Ordering my brewery TONIGHT!

[Fennis]

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.

 

[VillageBrew]

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. 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!