New to Brew

[rickysal24]

Hey Everyone,

Glad to be a part of this community. I've spent the last couple weeks just reading up and learning as much as I can about homebrewing. I want to start small and then eventually adapt an awesome setup for making great beer.

I did want to mention that my father owns his own plumbing business and has access to all types of valves, piping, etc. (you know, plumbing stuff...). Basically, I wanted to know if there was any advice out there to see if I can take advantage of any of this for my setup. How important is it to get a setup to carbonate and what is the best route here because I've done brewery tours where you taste the pre-conditioned beer and it just isn't the same without being carbonated!

I figured I'd start out with a Cider since it is very simple and I can get a feel for how the yeast interacts and seeing how much my temperature fluctuates day-to-day.

Thanks for all the help in advance!

 

[Pie_Man]

How important is it to get a setup to carbonate and what is the best route here because I've done brewery tours where you taste the pre-conditioned beer and it just isn't the same without being carbonated!

Carbonating your beer is very easy. You transfer the beer to a bottling bucket, add priming sugar, bottle and cap. If you have bucket with a valve (bottling bucket), clean and sanitized empty pop top bottles, bottle caps, and capper, you're setup to carbonate. Most of that equipment (except the bottles) comes standard with a basic homebrew equipment kit.

A step up from that is kegging your homebrew in corny kegs. That simply involves buying corny kegs, a CO2 tank, regulator, tubing, etc.

Good luck on your first brew, don't be intimitated to start with beer if you prefer that to cider. Read through the forum, the stickies, and maybe read through the first few chapters of a home brew book. The first edition of John Palmer's is available at howtobrew.com.

 

[flars]

Brewing beer involves some pretty basic and simple to use equuipment. You can make it as involved as you want to, but basically the yeast does the work, you control the sanitation and the temperature. Sanitation and temperature control are about the most important steps in brewing.

Great beers can be made from extract kits. The kits are a good way to learn the basics and enjoy the process of home brewing.

Look up 'swamp cooler'.
and
Priming calculator
and
Yeast starter calculator

 

[shortrc]

Your father could probably make you a great immersion chiller!

 

[rickysal24]

Thanks everyone, I'll be sure to post any questions from my first batch. I have two 5-gal glass carboys lying around the house (currently being used for collecting loose change). I was wondering how I should sanitize these for brewing and how I could properly setup up the bottling bucket so I can extract the final product properly.

 

[unionrdr]

I'd get some PBW & a carboy brush to clean them out thoroughly. rinse well & sanitize with a swish of Starsan. Get a drilled plug to fit them for the airlocks. An auto siphont to get the beer from the carboys to the bottling bucket. You can buy them ready made. The tube from the auto sip[hon should be long enough to reach half way around the bottom of the bottling bucket to avoid aerating the finished beer. This can cause oxidation,which usually tastes & smells like damp,musty cardboard out of the basement.