Ordering my brewery TONIGHT!

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BadMitten

BadMitten

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So I'm going to order all the stuff necessary to start brewing stuff finally. I'll get right to the point. I want to buy everything that I need tonight so I wont have to drive 2 hours to the nearest supply store.

Whats a good mid-level kit? Or should I buy everything individually? Anyone happen to know exactly what I need?

Should I use only glass carboys? Should I transfer to another Carboy after the initial fermentation? A million questions.

Thanks!
 
One tip I have for you if you are going to try get everything in one night is not to drink until youve got everything figured out. What size batches are you wanting to brew? Are you wanting to go AG? How much of an issue is price? Do you have any brewing experience?
 
Pommy said:
One tip I have for you if you are going to try get everything in one night is not to drink until youve got everything figured out. What size batches are you wanting to brew? Are you wanting to go AG? How much of an issue is price? Do you have any brewing experience?
Click to expand...

I'm looking to make 5 gallon batches. I have no brewing experience so I figured I would start with extract or maybe the next level up. I just want whatever equipment I get to be useful for a while. What could I get for under 300?

Any suggestions? And no drinking tonight haha.

Thanks for the help!
 
BadMitten, there are quite a few homebrew retailers out there and they all seem to have a basic and/or more advanced kit for sale for way less than $300. I started out (the second time) with the Coopers kit and was pleased with the results. I now do a "mini-mash" and like the results even more. You might also need a 5 - 7+ gal. brew pot (aluminum or stainless steel) and a supply of clean bottles. I use a combination of plastic bottles, 25 oz. that came with the Coopers kit, 16 oz. that I got from my LHBS, and 20 oz. soda bottles. Probably the most important step is sanitation. This turns into an addiction for many people, including myself.
http://www.austinhomebrew.com/index.php?cPath=178
http://makebeer.net/About-the-DIY-Beer-Kit
http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/starter-kits/basic-starter-kit.html
 
petey_c said:
BadMitten, there are quite a few homebrew retailers out there and they all seem to have a basic and/or more advanced kit for sale for way less than $300. I started out (the second time) with the Coopers kit and was pleased with the results. I now do a "mini-mash" and like the results even more. You might also need a 5 - 7+ gal. brew pot (aluminum or stainless steel) and a supply of clean bottles. I use a combination of plastic bottles, 25 oz. that came with the Coopers kit, 16 oz. that I got from my LHBS, and 20 oz. soda bottles. Probably the most important step is sanitation. This turns into an addiction for many people, including myself.
http://www.austinhomebrew.com/index.php?cPath=178
http://makebeer.net/About-the-DIY-Beer-Kit
http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/starter-kits/basic-starter-kit.html
Click to expand...


Petey_c

Thanks a ton! I'm about to "comfirm" my order. Here is what I have.

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/brewing-intermediate-kit-w-two-5-gallon-glass-carboys.html

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/polarware-economy-stainless-steel-brewing-pot-5-gallon.html

I'm also going to get a thermometer and a hydrometer....

That sound like a decent set up?
 
Looks good, although the kit comes with a hydrometer. I use a digital thermometer while brewing and have a second thermometer to measure the ambient temp in the basement, I mean my brewery. Do you have a good place (temp wise) for the beer to sit while fermenting? Plus you'll need an ingredient kit. Read more in here about how long to keep the beer in the primary and whether or not to secondary. I don't secondary and brew in my bottling bucket. This way I have less exposure to air while transferring from primary to secondary/bottling bucket.You might also go for a larger brew pot. I had a 5 gal. and wound up buying a 10 gal pot. I also got lucky a few times on Craig's list and picked up more brew stuff. I'll be bottling an English Honey bitter on Thursday (schedule permitting).
 
petey_c said:
Looks good, although the kit comes with a hydrometer. I use a digital thermometer while brewing and have a second thermometer to measure the ambient temp in the basement, I mean my brewery. Do you have a good place (temp wise) for the beer to sit while fermenting? Plus you'll need an ingredient kit. Read more in here about how long to keep the beer in the primary and whether or not to secondary. I don't secondary and brew in my bottling bucket. This way I have less exposure to air while transferring from primary to secondary/bottling bucket.You might also go for a larger brew pot. I had a 5 gal. and wound up buying a 10 gal pot. I also got lucky a few times on Craig's list and picked up more brew stuff. I'll be bottling an English Honey bitter on Thursday (schedule permitting).
Click to expand...

