Hi new to brewing

The Homebrew Forum

Help Support The Homebrew Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

ivanvasey

New Member
Joined
Jan 16, 2020
Messages
13
Reaction score
2
Location
west midlands england
Hi new to brewing, made a batch of IPA Triple hop and is nearly at keging stage 1008 on hydrometer scale i thing a couple of days and it will be ready ,i have a siphon kit with trap and i was wondering if it was ok to use coffee filter papers in a large funnel to catch any that came through as i keg it ?
 
There's no need to filter beer as "Time + Gravity" will clear a brew and passing it through a coffee filter will just slow things down and allow more time for something nasty to join the beer in the bottle or keg.

Here's an unfiltered brew after less than two weeks in the PB. Enjoy.

IMG_1581.jpg
 
At 1.008 your beer is probably done or nearly done. So take another SG reading in 2 days and if they are the same you can proceed to bottle, if not leave another 2 days etc. However, if you want to be siphoning off clear or nearly clear beer (but still with sufficient yeast to carb up your beer) move the FV to the coldest place you have after the readings have bottomed out for another 2 days or so, and the cold will cause the vast majority of the remaining yeast in suspension to drop.
And I agree with @Dutto, no filter papers, and time and gravity plus cold conditioning after carbing will clear the beer ready for drinking.
 
Thanks guys for the info as i said i a complete novice so probably have plenty of questions , just tested and its between 1.006 and 1.008 i think i will leave until weekend then test Fri,Sat,Sun and if its stabilised then i will siphon off into my barrel.
When i siphon off will i have to put extra sugar in barrel some say no if you are force carbonating with gas , some say yes put sugar in to carbonate naturally and clear and use gas when barrel is half empty to keep pressure up for flow through tap, i understand its a second fermentation that carbonates the beer and clears it does it affect the overall alcohol % does carbonating with gas do the same.
Thanks for info so far guys acheers.
 
It depends on the method of storage as follows:
  • In a plastic PB or in bottles then carbonate with sugar. (*)
  • In a Growler or other type of cask then carbonate with CO2 gas (personally I use 5psi), unless,
  • There will be a delay before connecting the Growler or Cask to a CO2 source; in which case minimal carbonation is recommended. (Personally, I use 1g per litre to give a small amount of positive pressure.)
At 1.008 for an SG I would reckon that the brew has fully fermented. The options then are to Cold Crash it (I do it down to 10*C) for two or three days to help it clear and then and bottle/keg it, or do it straight away.

Enjoy.

(*)
To find out how much sugar to use then please refer to the "Calculators" section at the top of this page and go to the relevant carbonation section.
 
@ivanvasey
If you are putting your beer into a standard 25 litre plastic beer barrel (PB) I strongly recommend that you use no more than 95g priming sugar or you run the risk of overpressurising the PB. But sooner or later on increasing amounts of sugar the rubber band RV will vent (assuming of course it works ashock1).
And if your PB is new you need to pre-commission it before you put beer in it.
See here
https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/threads/guide-to-a-standard-home-brew-pressure-barrel.67042/
 
Thanks for the info really helpful,my PB is new 2 inch opening with co 2 injector cap working pressure 15 psi so will pre-commission it first.
thanks again for the advice happy brewing acheers.:beer1:
 
@ivanvasey Test the PB first!

I suggest that you:
  • Close the tap.
  • Fill it with water to:
    • Bottom Tap - just above the level of the tap.
    • Top Tap - about 5cm of water.
  • Check that the Non-Return on the INSIDE of the lid (it's a little rubber sleeve on top of a small spigot) is seated okay and not perished..
  • Check that the Over Pressure on the OUTSIDE of the lid (a broader rubber sleeve just underneath the thread) is okay and not perished.
  • Check that the top of the PB is smooth (especially where the joints in the mould were).
  • Check that the "O" ring is unpersihed and sits tightly within the cap.
  • Grease the outside thread of the PB and the "O" ring with a small amount of Vaseline. (Optional - but don't use any other type of lubricant.)
  • Screw the lot together, make sure that the cap is fitted fairly tightly and pressurise the keg with a single CO2 capsule.
If you can still get a glass of water out of the tap of the PB 24 hours later then the PB seals properly. At this stage you can sanitise it and transfer the brew, carbonation sugar and any Hop Tea that you may require.

Hope this helps.
 
The beer will clear over a few days in the PB - but don’t move the PB because the sediment will be at the bottom and moving the PB will stir it up again.

I stopped using secondary fermentation to carbonate and pressurise my beer as soon as I realised that I could drink it sooner by injecting Co2!!
 
