use and that some tape the thermometer on there, leave the back strip on, and take the thermometer on and off.

I'm also planning on sticking the carboy in a dark room in my basement. Unfortunately, it's going to turn 90+ here in the Boston next week!

4. Transferring Wort To Carboy -- I ordered a "no splash" funnel. Not loving the idea of pouring all that's in the pot in that funnel. Seems risky. Anyway, everyone talks about making enough of a "splash" during the transfer. Will the funnel do the trick? Or should I stir it after pouring in the funnel?

Thanks much?

KY

1) yes just make sure the thermometer is accurate. Hopefully you can calibrate it. Put a lot of crushed ice in a cup with water. It should almost be a slushy. Stir it around. The thermometer should read 32. Boil water. The thermometer should read 212.

2) I'm hoping you mean an ice bath and not sticking the ice in the wort lol an ice bath is an acceptable way to chill it. It will take some time but it works. After the boil, cover the pot and stick it in the ice bath. You can use the thermometer, just sanitize it before putting it in the wort. Go buy starsan. It is a no rinse sanitizer. Spray it on and let it sit for a minute and it is good to go.

3) yes stick it right in the middle.

90+ ambient temp is way too hot. I suspect your room will be cooler than that but even ambient temp of 70 is too high. Fermentation creates heat and it can cause the wort to be 10° hotter than ambient. Make sure your fermometer reads under 70°. If it is too hot, read about a swamp cooler.

4) if the pot is too heavy you can use a siphon. Make sure it is all sanitized. The splash from the funnel won't be enough. You can take another sanitized pot and pour it back and forth a few times. You can also shake the carboy. Just be careful if it is glass.

If you haven't done so already, check out how to brew. There is a new edition that just came out. Best overall brewing book on the market

 

[Morrey]

Ok, another set of questions, mostly around reading temperature at various stages:

1. Pot Temperature -- I purchased a stainless steel thermometer to stick in the pot to gauge if I'm between 155 - 170 degrees. Good?

Sure

2. Wort Chilling -- Everything I've read says you need to chill the wort down to 60 F. I plan on using several ice bags (but will think about a wort chiller down the road). I'm guessing that opening the lid and sticking my stainless steel thermometer in there is a bad idea. I've noticed in some pics here the people just stick a thermometer next to the pot while cooling it. What's the best approach here?

Cool to the approximate temp you'll ferment at such as if your plan is to ferment at67F, cool to close to that temp. Leave your lid off, pot open so it cools faster, plus stirring helps too. Check as often as necessary for correct temps. Sanitize everything inc spoon to stir and thermometer after you get below 170F. SANITIZE!!!

3. Fermentor Temp -- I was given a strip thermometer to place on my carboy. Do I just place it anywhere? Vertically in the middle of the carboy? I've also read that these strip thermometers can get damaged with use and that some tape the thermometer on there, leave the back strip on, and take the thermometer on and off.

I'm also planning on sticking the carboy in a dark room in my basement. Unfortunately, it's going to turn 90+ here in the Boston next week!

You'll need some kind of temp control or stabilization. 90F will be a problem. Maybe a swamp cooler (google one on here) or better yet, an old freezer with a temp controller is a long term solution. Very critical to control temps.

4. Transferring Wort To Carboy -- I ordered a "no splash" funnel. Not loving the idea of pouring all that's in the pot in that funnel. Seems risky. Anyway, everyone talks about making enough of a "splash" during the transfer. Will the funnel do the trick? Or should I stir it after pouring in the funnel?

Some pour to oxygenate and some use a siphon to make transfer easy, then oxygenate by shaking or using an O2 stone.

Thanks much?

KY

Trying not to get too advanced so you wont feel overloaded. If you have a place to put your carboy in your house where the temps are more normal for fermentation, you'll get better beer.

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

Ok, another set of questions, mostly around reading temperature at various stages:

1. Pot Temperature -- I purchased a stainless steel thermometer to stick in the pot to gauge if I'm between 155 - 170 degrees. Good?

2. Wort Chilling -- Everything I've read says you need to chill the wort down to 60 F. I plan on using several ice bags (but will think about a wort chiller down the road). I'm guessing that opening the lid and sticking my stainless steel thermometer in there is a bad idea. I've noticed in some pics here the people just stick a thermometer next to the pot while cooling it. What's the best approach here?

3. Fermentor Temp -- I was given a strip thermometer to place on my carboy. Do I just place it anywhere? Vertically in the middle of the carboy? I've also read that these strip thermometers can get damaged with use and that some tape the thermometer on there, leave the back strip on, and take the thermometer on and off.

