Must have equipment.

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Aphid

Regular.
Joined
Nov 11, 2016
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Location
Lowestoft, Suffolk
Starting brewing seems to be a bit of trial and error in terms of 'kits' and equipment needed. What you really need and what you don't can be an expensive process to navigate. Brewing from all grain certainly seems to yield the best results. Having reached the stage of successful brewing, what equipment have you ended up accumulating as must have's, please?
 
Well I use the biab method. So I have 2 peco boilers. One is the thermostatically controlled one that I mash in. The other I use for heating sparge water. I have a copper coil for cooling the wort, a few cheap connections and it hooks up to my kitchen tap. I then just have cheap fermenting bins with airlocks. Had a long chat the other day with a very experienced homebrew shop owner and he reckoned spending 100s and 100s on really fear boilers gave u very little advantage. I also use 30p value bleach mixed in a weak solution (2.5ml per litre of water) for sterilizing. So you can keep it cheap.and still brew just as good beer.

Any questions about my setup just ask.
 
Started with this youngs IPA starter kit from my LHBS, bought a 2nd one as it was cheaper than a 2nd PB,cap and kit by £5, added a bottle capper and a little bottler.

When upgrading to AG I opted for THBC BIAB starter kit and added their hop filter.

I could probably cope without anything else, but Xmas list includes a bench capper, grain mill and a false bottom for my boiler (the hop filter has struggled on the last two hoppy/some full leaf brews).

My costs to date spreadsheet claims £704 to date :oops:, £1.74/litre including kit, £0.89/litre without kit :thumb:.
 
Starting brewing seems to be a bit of trial and error in terms of 'kits' and equipment needed. What you really need and what you don't can be an expensive process to navigate. Brewing from all grain certainly seems to yield the best results. Having reached the stage of successful brewing, what equipment have you ended up accumulating as must have's, please?

A bottling wand for filling bottles and bottling bucket with a tap
 
Love these threads!
For me there are two ways to homebrewing, and obviously a bit of a grey area in the middle... some people want to brew the cheapest beer possible and other want to brew the best beer they can. Both are great ways.
I'm one of the latter ones. (Not that my beer is better than anyone's else's, it's just a mindset).
What I'm trying to say is ive amassed quite a few gadgets and bits of kit that are not essentially but definitely improve the beer.

Universally, I'd say get a brew fridge, any fermentation will benefit from one.

Non essential gadgets such as Braumeister, grain mill, water testing and adjusting, yeast harvesting and culturing... I could go on for hours! They all help but are definitely not essential.
 
Love these threads!
For me there are two ways to homebrewing, and obviously a bit of a grey area in the middle... some people want to brew the cheapest beer possible and other want to brew the best beer they can. Both are great ways.
I'm one of the latter ones. (Not that my beer is better than anyone's else's, it's just a mindset).
What I'm trying to say is ive amassed quite a few gadgets and bits of kit that are not essentially but definitely improve the beer.

Universally, I'd say get a brew fridge, any fermentation will benefit from one.

Non essential gadgets such as Braumeister, grain mill, water testing and adjusting, yeast harvesting and culturing... I could go on for hours! They all help but are definitely not essential.
Def agree with brew fridge that's next on my list to get. Any advice on what I'm missing in my setup as maybe I'm being complacent thinking I've got all I need lol
 
I've accumulated loads of stuff since I started and I don't think there is anything which isn't essential now, it was all bought for a reason. That said, these reasons only came about to solve problems or make small improvements so they aren't essential if you're just starting out but once you start using them you wouldn't want to give them up. Mind you, I should probably have a look through everything I have so I can back up that claim, there may be one or two unnecessary items! :lol:

For someone starting out its surprising how little you can get by on and the starter kits are great.
 
Garden trug and a fish tank heater, best 15 quid I've ever spent - fill it with water and drop the FV in it, keeps the temp up during winter and ensures a consistent ferment. Had much better results since I started using this.
 
Next for me is a heat belt or tray (which is better?) and inkbird controller together with an insulated fv cover of some sort (probably home made). Then after I've sorted my garage out a brew fridge some storage and work top space.

Cheers

Clint
 
Think the basic starter FV kit was where I kicked off, No intention of all grain at this time as
A ...... I,m not experienced enough to make sommit decent from all grain or ability to adjust.
B ...... Not enough pallet experience

For me now with some brews under my belt apart from the starter kit you want to be able to test SG and temperature so thats the first. Next cheap and cheerful, make a home made stir plate for a few quid (gives yeast best start)
Hindsight i should not of wasted money on fish tank heater and trug. Beer fridge and inkbird is 100% best route if you have room which again gives your beer the best possible chance and you can then use it to condition your bottles if you go down the priming route.

The bottle side, well I got a good stock of flip tops so far and great job but i lost the plot and went and bought 4 Kony kegs and a Co2 setup oooooooooooopsss thats when sense goes out the window. :lol: Also bought a couple of extra FV
Li
 
Well I use the biab method. So I have 2 peco boilers. One is the thermostatically controlled one that I mash in. The other I use for heating sparge water. I have a copper coil for cooling the wort, a few cheap connections and it hooks up to my kitchen tap. I then just have cheap fermenting bins with airlocks. Had a long chat the other day with a very experienced homebrew shop owner and he reckoned spending 100s and 100s on really fear boilers gave u very little advantage. I also use 30p value bleach mixed in a weak solution (2.5ml per litre of water) for sterilizing. So you can keep it cheap.and still brew just as good beer.

Any questions about my setup just ask.

