Yet another one with a plan

[KJK]

Hello there,

After years of indecisiveness I am now very close to beginning my adventure with brewing. I will be definitely going All Grain. My flat is very small and I do not think it possible to heat liquids on my current hob, so I am considering buying a Grainfather with sparge water heater. I would welcome any views on that idea, and any tips about the rest of the equipment - especially what sort of fermentation vessels should I get and how to keep them in a temperature-controlled environment.

Best regards,
Chris

 

[wheazy_joe]

Welcome on board Chris, and bravo for going straight to AG. I brew kits so will leave others to answer your questions.

 

[clibit]

If your flat is very small I'm wondering if you have space for a GF, sparge heater, FVs etc? Is your kitchen big enough to carry out a brew day? Any outdoor space with access to water and electricity?

 

[KJK]

If your flat is very small I'm wondering if you have space for a GF, sparge heater, FVs etc? Is your kitchen big enough to carry out a brew day? Any outdoor space with access to water and electricity?

Yes, the set with, perhaps, two FVs will fit in the flat without much problem. No outdoor spaces available I'm afraid.

Another thing I wanted to ask is whether I can move FV to another location straight after mashing? Would a one hour car drive damage fermentation in any way?

 

[clibit]

Yes, the set with, perhaps, two FVs will fit in the flat without much problem. No outdoor spaces available I'm afraid.

Another thing I wanted to ask is whether I can move FV to another location straight after mashing? Would a one hour car drive damage fermentation in any way?

It's not a problem as long as your FV is well sealed and no accidents occur. You should get some additional wort aeration! Fasten the seat belt tightly. :thumb: :lol:

 

[KJK]

It's not a problem as long as your FV is well sealed and no accidents occur. You should get some additional wort aeration! Fasten the seat belt tightly. :thumb: :lol:

Great news! In that case I will start thinking about building a fermentation chamber :)

 

[Leon103]

Time for a bigger flat

 

[Covrich]

that sloshing around the car might help it get going but bear in mind it is a large dead weight .. make sure its tightly secured.. maybe a baby seat for your baby :lol:

 

[KJK]

that sloshing around the car might help it get going but bear in mind it is a large dead weight .. make sure its tightly secured.. maybe a baby seat for your baby :lol:

I'm already considering this problem and I think I will indeed manufacture a "seat" for it :)

This leads me to another issue. I need to decide which type of fermentation vessel to purchase, to know its dimensions. I will be using Grainfather, so it must be capable of holding ca. 20L of wort (plus some free space I'd imagine). Should I go for 25L one or higher?

 

[Spapro]

Yes, the set with, perhaps, two FVs will fit in the flat without much problem. No outdoor spaces available I'm afraid.

Another thing I wanted to ask is whether I can move FV to another location straight after mashing? Would a one hour car drive damage fermentation in any way?

Welcome to the forums Chris,

A 1 hour car journey with your beer after brewing, and again to bottle sounds like hard work to be honest.

Do you have space anywhere in your flat for a fridge - these can be picked up for next to nothing on Free cycle or Ebay etc. and can be converted easily to both heat/cool - ie a brewfridge.

Fermenting your beer an hour away with all that brings may take the fun out of things.

Also, may be worth buying a starter kit (fermentation vessel, bottle capper, hydrometer, bottling wand etc) with something like a Coopers Lager/Ale/Stout kit - will let you try fermenting and 'brewing' your own beer so you can see if you enjoy it before investing in all the gear or a grainfather. Any starter kit you buy will give you a base to build on so won't be wasted money in any way.

 

[MyQul]

If you really have to ferment your beer an hour drive away I would use a cube* as using an FV your itdanger of it spilling everywhere.

If you really don't have space for a 23L FV, what about splitting the brew into 5L or 10L cubes and dotting them around the flat to ferment. It'd be more hassle on bottling day but at least you wouldn't have to drive your beer anywhere

* A cube is basically a plastic food grade jerry can

 

[KJK]

If you really have to ferment your beer an hour drive away I would use a cube* as using an FV your itdanger of it spilling everywhere.

If you really don't have space for a 23L FV, what about splitting the brew into 5L or 10L cubes and dotting them around the flat to ferment. It'd be more hassle on bottling day but at least you wouldn't have to drive your beer anywhere

* A cube is basically a plastic food grade jerry can

Thank you very much for your post.

I do have space for FVs, but I am a bit of a control freak, so I would like to progress with fermentation in a completely controlled environment to receive information what will the difference in taste/fragrance/etc be between fermenting the same wort at different temperatures. I do not have enough space at home for a substantial fermentation chamber. My partner would not be too happy to see our fridge/freezer converted

Driving is not a problem at all. My goal is to learn and to develop the best beer, and I am committed to do just that.

Which 23/25L FV would you buy yourself? I will definitely need a tap to check the state of fermentation without opening the container. Don't get me wrong - I did my research and probably saw them all, but I cannot decide not only about the material but also about the shape...

Best regards,
Chris

 

[clibit]

If you are going to make 23 litre brews, or anything over 20L, and lots of people do, I'd go for a 30-33 litre FV. Fermentations can get pretty lively and I would say a 5 litre space is the absolute minimum you want.

For transporting, you need a very secure lid. This one sounds like it would be:

http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk...nter_with_Large_Lid_and_Tap.html#.Vkt2U9LhBkg

 

[ManseMasher]

http://www.tanks-direct.co.uk/10-50_litre_water_tanks

Or something like one of these in your boot.....

I like the look of them tbh - Stackable fv's!!

 

[shaunw5]

Thank you very much for your post.

I do have space for FVs, but I am a bit of a control freak, so I would like to progress with fermentation in a completely controlled environment to receive information what will the difference in taste/fragrance/etc be between fermenting the same wort at different temperatures. I do not have enough space at home for a substantial fermentation chamber. My partner would not be too happy to see our fridge/freezer converted

Driving is not a problem at all. My goal is to learn and to develop the best beer, and I am committed to do just that.

Which 23/25L FV would you buy yourself? I will definitely need a tap to check the state of fermentation without opening the container. Don't get me wrong - I did my research and probably saw them all, but I cannot decide not only about the material but also about the shape...

Best regards,
Chris

I too am doing AG in a shoebox London flat. Sadly don't have space anywhere for a fermentation fridge otherwise I'd happily drive my wort back and forth! I'm using a smaller tea urn type BIAB boiler setup and usually ferment in 5L water bottles which are easily portable and allow split batches with different yeasts/temps/dry hops etc. Perhaps something like that would be worth considering since you're keen to experiment?

 

[keat64]

A 5 gallon fermenting vessel has a foot print the size of a large pizza, so finding a space for it should be easy enough, unless of course you live in a pizza box.
Temperature shouldn't be an issue either, as 20 degrees is plenty warm enough.
The brew will withstand lower temperatures, but may take a few more days to fully ferment.

Bear in mind that FV's are not usually sealed water tight, so any transportation will more than likely result in spillage, unless you can make it water tight for the journey.

Personally, i'd brew it in the flat, maybe even in the bedroom where you can be gently coaxed to sleep to the peaceful sound of .... glug............................... glug ................................glug