I'm also planning on sticking the carboy in a dark room in my basement. Unfortunately, it's going to turn 90+ here in the Boston next week!

4. Transferring Wort To Carboy -- I ordered a "no splash" funnel. Not loving the idea of pouring all that's in the pot in that funnel. Seems risky. Anyway, everyone talks about making enough of a "splash" during the transfer. Will the funnel do the trick? Or should I stir it after pouring in the funnel?

Thanks much?

KY

1) I just have a clip on dial thermometer that I use in the pot.

2) I'm assuming you're doing a partial boil? What we've done is pre-chill the boiled wort some, then add to chilled water in the carboy, then chill that to pitch temp (about 65 degrees typically) and go. To chill the carboy, we put it in a cooler of ice water and swirl.

3) I just taped the strip therm to the carboy horizontally across the middle. Ultimately, a thermowell and temp controller are best, but that's probably a future upgrade.

4) Depending on whether you're using a bucket or carboy for primary, you may need a funnel. You want to splash as much as possible to aerate the wort....the little yeasties need O2 to get going. I use a $2.50 siphon aerator. It fits on a hose, then I can siphon (now I pump) from the kettle to the fermenter and it sprays the wort into the fermenter, adding lots 'o oxygen.
(remember to NOT splash after fermentation is complete).

 

[seilenos]

Prior to the end of boiling the boil itself acts as a sanitizer so sticking the thermometer in to check the temp during steeping is OK. This is different than at the end during cooling where nothing that hasn't been cleaned and sanitized should come in contact with the wort. During brews I keep a homer bucket with 2 - 3 gallons of sanitizer around for things like the paddle I stir with, tongs, thermometer, airlock, etc.

For steeping temp, keep it close to 155 F and make sure to stir before taking a reading.

When you are done your boil you are going to have about 2.5 gal of wort in the pot you need to cool down. A sink with some running cold water and some ice is an easy way to cool it down. Keep the running water from going into the pot.

If your top off water (the water that you'll add in the fermentor to get it to 5 gallons) is cold you can cool down even quicker. Go buy 3 or 4 gallons of spring water and stick them in the fridge a day before you brew to get them down to 40 F. If you have space, put one or two in the freezer when you start to brew (not earlier or they'll freeze).

When your wort is mostly cooled, put some of the coldest top off water (i.e., the stuff from the freezer if you were able to do that) in the sanitized carboy. Rack the wort on top of it. Then continue to add the top off water (from freezer first, then fridge) until you have 5 gal.

 

[Morrey]

You have two sides to brewing....A hot side and a cool side. The cool side is the one you'll need to make sure and sanitize things you use that contact the boiled wort.

Anything that is added before or during the boil is hot side. If you check temps with the probe tip or stir with your spoon, all is ok not sanitizing since the temps over 170F kill off nasties. Once the boil ends and drops below 170F, you are on the cool side. The same spoon and thermometer you used before now needs to be sprayed with a sanitizer to make it safe.

You may ask what happens if I don't keep my fermenter at a certain temp like 67F? The average ale yeast will grow and go wild if it rises toward 90F. Problem is the yeast throws lots of off flavors you will not want in your beer. Proper temp control during fermentation keeps these off flavors in check.

 

[Ashevillain]

Safale05 is awesome. Great versatile strain used as house strain for many commercial breweries due to its clean profile, flexibility, and its a workhorse. I always keep mine at 62-65 for the first 2-3 days, then its fine to let temps rise, so I would look into the swamp cooler just for a couple days. I would also recommend re-hydrating the yeast. Re-hydrating the yeast allows them to fully wake up and start doing their thing before entering the beer head on. This will give you reassurance early on by demonstrating strong airlock activity within the first 24 hrs and it allows the brew to finish a day or 2 early. If you don't re-hydrate that's totally fine just be patient when waiting for airlock activity, it will come. Also it never hurts to pitch 2 packets!

To rehydrate yeast you:
-boil 1/2 cup of purified water in the microwave
-Let it cool to 95-105
-Sprinkle yeast on and let sit 10 mins
-Stir with sanitized utencil
-Pitch into fermentor

 

[kyoun1e]

Man, this site and all of you are great!

Ok so I'll stick with the sanitized thermometer and stick that in the pot in the cool down phase. I'll slap the strip thermometer right on the carboy.

Also like the idea of filling my sink with cool water as step one, putting the pot in there, and then adding ice as the phase 2 cool.

As far as transfer, what if I just dump the wort in the pot into a sanitized bucket and then use the funnel (that is in the mail) to transfer to the carboy? That would seem to generate plenty of "splash."

