new to home brew

quacksers

Hi,

This is my first time trying to brew at home and im starting off with a pale ale. my issue lies with having to keep the temp of the fermentation bin at the constant 25 degrees as the house doesnt keep heat too well so will fluctuate a lot. i may be wrong in attempting this so im just looking for some advice.

i have purchased a large rubber tub which holds about 40L from woodies which i plan on filling with water and putting a submersible aquatic heater into, then placing the fermentation bin into this "water bath". has anyone tried this before and if so has it worked well?? any other ideas or tips would be most welcome.

murphyebass

quacksers wrote: »

Hi,

This is my first time trying to brew at home and im starting off with a pale ale. my issue lies with having to keep the temp of the fermentation bin at the constant 25 degrees as the house doesnt keep heat too well so will fluctuate a lot. i may be wrong in attempting this so im just looking for some advice.

i have purchased a large rubber tub which holds about 40L from woodies which i plan on filling with water and putting a submersible aquatic heater into, then placing the fermentation bin into this "water bath". has anyone tried this before and if so has it worked well?? any other ideas or tips would be most welcome.

A heat belt could work on the heating side of things.

MissFlitworth

Just moved you into the Home Brewing forum OP

loyatemu

25c is too warm anyway. 18c would be closer to the mark for an ale yeast.

quacksers

Thanks guys,

i read that the heatbelt sometimes has problems heating evenly through the fermentation bin though? i could be wrong because im trying to research but obviously different people have so many different ways of doing it.

quacksers

loyatemu wrote: »

25c is too warm anyway. 18c would be closer to the mark for an ale yeast.

ok cool thanks, the heater im looking at has an adjustable temp setting so if i get it i could drop it down to 18c. thanks for the tips.

also one quick question of you know the answer, when it comes to bottling ,(im using brown plastic cooper bottles), i am to use the tablespoon of sugar but i've read that carbonate tablets can be used too. is that true or is it just for the likes of lagers and such?

thanks

BeerNut

Your beer is too warm. Forget heatbelts, forget 25 degrees, never EVER read kit instructions. Just let it do its own thing at room temperature.

Carbonation drops and sugar are the same thing. Half a teaspoon per 500ml bottle will do.

quacksers

BeerNut wrote: »

Your beer is too warm. Forget heatbelts, forget 25 degrees, never EVER read kit instructions. Just let it do its own thing at room temperature.

Carbonation drops and sugar are the same thing. Half a teaspoon per 500ml bottle will do.

ok well good news is i have not started anything yet and just getting everything in place, ready to go. problem is that the house im in has no heating during the day while everyone is out and gets very cold this time of year so im trying to regulate that by using the water bath system. what is the ideal temp range for a pale ale that you would recommend?

cool thanks, i'll stick with the sugar so

sorry for annoying people with all these questions and thanks for the help

BeerNut

quacksers wrote: »

what is the ideal temp range for a pale ale that you would recommend?

For all kit beers, 18 is ideal, lower isn't a problem, over 24 is. In our part of the world, if you have a house you can live in, the yeast can live there too -- leave them to do their thing in peace.

A homebrew kit is the beer equivalent of instant coffee: pretty much all of the decisions were taken before you were involved and there's no point in fussing now. Get your hygiene right, don't kill the yeast on brewday, leave it long enough to finish properly, and there's not much else that can go wrong.

Ponster

quacksers wrote: »

cool thanks, i'll stick with the sugar so

A faster way of bottling is to work out how much sugar you need, add to some water and boil. When cool, pour into the bottling bucket and transfer the beer from the fermentation bucket into the bottling bucket. No need to add sugar to the bottles.

mordeith

BeerNut wrote: »

For all kit beers, 18 is ideal, lower isn't a problem, over 24 is. In our part of the world, if you have a house you can live in, the yeast can live there too -- leave them to do their thing in peace.

A homebrew kit is the beer equivalent of instant coffee: pretty much all of the decisions were taken before you were involved and there's no point in fussing now. Get your hygiene right, don't kill the yeast on brewday, leave it long enough to finish properly, and there's not much else that can go wrong.

Best advice I've read on homebrewing.

For what it's worth OP, I recently brewed an ale in a room with no heating. I wrapped a sheepskin rug around the bin and it fermented away no problem. Enjoying the results these wet evenings :-)