Nope the lid didn't seal properly stripped down checked lubed up with Vaseline checked rim no hi spots lubed threads and rim again ,put on and pressurised ,slight hiss but stopped quickly , thought it was ok until i checked this morning no pressure,so checked everything again ,decided to purchase a new cap with the brass fitting with the rubber washer on out side top, did everything as per instruction seems to have held no hiss when pressurised just the sound of air filling up barrel and it expanded , checked this after noon and the water belted out ,so going to barrel my IPA Triple hop tonight it finished at 1002 so i have a grav of approx 5 1/2% have put 80g sugar in leaving in spare bedroom to pressurise and clear for a week before moving to garage to finish off for 2 more weeks ,I found when siphoning off it was pretty clear had very little sediment in it after barrelling of course i had to taste it was nice to my surprise not bitter or nasty after taste ,like some beers i have tried .
Thanks again for all the advice ,you have been really helpful lads ,i am now looking for a recipe for summer fruit cider for the wife as she drinks this lol if she cant shes on the gin.I will starting another batch of IPA tomorrow i have a spare barrel to fill .

happy brewing guys .acheers.:beer1:
 
Nope the lid didn't seal properly stripped down checked lubed up with Vaseline checked rim no hi spots lubed threads and rim again ,put on and pressurised ,slight hiss but stopped quickly , thought it was ok until i checked this morning no pressure,so checked everything again ,decided to purchase a new cap with the brass fitting with the rubber washer on out side top, did everything as per instruction seems to have held no hiss when pressurised just the sound of air filling up barrel and it expanded , checked this after noon and the water belted out ,so going to barrel my IPA Triple hop tonight it finished at 1002 so i have a grav of approx 5 1/2% have put 80g sugar in leaving in spare bedroom to pressurise and clear for a week before moving to garage to finish off for 2 more weeks ,I found when siphoning off it was pretty clear had very little sediment in it after barrelling of course i had to taste it was nice to my surprise not bitter or nasty after taste ,like some beers i have tried .
Thanks again for all the advice ,you have been really helpful lads ,i am now looking for a recipe for summer fruit cider for the wife as she drinks this lol if she cant shes on the gin.I will starting another batch of IPA tomorrow i have a spare barrel to fill .

happy brewing guys .acheers.:beer1:

Lovebrewing do a nice apple cider kit. I’ve used it a few times. I bottle it (flip-top bottles) rather than keg it because you can get far higher pressure in bottles so it’s really sparkling.

I then add flavours (fruit drink cordials) to order when serving. We find Cherry and Blackcurrant work best.

Photos: in the glass, testing flavours, and bottled.
 

Attachments

  • FA10BE0F-23FD-457C-B6C0-B1B0DCB1ADA3.jpeg
    FA10BE0F-23FD-457C-B6C0-B1B0DCB1ADA3.jpeg
    24.5 KB · Views: 263
  • 2EEB6A2B-4020-42C8-A590-A719241929F0.jpeg
    2EEB6A2B-4020-42C8-A590-A719241929F0.jpeg
    59.5 KB · Views: 239
  • 0217C707-9A98-4D22-9848-9F5C871E52F2.jpeg
    0217C707-9A98-4D22-9848-9F5C871E52F2.jpeg
    33.6 KB · Views: 261
Thanks for info .has any one added cordial or berry juice when put in barrel,to condition and do you still put sugar in or is there enough in fruit or the cordial .
Happy brewing acheers.:beer1:
 
Thanks for info .has any one added cordial or berry juice when put in barrel,to condition and do you still put sugar in or is there enough in fruit or the cordial .
Happy brewing acheers.:beer1:

Most fruity flavoured ciders use apple cordial or some other form of artificial flavouring, including the one from lovebrewing, because once fermented most ciders have little apple flavour. No need to add extra sugar though unless you want higher alcohol. If you want a sweet cider add a little non-fermentable sugar like lactose.
 
Hi guys first i would like to thank everybody for the help and advice given ,this is my IPA Triple Hop a standard shop bought mix in a tin ,i had a few issues with the new barrel at first when pre- commissioning (good advice given or i would have been up the proverbial creek without a paddle .)
The cap was **** kept venting ,so replaced with a brass one it sorted it out , as you can see carbonation and head has taken place.
I only put 80g of sugar in to carbonise so took a little longer as expected to carbonise due to my spare room being at 18 degrees ,it should be at 4% but i added a little extra sugar at the start of brew so i have a final reading of 5.4% .
Tastes good ,nutty ,nice hop taste and a slight sweetness not to bitter on the pallet its clearing nice now ,so i have moved from the spare room into garage to finish off clearing and chill right down as my garage has no heating so its always cold in there .
Going to enjoy in a couple of weeks with friends should be all clear by then. Cheers guys .Happy brewing.
IMG-20200206-WA0005.jpeg IMG-20200206-WA0003.jpeg clapaacheers.:beer1:
 
Hi guys is there any alternative /cheaper steriliser ,i ask as my daughter has plenty Milton sterilising tablets left over from bottle washing for the new baby that is now well past needing it done to his bottles now hes 12 months old.
 
I use Milton all the time but I only make wine, beer brewers do use them, some say you need to rinse (even though it says no rinse on the packaging) others don't bother.
 
Hi guys is there any alternative /cheaper steriliser ,i ask as my daughter has plenty Milton sterilising tablets left over from bottle washing for the new baby that is now well past needing it done to his bottles now hes 12 months old.

I use Sodium Percarbonate which is a white powder you mix with water (5g/l). It needs no rinsing and is readily available online. I’ve seen it on ebay at £48 for 25Kg if you want to buy in bulk.

It’s been many years since we last had to sterilise baby bottles so not sure how these prices compare.
 
I bought a bottle of StarSan about two years ago. Amazingly, this small 472ml bottle ...

https://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/Five_Star_Star_San_16oz.html

... will make over 300 litres of sanitising solution.

I mix mine up in a 5 litre Demi-John and then apply it wherever it's needed with a spray bottle. At £16 for the original bottle it works out at just over 5p a litre and my 500ml bottle does about four brews.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top