Forecast calls for 80s and 90s here next week and summer is soon to emerge. Seems like a cruddy time to brew unless you can control temperature. May investigate this swamp cooler option. Just searched Amazon...would this do the trick?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008EKD7CQ/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Thanks for all the help. I'm in the process of ordering and aggregating all my equipment and setting up my "shop" in the basement. I figure this will take me through next week so maybe my first brew is 7-10 days from now. In the meantime, it's learn, learn, learn.

Thanks again.

KY

 

[Yooper]

Man, this site and all of you are great!

Ok so I'll stick with the sanitized thermometer and stick that in the pot in the cool down phase. I'll slap the strip thermometer right on the carboy.

Also like the idea of filling my sink with cool water as step one, putting the pot in there, and then adding ice as the phase 2 cool.

As far as transfer, what if I just dump the wort in the pot into a sanitized bucket and then use the funnel (that is in the mail) to transfer to the carboy? That would seem to generate plenty of "splash."

Forecast calls for 80s and 90s here next week and summer is soon to emerge. Seems like a cruddy time to brew unless you can control temperature. May investigate this swamp cooler option. Just searched Amazon...would this do the trick?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008EKD7CQ/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Thanks for all the help. I'm in the process of ordering and aggregating all my equipment and setting up my "shop" in the basement. I figure this will take me through next week so maybe my first brew is 7-10 days from now. In the meantime, it's learn, learn, learn.

Thanks again.

KY

Your plan seems great- just remember to sanitize anything that touches the wort after you start to chill the wort. Funnel, bucket, spoon, etc.

As far as to keep your beer cool during fermentation, yes that thing works.

What I did is just use a wheeled cooler (because I'm a 135 pound weakling and can't lift a cooler full of water) with an ice bath and a few frozen water bottles in it, with water up to the level of the beer. I floated a floating thermometer in the water, and changed out the frozen water bottles as needed. It was easy, and free. Except, being a OCD type, I wanted a lid to fit so I made a new lid out of foam insulation. Here's a photo:

https://cdn.homebrewtalk.com/images/4/1/8/9/4189-dscf0002-9590.jpg

But a simple bin would do. I'm sort of an "overkill" kind of person sometimes!

 

[kyoun1e]

Just doing some reading on swamp coolers. Seems to me a swamp cooler could be many things -- a couple actual "products" you can buy on Amazon for $50-$60 or you could just use a regular cooler or a tub. Either way, you need to rotate ice in and out.

Is that pretty much the jist of it?

Didn't realize that keeping the fermenter cool would require that much maintenance. Looks like you can't just set this thing and forget it. You have to check the temperature every day and rotate ice in and out depending on the reading.

 

[Morrey]

Just doing some reading on swamp coolers. Seems to me a swamp cooler could be many things -- a couple actual "products" you can buy on Amazon for $50-$60 or you could just use a regular cooler or a tub. Either way, you need to rotate ice in and out.

Is that pretty much the jist of it?

Didn't realize that keeping the fermenter cool would require that much maintenance. Looks like you can't just set this thing and forget it. You have to check the temperature every day and rotate ice in and out depending on the reading.

Yeah, the ice swapping deal with a swamp cooler can get pretty tiresome especially in high heat zones as you are mentioning. Some folks use frozen Gatorade type bottles and exchange the melted for frozen as needed. You'll probably look for a long term solution although many use swamp coolers indefinitely. I looked on Craigslist and found a nice chest freezer for cheap, then bought an Inkbird 308 ($33) which cycles the freezer on or off to maintain preset temps. The fermenter sits right down in the freezer which functions as a temp controlled fermentation chamber. If you have room for a 5 CF chest freezer, you can set this up pretty reasonably. If you go new, I saw a 5 cf freezer at Sam's for $129 so you'd have $160 in the whole deal. If you try all kinds of other methods you'll spend more than you think and get less performance than you need.

An exothermic heat reaction is generated by the yeast as it is rapidly growing and converting sugars to CO2 and alcohol. This heat is more pronounced at first but continues until fermentation is completely finished. Once the yeast really takes off and starts fermenting, the internal temps of the wort may be 7-10F higher than the ambient temps surrounding the fermenter. This extra heat coupled with the hot area you are planning to use may gobble up ice faster than you think.

