southern folk brewing outdoors

[DNisich]

Definitely start early and brew on the side of your house that is shaded through the early part of the day. I'm in ATX too and that's what I do.

 

[MarsColonist]

I get up late and sweat like a dog just licked my face. You just cant get away from the heat.

 

[EdWort]

Like everyone says, brew early. Get your grain milled the day before and every thing setup. Fill your HLT the day before and it will heat faster and save propane or electricity.

Brew in the shade. Drink water and don't pop a brew till flameout.

My two pfennigs.

 

[Houblon]

Pool was a cool 94f

 

[mullenite]

Got to love Florida. I was talking to some people who were on their way to Disney the other day. It was still early in the morning so only around 90 and they were complaining about how hot it was. I tried to warn them that it was going to get hotter but they didn't seem to think it could.

 

[TheBeerNerd]

Been having a social brew day at my buddy's place every few weeks. His place is older and has a carriage house-type basement which faces north... Open the doors and it stays relatively cool, considering there's usually 3+ burners going. Plus there's a big utility sink down there .

Can't wait to get back to a cooler climate. Thinking Portland in 6 months or so...

 

[Pick]

I usually start around 6 PM and after dark the wort cooling starts, so it's not to bad. BUT, lately it's 95 at 6 pm. I've got two kegs going on empty, so I'd better get my butt in gear.................

92*@67% humidity right now at 12:45 PM.

 

[Houblon]

92*@67% humidity right now at 12:45 PM.

Ha I must be in a cool section, its 89f @73%
still sweat is dripping off me...

 

[mullenite]

94@45% here. I'm glad I don't have anything to do outside today.

 

[Houblon]

Got 55min left in the boil and hope to avoid the brewing thunderstorms just east of me. I can hear them and the radar is showing more to the west.... just another brewday in sunny fla.

 

[thezepster]

I will probably catch some crap for this being I am NOT in the south even a little but this may work well...

At an amusement park I have seen them take "mister" (as in a fine mist not a guy) garden hoses, suspended under bridges that people walk under, to provide cooling. Well, if you had a way to suspend one of these in the air above you, you could just run the garden hose and sit in the shade and enjoy the cool mist...

Actually, if you hang one of those up by a fan and blow it towards you it can really keep u cool. I have a 10' x 10' canopy that I set up with the misters around an oscillating fan. It works very well

 

[mojo2776]

I basically do everything inside except the boil. I heat up strike and sparge water in a 20 qt pot on the stove (140 degree tap water helps here). Mash tun goes on the kitchen table while I sparge. Boil on the back patio, then back inside to hook up the immersion chiller to the kitchen sink. While I'm boiling, I sit at the kitchen table and watch the boil out the window, checking on it every few minutes.

 

[curlyfat]

I sit in my garage with sweat dripping off of every appendage, drinking a cold beer. It gets well over 100f in the garage with the burners going, but I just thank God it's not January. I've had too many sub-zero brew-sessions hovered over the kettle for warmth to let the heat bother me. I embrace it!

 

[BA_from_GA]

brewing tonight, its been pretty freakin hot in atl the past week... nice thunderstorm came through about 15 min into the mash, which cooled things off quite a bit. I just plan on sweating my A$$ off if i'm gonna brew.

 

[TotemWolf]

Move to North Dakota. It's never too hot to brew.



Of course it is too cold for about 3 months in the winter but that's when I do all my meads and wine.

 

[Starderup]

brewing tonight, its been pretty freakin hot in atl the past week... nice thunderstorm came through about 15 min into the mash, which cooled things off quite a bit. I just plan on sweating my A$$ off if i'm gonna brew.

Hey, you are not too far away. If you are interested, I belong to a brewing club called Covert Hops. We have regular meetings and share brews, ideas, etc. PM me if you want more info...

 

[mrk305]

I only go outside for a few minutes at a time. I heat my water in the house on the stove, go outside and stir in, then back in the a/c. An hour later I put my drain hose in the bucket, then back in the a/c.

