New brewer here from the PNW

[DruBru]

Hey There!

Long time lurker first time poster. I got into the hobby last summer when some buddies invited me over for a brew day. I've done other small fermentation projects before like sourdough, cheese, and pickles but beer was something I was really interested in. The first beer I brewed with them was an American Pale Ale, from then on I was hooked. I found a guy selling a 3 kettle brew setup on Craigslist for 200 bucks and it included 5 kegs and a 5lb co2 tank, I thought it was a steal! I jumped right into all grain brewing with my setup and have brewed about 8 beers with it so far. My next project is getting my keezer built so I can put bottling behind me.

Outside of brewing I'm a big PC gaming nerd and a cybersecurity analyst by trade. I live in the PNW with my Wife and our 8 year old Texas Heeler.

Happy to be here!

 

[Deric]

Welcome!

 

[IslandLizard]

Thank you for joining us! Participating on our forums can be a big part of the hobby.

[...] have brewed about 8 beers with it so far. My next project is getting my keezer built so I can put bottling behind me.

Yup, that's a logical next step!
You're gonna wonder why you didn't build that keezer earlier. Only one big bottle to clean and fill, and you can start drinking it as soon as you've carbonated it. Most beers are fine to start drinking right after forced carbonation (by rolling), and will get better after a few days to a week. Some need longer.

 

[DruBru]

Thank you for joining us! Participating on our forums can be a big part of the hobby.

Yup, that's a logical next step!
You're gonna wonder why you didn't build that keezer earlier. Only one big bottle to clean and fill, and you can start drinking it as soon as you've carbonated it. Most beers are fine to start drinking right after forced carbonation (by rolling), and will get better after a few days to a week. Some need longer.

I'm excited for it! I'm in the process of converting all my pin lock kegs over to ball lock since all the modern keg accessories seem to only be made for ball lock. I'm going to get a counter-flow bottle chiller that plugs into the faucet so I can send beer home with my buddies but I've really grown tired of bottling beer and waiting even longer before I can drink it.

 

[IslandLizard]

I'm going to get a counter-flow bottle chiller that plugs into the faucet

[EDIT] Counter pressure bottle filler, you mean?
Unless you routinely fill many bottles, there are simple and cheap DIY solutions to fill bottles and growlers from your taps or kegs, using ordinary brewing tools.*

Also be careful when operating a counter pressure filler attached to a beer faucet. The pressure may push the attachment out of the faucet, potentially creating a big mess!

* For a DIY solution it only takes a drilled ("#2") rubber stopper that fits the bottle's neck (and a bigger "#6" one that fits a growler opening), as well as a bottling wand or a sawed-off plastic racking cane, as well as a suitable length of vinyl tubing.
There are numerous variations on that method.

 

[doug293cz]

Counterflow Bottle Filler you mean?

Counter pressure bottle filler.

Brew on

 

[DruBru]

Counterflow Bottle Filler you mean?

Oops! Yes counter pressure bottle filler.

I must have had a counterflow chiller on the mind while typing lmao!

 

[atoughram]

Welcome - Also in Washington State - Puyallup to be exact...