 

[bernardsmith]

Here's the thing about aeration: You have boiled some or all of your water and boiling tends to remove free O2 in the water. Yeast NEED O2 as they ready their cell walls to allow the transfer of the wort sugars and to produce sterols to transform sugar into alcohol. So you really want to aerate the wort before you pitch the yeast. "Splashing" the wort as you transfer it from kettle to fermenter is fine but it will not result in anything like enough O2 in the liquid. What you may want to do is find some way to REALLY agitate the liquid by shaking (5 gallons of wort is between 40 and 50 lbs and a glass carboy can be very slippery.... ). Alternatively, you might simply boil say 2 gallons of the wort (you are using extract?) and have chilled to almost freezing the additional 3 gallons of water and so you might shake the bejabers out of the chilled water to incorporate air into those bottles while really rattling the 2 cooled gallons in the carboy...

 

[Minky]

I've been using the "Son of Fermentation Chiller" for years now. It's a chamber built from 2" foam board that is a more controllable way to use frozen water jugs. Here's the plans:
http://www.theelectricbrewery.com/images/chiller-plans.pdf

If you're going to use an ice bath to chill your wort, then pour it from the kettle, be sure to wipe down the outside of the kettle before pouring. You don't want any of that nasty sink water running down the sides of the kettle into your fermenter!

 

[GrimBrewer]

Its best to use a yeast type and style that can handle a warm summer. A saison or a belgium yeast.

Big container wuth water will keeps te beer fermenting temp more stable. Fermenting does add heat in the first few days. Just be aware. When it gets too warm I would add ice bottels to the water. I did that when I started. I now use "son of fermentation chiller". Still have to swap ice twice a day, but temperature controle is accurate now.

When I make a extract brew, which you normally top up with water. I feeze some boiled water in a sanitized container, 1 to 2 liters, and add it to end of the wort cooling phase.

 

[kyoun1e]

Ok, back to the wort stage...on boiling...am I correct that there are two boils? Once after you've steeped the grains. Then you take off heat and add malt. Then you do a second boil (where you add hops and maybe add some of the malt later as well during the 60 minutes).

Do I have that right?

Thanks

 

[Yooper]

Ok, back to the wort stage...on boiling...am I correct that there are two boils? Once after you've steeped the grains. Then you take off heat and add malt. Then you do a second boil (where you add hops and maybe add some of the malt later as well during the 60 minutes).

Do I have that right?

Thanks

Not exactly. You remove the grains after the steep, and then you can either add some of the extract then, or bring it to a boil and add the extract (but take it off of the heat so it doesn't scorch). It doesn't matter which you do. You will start the hop additions once you've got the malt extract added, and set the timer for 60 minutes. If you add some or all of the extract once the wort as come to a boil, you will stop the boil so my preference is to add the extract for the boil once you remove the grains, and then bring it up to a boil and begin your timer then, and to add the rest of the extract at the end of the boil so you don't mess with your hops additions or stop the boil midway through just to add extract.

The extract has already been processed, so doesn't need to be boiled like the grain-wort does. You can add the bulk of it at flame out to avoid the "cooked extract" taste as well as avoiding the wort stopping the boil during the process. I did that a couple of times- added the malt extract at 15 minutes- and it stopped the boil for quite a while and it was hard to judge when to restart the timer- so it's just easier to add a little at the beginning and the majority at the end.

 

[kyoun1e]

Not exactly. You remove the grains after the steep, and then you can either add some of the extract then, or bring it to a boil and add the extract (but take it off of the heat so it doesn't scorch). It doesn't matter which you do. You will start the hop additions once you've got the malt extract added, and set the timer for 60 minutes. If you add some or all of the extract once the wort as come to a boil, you will stop the boil so my preference is to add the extract for the boil once you remove the grains, and then bring it up to a boil and begin your timer then, and to add the rest of the extract at the end of the boil so you don't mess with your hops additions or stop the boil midway through just to add extract.

The extract has already been processed, so doesn't need to be boiled like the grain-wort does. You can add the bulk of it at flame out to avoid the "cooked extract" taste as well as avoiding the wort stopping the boil during the process. I did that a couple of times- added the malt extract at 15 minutes- and it stopped the boil for quite a while and it was hard to judge when to restart the timer- so it's just easier to add a little at the beginning and the majority at the end.

These instructions are wacked then. It clearly says two boils.

So just to confirm, and again I have three malts to add (2 liquid in a jar, and one solid in a bag):

1. After grains steeped, add some but not all of the malt. Maybe, one of the jars leaving a jar and a bag toward end? This would be around the 155 F temp.

2. Bring to a boil for 60 minutes.

3. Add hops as instructed. Majority right away. Have instructions to add other aroma hops with 15 minutes left.

4. Add remainder of malt? Bag and jar that is left? With how much time left? 15...10...5 minutes?

Apologies. A little confused. My instructions are written poorly and are somewhat at odds with what you are saying.

