Pages: 1 2
Beginner looking for small batch suggestions
Hey everyone, I'm looking to get into homebrewing just in extract brewing for right now. It's important for me to start out with some decent equipment, not novelty items, and I have around a $85 budget to get started (not counting the pot which I already have). The biggest reason I haven't bought a two stage kit yet (or anything for that matter) is mainly because of room. I live in a medium size two bedroom apartment with my fiancee, and do have a small closet for storage space, but not much more than that. I will be in an apartment for the next 2-4 years most likely, so I need a setup that I can accomodate in an apartment.
That being said, every kit that I've looked at is 5 gallons or larger. Being able to experiment and make several different small batches is the most important thing to me right now. Something around 2 to 3 gallons would be perfect for my needs. I've seen people post over and over again that once you start homebrewing you'll wish you had more than five gallons of the beer you made, but I just can't see it for the near future. It's just myself and my fiancee, and between us we might drink 72 ounces of beer a week (and that's me drinking 60 oz). Also, since storage poses an issue, being able to store a couple 3 gallon versus 5 or 6 gallon fermenters would be much easier.
So, is there any good way to do this? Would the best advice be to use 3 gallon carboys as my primary fermenters? I really don't care about secondary fermentation (yet), and unfiltered beers are some of my favorites. So I think a one stage setup would be fine to start. If anyone's been in this situation or knows some good solutions then I'm all ears. Thanks in advance.
Since you are on a bit of a budget, I would still recommend a plastic bucket for a fermenter. You can use buckets from Lowes or Home Depot, as these are food grade (just be sure they are new).
Even if you are making a 3 gallon batch, you will need some head space, so a five gallon bucket will be needed. Given that, you might consider picking up a standard 6 - 6.5 gallon bucket such as those sold at home brew stores. You can always brew 3 gallons or so in these, and they allow you to step up to a full 5 gallons in the future. The space required is not much more than that of a 5 gallon bucket. You will also need a bottling bucket. I used to stack my buckets and keep most of my equipment stored inside of them. It basically took up about 1 x 1 foot square and about 3 feet in height. Pretty compact.
I suggest doing a little googling for "Better Bottles". These are food grade, plastic (PET) and come in a three gallon size. (perfect for half batches) you could effectively acquire a two stage system for the same size of one five gallon bucket and one could double as a bottling bucket as well.
Or, you could purchase two Mr Beer "keg" fermenters for as little as $10 a piece (minus S&H) and brew with those.
For $85 you could buy a pretty nive 2 stage five gallon system though....know anyone (family, in-laws etc) that has the space, doesn't really love beer, and is close enough to you so that you could check on it?
Keep the thinker turning, you'll find a way.!
Well, I'm starting to think that maybe the way to go is to just get the 6.5 gallon fermenter and 6.5 gallon bottling bucket kit. Realistically, it wouldn't take up that much more of a footprint, just maybe more height. The main space I'm considering is a closet. It will also house some of my clothes, so is that a bad idea? I don't want my clothes to smell like beer (well not all the time) and I definitely don't want to risk ruining some stuff from a possible blow-up (although wouldn't the 5 gallon batch in a 6.5 gallon fermenter prevent that?). Unfortunately, I just don't have the space right now to have an entire closet to myself. So my fermenter would be sharing a closet with either some hanging clothes or other household items (blankets, etc.).
Right now I have six fermentors going in my closet. My clothes hang right above them. Granted I do not have the best nose but I have yet to smell any funky fermentation scents on them. No one has commented on it either. Sometimes it make my room smell a little sour though.
Maybe this is just me, but I live in a two bedroom apartment that is pretty small and I put my fermenter in the living room tucked behind an end table. It is hardly noticeable and definitely not in the way.
My point is, who cares if you have a fermentor in your living room or kitchen? Unless you host business meetings there it really is not "innapropriate" to have a bucket in your house somewhere! It takes up less space that a trash can. Hey, why not put it next to your trash can?
Good luck!
Another thought, how many bathrooms does your two bedroom have?
In our house we have two bathrooms so I put my fermenter in the guest bathroom. With the shower curtain closed you can't even tell it's there.
Like BrewRob was saying you can put it almost anywhere, closets, under sinks, tables whatever.
Wow, I think that may be the answer. We live in a two bedroom, but the second bedroom is just used as a bonus room with a couch, TV, and computer in it. If company comes over, we may inflate an air mattress, but 99% of the time it's just a den. The bathtub is never used in the guest bathroom. So that might be the perfect place. Great idea. I think no matter what I decide (whether it goes in the bathtub, closet, or just in the corner of the den/bonus room), I've determined that I'm going to go with the 6.5 gallon bucket for fermentation with 5 gallon or smaller batches. Then if I want to upgrade later I always can. I appreciate everyone's advice very much. Thanks again.
My first thought was... wow... you only want to brew 3 gallons which can last both of you months? Why even bother...
Yes, ok... so that sounds negative. Just buy beer. That is such an insignifant amount that your time spent brewing won't nearly outweight the return.