I know my turkey fryer takes about 15 minutes to boil, so I set a timer for 13 minutes and then look out window. I have a beeping thermometer to let me know when my mash and sparge water are ready.

It has been around 95 and really humid here for weeks in a row. I just use my beepers and buzzers and spend most of the tme inside.... in the a/c!

 

[Starderup]

I only go outside for a few minutes at a time. I heat my water in the house on the stove, go outside and stir in, then back in the a/c. An hour later I put my drain hose in the bucket, then back in the a/c.

I know my turkey fryer takes about 15 minutes to boil, so I set a timer for 13 minutes and then look out window. I have a beeping thermometer to let me know when my mash and sparge water are ready.

It has been around 95 and really humid here for weeks in a row. I just use my beepers and buzzers and spend most of the tme inside.... in the a/c!

Another Georgia brewer! See my post above. I feel ya on the 95 degrees. The only worse heat I can remember was in the Philippines, where it was 98 degrees, and 98 percent humidity. You could have an 18" fan blasting you in the face, and it was still killer. I know, because that's what I did.

 

[rico567]

Unfortunately Wisconsin/Northern Illinois is NOT dry and that is were I saw them. I even went through them and screamed like a little girl because they were ice cold...lol. This was a few years ago at 6 Flags/Great America. I also see them from time to time at other events. Just an idea...not trying to argue, just help!

Had these all through the outdoor market when we visited San Antonio; they work great.
My personal strategy here in Central IL is to plan & schedule my brewing for Spring & Fall. High Summer and the dead of Winter around here don't make outdoor brewing a nice experience. One of the advantages when I did PM extract brews was that it was all done indoors, so I could brew much more year-round.

 

[chrislehr]

I don't like the idea of a misters around a sweaty me and a boiling wort. I get scared stirring that I will drip sweat in.

 

[v2comp]

if you can, start early....... I hear you on the Saturday or Sunday mornings following the previous nights, but if you REALLY want to brew, you maybe could just give up one night to be able to get up early and brew
Here in Alabama, I usually get up around 5am with the coffee already done, HLT already at temp and everything else ready to go. I usually finish around 10am and @85 degrees or so outside. brew the biggest batches you can (brew less often) and when the boil is rolling, I sit inside behind the sliding glass door in the AC, watching Formula 1 racing or whatever else is on until my laptop timer says I need to make a hop addition or something. when the boil is done, I have a pre chiller in a cooler full of ice, rocksalt and water with the garden hose. after it gets down to around 100 degrees,(about 5 to 7 minutes), $10 submersible live well pump, recirculating this ice water throught the wort chiller. takes about 10 more minutes to get to 65 deg. I usually only spend around an hour and a half outside overall.
not a bad brew day at all. sure beats those 25 degree January days with the wind blowing.

 

[Daybis]

The heat doesn't really bother me here in MS. It's the bugs that annoy the hell out of me. I like to brew in the evening, when the bugs are worst, I'm really paranoid about them getting in brew kettle.

 

[curlyfat]

not a bad brew day at all. sure beats those 25 degree January days with the wind blowing.

Come March, we call 25 degrees "balmy"! I had a brew day this winter at -20f. :rockin: Do what you got to do! That's why I embrace 95 degree weather.

 

[Houblon]

, watching Formula 1 racing ----

not a bad brew day at all. sure beats those 25 degree January days with the wind blowing.

Cool another F1 fan I plan on going to the Belgian race this year

and yes I bitch when its in the 30s

My body can only adapt to heat or cold but not both

 

[chefchris]

The heat doesn't really bother me here in MS. It's the bugs that annoy the hell out of me. I like to brew in the evening, when the bugs are worst, I'm really paranoid about them getting in brew kettle.

I'm from right down the road in Tupelo. Guntown to be specific.

Sorry about your beer scene.