The Homebrew Beer Thread

ctenidae said:

Submerge the coil in ice/rock salt and run the wort throught the coil. Faster, cleaner, cooler.

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SkiDog said:

Gret suggestion and I have used this method...not much faster than using it the regular way, but still cool and save you from having to sanitize it...

I just dip it in my sanitizer bath for a few minutes.

I would REFRAIN from the ice method directly in the wort....could introduce too many nasties.

Just my $.02

M

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Marc said:

Ever use the soda bottle?

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SkiDog said:

I have not personally but have heard it used. Since the bottle is pre sanitized and the ice inside never hits the batch it should be no problem. I would seriously consider the wort chiller though...really saves time, and in the long run pays for itself...the faster to cool = faster to pitching = less chance of nasties.

I personally dont even like to add water to bring to volume of 5 gal. I perfer to boil a full 5 gal. The outdoor cooker helps with this process since it boils water VERY fast.

M

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Marc said:

I don't have the means to do a full boil, however I do preboil the non wort water I put in the fermenter.

The only reason I ask about the soda bottle is I might brew another batch tonight and I won't have time to make a chiller. Soda bottle combined with the ice water bath is probably the way I'll go.

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SkiDog said:

It will certainly suit you for tonight.....not to worry. Just make sure EVERYTHING is sterilized. Smart on preboil on the addition water...good man...

So what you boil about 3 gallons? you using steeping grains while it comes to boil ?

M

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Marc said:

I used steeping grains for a batch I made a while ago with a friend. This wheat beer I just brewed didn't use grains.

I have a 16 qt stainless pot that I boiled 3 gallons in... which was pretty close to the top after adding two roughly 24 oz cans of malt into.

I was pretty fanatical about sterilization during boiling and bottling with this last batch and it turned out great. So I'm a bit more confident for my second batch.

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SkiDog said:

As you obviously know...sterilization is the KEY to good batches....what are you currently using for sanitization one step? I personally use Iodine. It doesnt require warm water...only requires literally seconds of contact to sterilize. They use it in hospitals and restaurants. Great stuff also requires very little rinsing. You should give it a try.

Think about a larger pot if you can put your hands on one. I think I have about 4 ;-) . Yeah the wheat likley was plenty colored just from malt.

I think i'll do a lager again soon, but I have to get the fridge up and running with the external temp gauge. This helps regulate temps overrides fridge thermostat. Very nice since lagers need to be fremented WAY cold....

Any questions dont hesitate to ask. Good luck with the latest batch...

M

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SkiDog said:

I would REFRAIN from the ice method directly in the wort....could introduce too many nasties.

Just my $.02

M

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Marc said:

Yeah, I use the idophor stuff. Bleach is a PITA and I have a feeling I'd end up with white spots or holes in my shirt.

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ctenidae said:

Make your own ice with boiled water. Easy to measure it that way, too.



Brew naked.

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ctenidae said:

OG was 1.052, as of last night it was 1.012, so figure about 8% ABV, which will be nice.

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ctenidae said:

Funny thing is, I was really worried that the yeast never got cranked up- I never saw a single bubble come out of the airlock. I pitched about 11 pm on 11/27, then didn't lok at it again until about 6 pm the next day. Full head of foam in the fermenter, but no bubbling. So, I let it sit, and half forgot about it. When I did check it, there was some bubbling int he wort itself, but nothing out the airlock. I let it sit, thinking the yeast might just be running really really slow for some reason. Finally, last night was shit-or-get-off-the-pot day, so I checked it just to see. Imagine my surprise. Hopefully it hasn't been sitting on the yeast too long, but I'm not too concerned about it.

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roark said:

Might want to check that calc. Off the top of my head that's more like 5%

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roark said:

Airlock not sealed? If there's co2 coming out it's got to go somewhere...

That's not that long to be sitting on the yeast. Although I do usually transfer to a secondary once the primary fermentation has mostly subsided
(where I tend to forget about it for another week or two).

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