Petey_c

That's the one things I am going to have to tackle. I don't have a basement and my house fluctuates from 50-85 degrees daily...And in the winter its similar (wood burning stove). So I figured I would get everything and then figure out whether I'm going to need to build a cooler of some sort.

I definitely have to read up on fermenting, and whether to go to a secondary carboy.

I'll upgrade the pot for sure. I don't want to buy stuff twice.

As far as the recipe/kit...I'll have to decide what to brew first. I'd love to turn out a great Amber on the first batch. We'll see....

So, as of now....I'm ordering!
 
If it were me, I wouldn't spend the money on glass carboys. Buckets works just as well (even better in my opinion) at a fraction of the cost. Since going to Ale Pales my carboys sit and collect dust.

I'd also get the biggest brew-pot you can afford (and that can fit on your stove, unless you plan to go the propane cooker route-something I also recommend).
 
I ordered it!

But thanks to petey_c I changed it at the last second and got the 7.5 but did get the glass...The stuff is on the way...I think I got a ton of stuff and it was a pretty penny.

Now, any ideas as to what I should start with? I really have no idea where to start haha. Should I just buy a simple kit or try to be more adventurous?

Thanks for all the suggestions btw. It's been a year since the idea was planted in my head!
 
Check Austin Home Brew, if you are ordering over $100, there is free shipping which could get pricey depending on what you buy and how much it weights, for those that don't have flat rates. Customer service at AHS is also top notch, in my opinion.
 
I'll second AHS if you don't have a LHBS, they rock. As for those glass carboys, do yourself a favor and either get a couple of milk crates (if you can) to haul them or get a couple of these Brew Haulers. You do not want to have one of these break on you.
 
For a first batch, you should try something that is drinkable at a young age. Your excitement level will try to get the best of you and you will want to drink our new brew as soon as possible. Brew a couple wheat beers or belgian wits. This will establish your "pipeline". (home brew that is ready to drink without having to wait) Summer temps are going to be around for a little while longer but also plan for the future. I am brewing my big porters and holiday beers now, so that they can sit in the fermentor for a month and then bottle condition for several more.

My previous post to this forum about "young" beers and establishing a pipeline.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/establishing-pipeline-260671/

Don't forget to order a big bag a "patience"! It seams to be the number one thing that really does in a home brewer.
 
VillageBrew has a good point. Waiting for your brew to get done can seem like an eternity. Right now I'm impatient to bottle! (So I can start another batch.) The instructions that come with the kits can leave a little to be desired too. Coopers and Mr. Beer both say one week in the primary and a week to ten days in bottles. Sure, you'll get beer, but not very good beer. Beer needs time. Clear carboys allow you to see what's happening with your brew, but due to the small opening (one of the places where a small opening isn't good) can make it a PITA to clean.
You can also try an experiment around bottling time. After you've added your priming sugar (batch priming is the way to go). Fill up a clean soda bottle with beer and cap it. I've found that the plastic bottles are easier than capping. Some people just don't like plastic though. Also, when using the bottle filler/wand let the bottle fill up all the way. When you pull the bottle off the filler, it'll leave the right amount of head space. Don't forget "Quality Control" beers. I have a four ounce cup for bottling QC and then tried one per week to see how the beer got better with time.
 
petey_c said:
VillageBrew has a good point. Waiting for your brew to get done can seem like an eternity. Right now I'm impatient to bottle! (So I can start another batch.) The instructions that come with the kits can leave a little to be desired too.
Click to expand...

I've had no problems so far with patience, knowing that once I get this brew bottled and get it going to conditioning, I'll have another started, etc.. It's that perspective that has allowed me to see that I'm going to have a nice pipeline of beer going at all times, and to me it justifies the wait, and will result in learning good habits and winding up with a higher quality of beer.. An extra week or two at the start will yield me vast amounts of quality homebrew.

As far as the instructions, I agree. I've looked at a ton of them. I think the Brewers Best kit is the most thorough I've seen, thus far. A lot of them don't even give you an idea on proper fermentation temperature, etc.

Fortunately, that's what these boards are for. :mug:
 
Good choice mate. You'll easily be able to do Partial Mash and Extract brews with that kit, and it won't over complicate anything at this stage. You might want to consider buying a pressure keg too, if you want beer on tap.

First brew? whatever you like. I'd stay away from lagers though. Boring!
 
lastsecondapex said:
You will need at least a 7-7.5 gallon pot for 5 gallon batches. Hope you haven't ordered it yet!
Click to expand...