Thanks for your reply. Still getting to grips with terminology but I think I am with you so far. So the need for an electronic boiler may not be so essential? YouTube videos show the mashing and sparge stage being done in a large stainless steel pot, so perhaps this will be sufficient. Some of the same videos show cooling by immersing the same pot in a cold water bath, even adding ice. But the copper coil seems a much simpler method. With your bleach mix, does that mean a thorough rinse to remove before use?
 
Started with this youngs IPA starter kit from my LHBS, bought a 2nd one as it was cheaper than a 2nd PB,cap and kit by �£5, added a bottle capper and a little bottler.

When upgrading to AG I opted for THBC BIAB starter kit and added their hop filter.

I could probably cope without anything else, but Xmas list includes a bench capper, grain mill and a false bottom for my boiler (the hop filter has struggled on the last two hoppy/some full leaf brews).

My costs to date spreadsheet claims �£704 to date :oops:, �£1.74/litre including kit, �£0.89/litre without kit :thumb:.

Thanks for your reply. Quite an investment but your results must have made it all worthwhile. I am tempted to go for Woodfordes Wherry Micro Brewery Starter kit and to buy a stainless steel pot to make the wort. Interestingly this comes with a barrel rather than bottles. What do you think?
 
Love these threads!
For me there are two ways to homebrewing, and obviously a bit of a grey area in the middle... some people want to brew the cheapest beer possible and other want to brew the best beer they can. Both are great ways.
I'm one of the latter ones. (Not that my beer is better than anyone's else's, it's just a mindset).
What I'm trying to say is ive amassed quite a few gadgets and bits of kit that are not essentially but definitely improve the beer.

Universally, I'd say get a brew fridge, any fermentation will benefit from one.

Non essential gadgets such as Braumeister, grain mill, water testing and adjusting, yeast harvesting and culturing... I could go on for hours! They all help but are definitely not essential.

Thanks for your reply. I am most definitely In the latter camp, too. If all I can achieve is bog standard weak beer I may as well stop before I start. Quality over quantity for me anytime. Although I can see the huge benefit of buying a brew fridge, initially I hope to manage without. For now, where would you suggest leaving my brew to ferment?
 
I've accumulated loads of stuff since I started and I don't think there is anything which isn't essential now, it was all bought for a reason. That said, these reasons only came about to solve problems or make small improvements so they aren't essential if you're just starting out but once you start using them you wouldn't want to give them up. Mind you, I should probably have a look through everything I have so I can back up that claim, there may be one or two unnecessary items! :lol:

For someone starting out its surprising how little you can get by on and the starter kits are great.

Point taken. Planning to start with a Woodfordes Starter Kit which comes with a barrel rather than bottles. A good idea, or not, do you think?
 
Garden trug and a fish tank heater, best 15 quid I've ever spent - fill it with water and drop the FV in it, keeps the temp up during winter and ensures a consistent ferment. Had much better results since I started using this.

Thanks. No idea what a garden trug is but the fish tank heater sounds like a great idea...as an alternative to a brew fridge, I assume? Is it easy to clean/sterilise? Any suggested sources, please?
 
Love these threads!
For me there are two ways to homebrewing, and obviously a bit of a grey area in the middle... some people want to brew the cheapest beer possible and other want to brew the best beer they can. Both are great ways.
I'm one of the latter ones. (Not that my beer is better than anyone's else's, it's just a mindset).
What I'm trying to say is ive amassed quite a few gadgets and bits of kit that are not essentially but definitely improve the beer.

Universally, I'd say get a brew fridge, any fermentation will benefit from one.

Non essential gadgets such as Braumeister, grain mill, water testing and adjusting, yeast harvesting and culturing... I could go on for hours! They all help but are definitely not essential.

I'm grey. I want to brew the best cheap beer I can!

Nah, not really. I want great beer.
 
I've manage for just over a year without a brew fridge, instead using a trug and aquarium heater for temperature control. The downside is that I can't control the temperature in the summer, and saw a drop in the quality of my beer because of it, but it works perfectly in winter when you know the ambient temperature won't go above fermentation temp. Will be moving house next year, and brew-fridge space will be an essential requirement.

In terms of absolute essential: A bucket, siphon, sediment cap, bottling wand, cheap capper, thermometer, hydrometer, some bottles and a way to control temperature for kit brewing. For all grain you will also need a boiler and a grain bag. In terms of consumable you need steriliser, bottle caps and ingredients. That is all you need to brew great beer. Don't get me wrong - I love having a chiller, spare fv to rack to with tap and little bottler, star-san, oxi cleaner, trial jar, bench-capper, hop strainer, large stock pot for sparge water etc..., but I only have them because I want them and they make my life easier.
 
Think the basic starter FV kit was where I kicked off, No intention of all grain at this time as
A ...... I,m not experienced enough to make sommit decent from all grain or ability to adjust.
B ...... Not enough pallet experience

For me now with some brews under my belt apart from the starter kit you want to be able to test SG and temperature so thats the first. Next cheap and cheerful, make a home made stir plate for a few quid (gives yeast best start)
Hindsight i should not of wasted money on fish tank heater and trug. Beer fridge and inkbird is 100% best route if you have room which again gives your beer the best possible chance and you can then use it to condition your bottles if you go down the priming route.

The bottle side, well I got a good stock of flip tops so far and great job but i lost the plot and went and bought 4 Kony kegs and a Co2 setup oooooooooooopsss thats when sense goes out the window. :lol: Also bought a couple of extra FV
Li

The Woodfordes Starter Kit I am tempted to start with has grain as part of the Kit, as far as can see? Forget the fish tank heater in favour of a proper brew fridge? How come? What is inkbird?
 

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