What do you hate most about brew day?

[UWDawg13]

Being new to brewing, there's nothing I hate more than not making enough time for brewing, not having enough fermenters, or having empty fermenters. Started in January and brewing batch 7 this week.

 

[bondra76]

1 - Worrying if I have enough propane

2 - Cleaning

3 - Brewing in the late PM/dark. Totally crappy experience and I won't do it anymore.

 

[bleme]

Being new to brewing, there's nothing I hate more than not making enough time for brewing, not having enough fermenters, or having empty fermenters. Started in January and brewing batch 7 this week.

I read that as "brewing 7 batches this week" the first time

 

[UWDawg13]

I read that as "brewing 7 batches this week" the first time

I wish I had that problem.

 

[Zepth]

No a keggle. I take a metal scrubbie and quickly hit the trouble spots. Dump it in compost outside garage door, rinse with garden hose and flip over to dry.

What about various measuring implements, starter jar / flask, tubing, mash tun, paddle?

Being new to brewing, there's nothing I hate more than not making enough time for brewing, not having enough fermenters, or having empty fermenters. Started in January and brewing batch 7 this week.

Don't worry. Soon your problem will be like mine. Looking at 4 1/2 * fermenters of beer and realizing you've got about 2 fermenters worth of bottles left empty.

* One batch went oversize because I was getting good dark wort and couldn't bring myself to stop the sparge. Moral of the story: have an extra fermenter kicking around on brew day.

 

[Toilet Rocker]

Besides cleaning, I hate wasting an incredible amount of water while running the immersion chiller. Allows and gallons. I need to develop a system...

 

[geoffm33]

Last night I filled my party tub (swamp cooler) and 4 homer buckets. Still used more water than that but I used all the homer buckets for cleaning. And the party tub for my fermenter.

 

[Beernik]

For today: The mash went slow. Wasn't doing anything special. Just seemed to take forever.

Oh, and the rain. It's been cold & drizzling all day.

 

[onthekeg]

Cleaning. That is the single reason I don't have a brewery yet. Unless I hire someone to do that...

 

[grathan]

What about various measuring implements, starter jar / flask, tubing, mash tun, paddle?
kicking around on brew day.

starter flask - throw in the dishwasher, magnet bar gets quick water rinse.

measuring implements - I wipe the refractomter with a rag as used. Honestly I might stop using this anyways. I have a 500 ct box of dispoable pippets. Though I usually just dip in water and reuse a single one. I don't use anything else.

Tubing - Garden hose has attachment to hook to end of tube. blast water back through 2 tubes and pump into kettle.

Mash paddle - This ends up in the kettle. It's a large metal spoon that gets hit with the same metal scrubbie as the kettle and rinsed the same time. Same with the Immersion chiller.

I don't mean literally 40 seconds total, but I certainly could do it if that was the focus. The key is placement and minimal footsteps from start/end of use to storage location with a spot to rinse close by. For example a sink with a rack above it right next to your kettle in a dedicated brew area.

 

[bleme]

Besides cleaning, I hate wasting an incredible amount of water while running the immersion chiller. Allows and gallons. I need to develop a system...

Why not hook a sprinkler up to the other end?

 

[bondra76]

I saw a guy say he captures wort chiller water in buckets/carboys and uses it in the laundry washer to wash loads of clothes.

Thought that was a brilliant idea.

 

[thaymond]

Hook it up to an ice bath and use a cheap pond pump attached to the IC. Put the return in the pumps tub and recycle the water.

 

[kenmcchord]

Besides cleaning, I hate wasting an incredible amount of water while running the immersion chiller. Allows and gallons. I need to develop a system...

Yesterday was my first day using a therminator, I was shocked how much water I saved. Used to be my backyard was a swamp after chilling, but not anymore!

 

[kenmcchord]

After my first brew of the year yesterday I have to say by far clean up is the worst. Yesterday was doubly tedious as it was the first day with my new system which incorporates a pump, therminator and about 20' of silicone tubing with cam locks. I'm still not sure how I'm cleaning the pump but I did remove the therminator and soak it in PBW afterwards. Every time I flushed it I had little hop particles coming out, and I must have flushed it 10 times!

When I first started brewing last year I always enjoyed sipping a few beers while brewing. I think that has to end as my tenacity for cleaning seems to slip appreciatively with every beer.

 

[donovanmaxwell]

I saw a guy say he captures wort chiller water in buckets/carboys and uses it in the laundry washer to wash loads of clothes.

Thought that was a brilliant idea.

I've also hear of folks saving the water to wash the dishes and for flushing toilets. Some folks use that water to clean brewing equipment. The water could also be used for fresh PBW and Starsan buckets as well.

I have a plastic 55 gallon barrel that I took home from work. I'm considering installing a drain valve and cheap pump for watering the lawn. I just need to figure out how to treat it to prevent mosquitoes.

 

[Black Island Brewer]

I've also hear of folks saving the water to wash the dishes and for flushing toilets. Some folks use that water to clean brewing equipment. The water could also be used for fresh PBW and Starsan buckets as well.