If you're doing full wort boils, but he might not be... a lot of beginners start with extract kits that recommend a half-boil, and then topping off with water afterwards. Nothing wrong with this to get one's feet wet!
 
Brew what you like! If you start with an extract kit, it will help you understand all the steps to brewing, and then you can expand to partial or all grain kits. I started with extract kits, and I learned the importance of sanitation, patience, and paying attention to the instructions.

Austin Home Brew has to be my first choice for ordering kits. They have a huge selection of their own kits, commercial reproductions, and specialty kits. Most of their kits can be ordered in extract to all grain and everything in between, so as you get more brew experience, you can move on up the complexity scale. Besides attempting lagers, there really isn't a kit you cannot make from extract through them, so just pick a type of beer you really enjoy, and start brewing!
 
Badmitten: While waiting on your goods, I highly recommend watching everything you can about brewing on Youtube. Then if you have questions, come back here and post. By the time I brewed my first batch, I felt like I had done tons and knew of the things to watch out for. As far as kits, get a young one as suggested. My first kit was Caribou Slobber from Northernbrewer and I loved it. I thought I would have the patience to wait the 3 weeks in primary and then 3 weeks bottled, but I made it 4 weeks before "sampling". I brewed a batch a week after until my pipeline was full.
 
Maybe it's just me, but I would've waited until I'd have everything planned before buying all the equipment.

That's what I'm doing right now, I've started reading books (4 books : Palmer, Papazian, Daniels, Calagione) and will be waiting after reading at least 2 of these books before buying all the stuff.

While reading, I'm also looking at the best set of equipment I could buy to brew the best beer I can.

This way, I won't have any surprises or useless/not compatible pieces.
 
Lucky137 said:
If you're doing full wort boils, but he might not be... a lot of beginners start with extract kits that recommend a half-boil, and then topping off with water afterwards. Nothing wrong with this to get one's feet wet!
Click to expand...

Truth be told I'm pretty much settled on this method anyway and have no real desire to go AG or anything...a lot of it's about finding out what works for you imo!
 
This one is easy for me...get a true brew kit. I have been at this for a few years now and aside from this hobby becoming an expensive, delicious addiction...you're gonna find things in that kit you will use for quite some time. For example, I still use the same hydrometer, capper, carboy and bucket quite frequently. The same company that puts the kits together also makes recipe kits. You will probably do best if you start out with kits for a few brews to help you overall understanding of the process.
 
Well it's all been ordered and on the way. I just need to figure out to how to cool the fermenters. I havent looked through the forums too much on the cooling issue yet...
 
Well, as you can see, there's no shortage of opinions here. Temp control is very important. A little more research and advice should help you find the answer.
 
I've seen some mini fridges for sale for almost nothing. Could I just throw a temp control on that and keep it at a steady 65 or so?
 
BadMitten said:
I've seen some mini fridges for sale for almost nothing. Could I just throw a temp control on that and keep it at a steady 65 or so?
Click to expand...

Yes you can. Just make sure the interior dimensions will fit your fermenting container (bucket or carboy) and make sure you include the room needed for an airlock!
 
If you can find a good sized mini-fridge, go for it. The problem I have found with a lot of them is that you will most likely have to take off the plastic shelving they put onto the door as you lose about 4-6 inches there, and most are not just a large, empty rectangle, the bottom usually compensates for the compressor, and you lose half the space in the bottom of the fridge. Most larger min-fridges also have small freezers, and you have to deal with them. So it can be difficult to find one to fit your dimensions. If you have the room--try to get a full-size fridge. Then you can also use it to keg.
 
Using a small frig to keep your beer cold is a good idea, but not to bring down the temp before pitching your yeast. A mini refrig set at 65 will take a long time to bring down the temps. I have been saving the containers that my LME comes in and freexe water in those and put them in the bathtub with cold water. I have been able to get my temps down to 68 in less than an hour.

I am doing extract kits and they are turning out pretty good. :ban: Very satisfied with my progress so far. I am a newb also (on my 5th brew) and am still learning something new with each batch. We must learn to walk before we can run. Most of my extract brews have turned out darker than expected. (Hefeweisen, Belgian Wit) From reading on this site, most people only put half of the extract in at the beginning and then the rest at 30 minutes or later.

Take your time and brew what you want and move to partial or full grain if and when you are ready. It might be next week or next year!:mug:
 

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