Tassie brew Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Hey guys just a couple of quick questions. I live in a cold area and after I bottle my beers I can't get the secondary fermentation temp. very accurate in my house. My hot water cylinder is outside so I can't store the bottles near that. 2 questions 1. Will this lack of temp. for secondary fermentation affect my brew? 2. Where could I store my bottles to get best sec. fermentation? Cheers, Aaron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PB2 Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 G'day Aaron, I am guessing you have sufficient temperature for primary fermentation and that you are probably fermenting with ale yeast. So, if you can, put your bottles in the same location as your fermenter. Otherwise, try to find a spot that will keep the bottles at 18degC or higher. As an aside, so we all know who you are: http://www.coopers.com.au/club/phpbb/vi ... .php?t=734 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tassie brew Posted April 25, 2006 Author Share Posted April 25, 2006 Hey Paul good to hear from you. I use a heater belt and the brew normally sits at around 24 degrees. Finding somewhere above 18 degrees can be difficult here. What would happen if I sit the brew in the lounge room for sec. fermentation. It would reach that temperature ok but would probably fluctuate up and down when the lounge heater is on/off. Also my bottles have been getting a bit of mould on the outside when I have been storing them in the cupboard (I have a damp house). The mould wipes off but I wasnt sure if it would affect my brew. Any ideas anybody Cheers, Tassie Brew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PB2 Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 I made home brew in Tassie for 3 years - nestled into the hills at Glenorchy. I used to store the bottles in a corner of the lounge-room for the first week in a polystyrene box with a bean bag over the top. If you can, keep them in a dry environment. Another option would be to brew lagers. They remain active at lower temperatures but take longer to finish fermenting. 100% Lager yeast is supplied with International Series Bavarian Lager and Thomas Coopers Brewmaster Selection Pilsener. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipsy Posted April 26, 2006 Share Posted April 26, 2006 Also my bottles have been getting a bit of mould on the outside when I have been storing them in the cupboard (I have a damp house). The mould wipes off but I wasnt sure if it would affect my brew. Any ideas anybody Cheers, Tassie Brew G'day Tassie, and everyone else. My bottles always have mould on the outside, probably because i always dribble some brew when bottling. It's never affected the beer inside the bottle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieran Posted May 3, 2006 Share Posted May 3, 2006 you just need to be careful about contaminating your brew gear mainly. Yeast on the outside of your bottles is harmless. Yeast is everywhere in the environment, with spores floating through the air you breathe. This stuff is just far more concentrated, so you just need to wash it off fairly thoroughly, and make sure you sanitse things as always before bottling and brewing. :) With Secondary fermentation - Paul's advice is best, the only thing I could say as a consellation prize if SWMBO doesn't want beer in the lounge is that you'll still get marginal secondary fermentation below 18C but it will just take much much longer. However long it takes, is totally dependent on the yeast strain you're using, and how happy it is to metabolise at that temp - and it will, but just more slowly the cooler it gets. Lager yeasts are specialists at cool temps, they love it (but also, they're still yeast so they aren't tons faster, but still work much better than ale yeasts at those temps). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Hey Kieran, I've seen the acronym SWMBO on the forums and know it's a reference to the lovely Belinda, but I can't seem to figure it out? :? Cheers, Luke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieran Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 She Who Must Be Obeyed Its generally refers to the significant female other (wife, girlfriend, bit on the side) who has the power to destroy your life at the flick of an emotional switch. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Ahhhhhhhh! I've got one of those! :roll: At least she likes the beer.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieran Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 So does mine mate, its all about the limits of inconvenience brewing places on the nesting instincts of SWMBO. Prime example: One of my best mates is an all grain brewer. He is a man who works hard for his beer, its his life (outside of being a scientist). He lives with his girlfriend (great girl, an ex-scientist) in a tiny little 2 bedroom upstairs flat here in Melbourne. His better half doesn't even bat an eyelid when he has his stainless steel fermenter sitting in the middle of the loungeroom between the couch and the TV in summer, because the only fan in the house has to cool both the brew and them. Since they're in the lounge needing cooling, so is the Fermenator! Basically, to get a decent view of the TV, they each have to tilt to see around either side of the fermentor - in similar fashion to positioning one's-self for a bit of gaseous relief - just to see the telly. I kid you not, that every word of that is completely true. Mum was over visiting from Adelaide, and we had to call past his place to drop off a keg, and she saw the fermenter sitting there in the middle of the room and nearly died on the spot. While my missus (yet another scientist), and maybe yours (is she a scientist too, by any chance?), enjoy a brew; and mine even tolerates brewing at the back of our humble dwelling in our brewhaus area, I don't think any circumstances would ever eventuate which would see her become enthralled enough in the brewing process that would allow me to migrate my fermenter into the living room. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PB2 Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 THE ONES MY WIFE KNEW ABOUT - The best I have mangaged is the bottles under the bean bag in the corner of the lounge room and the Fermenting Vessel on the tiled floor in the corner of the family room. THE ONE SHE DIDN"T KNOW ABOUT - secondary fermentaion of bottles for a week in the drawers in the base of the water bed...normal contents of drawers were covertly placed at the top of a hallway cupboard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigAl Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 Hi Tassie, If you are adventurous and are handy with a drill you can set up a little warm box in an old wardrobe. All you need is a thermostat that can switch a light bulb (75watt) on and off at whatever temperature you wish to condition at. For ales I set mine to 21 degC. You can pick the thermostats up for about $30.00, I get mine from Ultimate Reptiles in Adelaide as I use the same thermostats for my snake vivariums. Then drill a small hole in the side of the wardrobe big enough for the power cord. Wire up the thermostat as per the instructions and plug it in..........too easy :D Oh yeah, don't forget to stack the bottles on the shelves. If you have room you can always put the brewing keg in there as well and brew out at a constant temperature. :wink: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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