I have a plastic 55 gallon barrel that I took home from work. I'm considering installing a drain valve and cheap pump for watering the lawn. I just need to figure out how to treat it to prevent mosquitoes.

Screen door mesh over the opening to keep the mosquitoes out. My drums have a lid with a small opening that I have a mesh screen over.

 

[Spartan1979]

1 - Worrying if I have enough propane

2 - Cleaning

3 - Brewing in the late PM/dark. Totally crappy experience and I won't do it anymore.

The solution to number 1 is to buy a second tank and to get empty tanks fill promptly. If you end up with two empty tanks, there's no point in having the second.

 

[Rotgut]

I strongly dislike the clean up. Everything else is great fun.

I have 3 kids and a wife, and an otherwise pretty busy life, so the time spent mashing/sparging, plus clean up is just too much. I've switched to extract brewing on most days simply because I don't have time to spend the whole day brewing. Now I spend 2 hours. 3 at most. Less control over the brew, but it still turns out well.

 

[Rotgut]

Besides cleaning, I hate wasting an incredible amount of water while running the immersion chiller. Allows and gallons. I need to develop a system...

I water the garden with the water. Garden needs to be watered anyway. I need to get a longer hose, so I run it all the way out there instead of filling pots and carrying the water to the garden.

 

[cheezydemon3]

Why not hook a sprinkler up to the other end?

Brilliant!

You can chill your wort and cook everything in your vegetable garden at the same time!

 

[TheCanisDirus]

I detest stove-top boiling. I brew outside at friends and family every chance i get!

I have been, and will be an urban dwelling apt monkey for...well, likely ever lol. I've looked into the heat sticks and induction burners and i unfortunately don't have the appropriate receptacles to currently use them. Hopefully my next apt will have something more accommodating.

 

[Daphne-weizen]

This is going slightly off topic but I've noticed a few posters drink beer while brewing. I don't understand. I mean I don't eat when I cook, why on earth would I drink while brewing? I don't think that's a good idea while being around boiling wort and open flames. Now once the brew day is over then I'll happily have a home brew.... after five. PM!

 

[paulster2626]

This is going slightly off topic but I've noticed a few posters drink beer while brewing. I don't understand. I mean I don't eat when I cook, why on earth would I drink while brewing? I don't think that's a good idea while being around boiling wort and open flames. Now once the brew day is over then I'll happily have a home brew.... after five. PM!

What do you mean you don't eat when you're cooking?

"Doo doo doo, I'm just cutting this cheese for my dish, and NOPE - not gonna try a small piece. Making this sauce, humm de dumm, NOPE - not gonna taste it. Cutting this bread, humm de ho, NOPE - can't try a piece!"

Seriously? It's like 1-2, or 3 beers over the course of 4 hours. No biggie.

 

[TheCanisDirus]

This is going slightly off topic but I've noticed a few posters drink beer while brewing. I don't understand. I mean I don't eat when I cook, why on earth would I drink while brewing? I don't think that's a good idea while being around boiling wort and open flames. Now once the brew day is over then I'll happily have a home brew.... after five. PM!

When i brew i'll have one - three beers... that usually last over 5 hours or so lol. No risk of intoxication unless you're (not you specifically, you know) a *******! I agree... pounding beers while using a propane burner with boiling wort... not good.

 

[Daphne-weizen]

LOL! Nope. I don't eat while cooking. I'll wait till meal time. Makes the food taste even better

 

[TheCanisDirus]

LOL! Nope. I don't eat while cooking. I'll wait till meal time. Makes the food taste even better

Oh man, you MUST taste as you cook! lol tasting at different points during a soup, sauce etc.... while seasoning on an on... only leads to better food!

 

[opiate82]

I had a hard time with this. Like most people, on brew day itself cleaning isn't my favorite. I am not a fan of packaging day whether it is kegging or bottling a few beers off a keg, but after thinking about it long and hard I figured it out.

What I hate most about brew day is when my wife asks "Where are you at in the process? Oh you just mashed in, so you have time to (insert chore or errand here) for me?" THAT is the thing I dread most on brew day.

 

[Scubadude918]

I think I spend all of 40 seconds cleaning on a 6 hour brewday so I am gonna go with managing boil time. I think I got ADD when it comes to standing over the kettle for that long so I constantly walk away and do other things. I cringe at recipes with lots of hop additions.

Oh you mean like the DogFish Head 90minute clone I did? Every 3 minutes I was adding hops... For 90 minutes...


____________________________
Primary: Cider
Primary: Kölsch

 

[Scubadude918]

This is going slightly off topic but I've noticed a few posters drink beer while brewing. I don't understand. I mean I don't eat when I cook, why on earth would I drink while brewing? I don't think that's a good idea while being around boiling wort and open flames. Now once the brew day is over then I'll happily have a home brew.... after five. PM!

I had a friend over during a brew session. We had beers, we laughed we cried, we brewed beer, we let the hose fall out of the fermenter and lost half my volume before realizing it... Now I'll have no friends over and only 2-3 beers total.... Until after





____________________________
Primary: Cider
Primary: Kölsch