Thanks!

 

[Yooper]

These instructions are wacked then. It clearly says two boils.

So just to confirm, and again I have three malts to add (2 liquid in a jar, and one solid in a bag):

1. After grains steeped, add some but not all of the malt. Maybe, one of the jars leaving a jar and a bag toward end? This would be around the 155 F temp.

2. Bring to a boil for 60 minutes.

3. Add hops as instructed. Majority right away. Have instructions to add other aroma hops with 15 minutes left.

4. Add remainder of malt? Bag and jar that is left? With how much time left? 15...10...5 minutes?

Apologies. A little confused. My instructions are written poorly and are somewhat at odds with what you are saying.

Thanks!

This sounds crazy, because for me to say, "Hey, ignore those instructions and do what I say, because you met me on the internet" really doesn't sound very positive............ but I really can help you on this because I have done this exact thing more than once.

1. Yes! And because condensed sugar solutions darken more than water solutions, I'd add only one can of the extract or the one bag, whichever. That doesn't really matter. The idea is to avoid excess maillard reactions (similar to caramelization) that would darken your wort excessively and lead to an "overcooked extract" taste instead of beer taste.

2. Yep, and start the timer when you add the hops. When you reach a boil, start the timer and add your hops.

3. Yes, add them as instructed.

4. Add them after you turn off the flame, when your timer hits "0". If you add it at 15,5, etc, you'll just stop the boil for about 10 minutes and there is no reason to add it then. Turn off the heat, and add the extract off the flame and stir well. It's still plenty hot to pasteurize the extract plus won't impact your boil.

Many "modern" kits have the instructions adding the bulk of the extract at the end of the boil, so it's not anything new or weird. Extract has already been processed by the manufacturer so it doesn't need further boiling or other processing. It will keep the color lighter and tasting more like beer made out of grain than beer made out of malt extract.

 

[jabba11]

Just doing some reading on swamp coolers. Seems to me a swamp cooler could be many things -- a couple actual "products" you can buy on Amazon for $50-$60 or you could just use a regular cooler or a tub. Either way, you need to rotate ice in and out.

Is that pretty much the jist of it?

Didn't realize that keeping the fermenter cool would require that much maintenance. Looks like you can't just set this thing and forget it. You have to check the temperature every day and rotate ice in and out depending on the reading.

well that would be a matter of how much you wanna spend really LOL. It IS possible to set it and forget it, but that cost money. Quite a bit more than a cooler and some bottles of ice.. Either will work but it IS necessary. In the winter you can get a cheap inkbird controller and ferm wrap and put it in a cold location and heat it. THAT is pretty much set it and forget it as long as it stays cold where you are. Keeping it cool is more difficult than keeping it warm

 

[kyoun1e]

This sounds crazy, because for me to say, "Hey, ignore those instructions and do what I say, because you met me on the internet" really doesn't sound very positive............ but I really can help you on this because I have done this exact thing more than once.

1. Yes! And because condensed sugar solutions darken more than water solutions, I'd add only one can of the extract or the one bag, whichever. That doesn't really matter. The idea is to avoid excess maillard reactions (similar to caramelization) that would darken your wort excessively and lead to an "overcooked extract" taste instead of beer taste.

2. Yep, and start the timer when you add the hops. When you reach a boil, start the timer and add your hops.

3. Yes, add them as instructed.

4. Add them after you turn off the flame, when your timer hits "0". If you add it at 15,5, etc, you'll just stop the boil for about 10 minutes and there is no reason to add it then. Turn off the heat, and add the extract off the flame and stir well. It's still plenty hot to pasteurize the extract plus won't impact your boil.

Many "modern" kits have the instructions adding the bulk of the extract at the end of the boil, so it's not anything new or weird. Extract has already been processed by the manufacturer so it doesn't need further boiling or other processing. It will keep the color lighter and tasting more like beer made out of grain than beer made out of malt extract.

Lol. Well, this forum oozes expertise. Hard to ignore.

Maybe a simplified way to look at this is grains and malt are outside of boil while hops are during boil. Also of note: This is a recipe for a "White" IPA. If putting malts in during the boil darken that kinda defeats the purpose it would seem.

One other question: Once shutting down the boil and then adding the rest of the malt...how quickly do you move to the "cooling the wort" phase? Stir till dissolved and them move on?

Thanks again.

P.S. Probably will have more questions as my brain moves on to fermentation and bottling!! Think I'm getting comfortable with the brew phase.