Ok so I'll answer your question. As was mentioned already, get buckets! Go to Home Depot, Lowe's, or Walmart, and check their buckets. If they are stamped HDPE 2 on the bottom, chances are very good these are good grade plastic. Very cheap! Bakeries are an excellent source for FREE buckets too!
Forget carboys. Just get some plastic buckets. I have ~14 fermenters, and most of mine are buckets. Never failed me yet.
The guys who already answered were right on track.
Not sure if this is a solution to anybody, but this is damn near the coolest thing I have ever seen
http://www.allaboutbeer.com/features/235coffee.html
Ted's Brew Journal did a post on a spin off of this idea, pretty crazy stuff if you ask me:
http://www.tedbrews.com/2007/03/mini-masher.html
All the other ideas posted make sense, but I am on the "just get the 5 gallon system, you will be glad you did" train. It seems like a lot of stuff, but when you are going 2 gallon worts added to the water, it's actually surprizingly efficient. You need to sprawl out on brew day a little, but you can take everything down after that.
I've got a local brewing supply store here, so I'm going to head there this weekend and get setup. I figure they'll be knowledgeable enough to tell me what I need and get me started right. I've also been reading How to Brew, and that's given me some good insight. I'm very excited about getting into homebrewing, because I'm in my late 20s and feel that this could be a great hobby for a long time. I'm not getting into it to save liquor store costs or avoid paying through the nose at bars (although that won't hurt). I'm getting into homebrewing because I love beer and am extremely intrigued by the process of what goes into making each style and beer design.
I'm originally from the St. Louis area, so I grew up in the shadow of The King. When I turned 21 (or at least we'll say that) and could sample for myself I realized that although they may be tops by volume, in my book they were not even close to the top brewery in the state (Boulevard in KC and Schlafly in STL have them whipped easily) when measured by quality and taste. I can't wait to start brewing my own beer and take my shot at making some great brews (and probably some that aren't so great). Thanks for all the advice, I'm sure you'll be hearing from me in this forum a lot.
I second Cubx's suggestion to check out bakeries. Our local Walmart bakery tosses their buckets in the trash, so I asked if they would save me a few. I got two different sizes; one looks to be about 3 gallons (which I haven't used yet) and the other is 5 gal. I don't know if I'll be able to use the 3s for anything other than washing bottles, but I've used a 5 gal to ferment a few gallons of apple cider. I bought an extra lid & airlock from the LHBS for around $5, and it worked just fine.
I am new here but not to homebrewing or winemaking. First of all, I don't like the idea of paying someone to advertise for them which is what you will do if you buy a bucket from Lowes or some other big merchant. Plus it will probably cost you about 7.50 because usually the lid is extra. On the bucket/bottle issue. I would go to the local school cafeteria and get aquainted with some of the workers there. Or a local deli works too. You CAN get quality buckets with good sealable lids for free or cheap if you look around. Frozen strawberries usually come in a 4 gallon bucket and as they are usually quick frozen and not thawed before use they don't leave an aftertaste in the plastic. Make sure you don't get a pickle bucket or anything that had an unfrozen acidy food. You will have taste problems. I also get glass carboys/bottles from the bottled drinking water delivery truck, costs me 5 bucks each. For smaller 3 gallon batches the 4 gallon bucket will work well as will the 5 gallon water bottle. Heck, they even have a 3 gallon water bottle I use. I like to make beer in small batches as I don't drink a lot but like to have several different flavors and varities to sample. If you make 6 gallons each time you can end up 60 gallons of beer on hand before you know it. I make three gallon batches and have even made a one gallon batch. The trick is to figure out how to cut the recipe down for the batch. A little hops goes a long way in a one gallon batch. Good luck:)
I made a 3 gallon batch yesterday, and what I realized is that it was only a couple of dollars cheaper than making 5 gallons. With nearly every ingredient, I had to order a certain minimum or pre-measured amount. In the end, I had a lot of left over ingredients that will probably never get used. I know this doesn't solve your space issue, but it's just something to think about.
GO FOR 5!!!!
3 gallons = 30 bottles (give or take)
That is only 1 month of beer if you only drink 1 a day.
I guarantee that you will be very, very, very disapointed in how quickly the batch will disappear. And in a month or so you will wish you had the capacity for 5 gallons. Then you will torture yourself with wondering if you should spend money for bigger containers, or buy another container to do bigger batches.
I brew a 5 gallon batch every 3 weeks or so, and it is not enough, I still have to supplement with purchased brew. That is OK because I am still building my bottle collection. Now before you pass jugdement on my drinking capacity (in reality I am a lightweight), realize that friends will want to taste, special occasions will occur, and for my beautiful bride of 16 years there needs to be a bottle a day of pilsner (except during the present season of lent which is ok with me since it means that there is more for me until easter, LOL).
As far as the space goes, the equipment storage should be similar. What I want to know is where do people who do not have a basement store their bottle beer? Or do you non-basement owners do kegs?
Just curious......
Pages: 1 2
Search Home Brewing Knowledge Base
Custom Search
|