How do I keep 150 bottles of beer cool?

[Eris solipsis]

I don’t have a “cool” room big enough for my brewed beer stock. The garage is getting warmer each month due to solar gain on the garage doors acting like a radiator. I’m concerned they are going to warm up and burst.
does anyone have a neat trick for beer storage that does not entail bulky and expensive fridges ?.
I am considering resting bottles in water , but not convinced it’s the best idea.
sensible suggestions welcomed. Thanks.

 

[An Ankoù]

While you don't need to keep your stock chilled all year round, you certainly dont want it getting into the 30s and 40s. Looks like you're going to have to bight the bullet and convert your garage. You don't waste good brewing space by sharing it with the car do you?
Take the metal door off, brick it up and put a proper wooden door in there. Then insulate. A nice little project for the spring.

 

[Leon103]

The best way I have found is a fridge

 

[MickDundee]

While you don't need to keep your stock chilled all year round, you certainly dont want it getting into the 30s and 40s. Looks like you're going to have to bight the bullet and convert your garage. You don't waste good brewing space by sharing it with the car do you?
Take the metal door off, brick it up and put a proper wooden door in there. Then insulate. A nice little project for the spring.

Wait, people keep their car in their garage?

https://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/lifestyle/weirdo-parks-car-in-garage-20200201193086

 

[Cheshire Cat]

Move to Scotland

 

[prog99]

Move to Scotland

That doesn't help, two of my cornies had an unexpected secondary fermentation last year.

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

How about a chest freezer? A second hand one probably not expensive and by layering the bottles (or using crates) you’d have plenty of capacity. Control the temperature with an Inkbird or similar at 5C. Perfect long term storage.

There’s not much of an alternative to refrigeration unless you’re going to bury them in a shady part of the garden.

 

[Sandimas]

I don’t have a “cool” room big enough for my brewed beer stock. The garage is getting warmer each month due to solar gain on the garage doors acting like a radiator. I’m concerned they are going to warm up and burst.

That's a very valid concern, I store my bottles in the garage and I get gushers / bottle bombs every year if I leave them in there during the hot months June-Aug. I reduce my brewing in those months, mainly brew hoppy beers that go in the fridge, and bring any remaining bottles into the house and put them on the floor of a ground room, believe it or not that's cooler than the garage, which regularly gets above 30C in the summer.

 

[Sadfield]

Bring them into the house, it'll be a slightly warmer average temperature, but more stable environment.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

Traditional approach would be a cellar of course... depending on where you live, if you have a neighbour with a traditional old house they might be 'incentivised' to host a couple of crates for you?
Possibly even a local pub might be happy to rent out a bit of cellar space if you're on good term with them

 

[LeeH]

I’ve picked up 3 commercial sized fridges up over the years off eBay. Starting from £100.

 

[LeeH]

These infact!

You can also get them with solid doors which will be cheaper to run.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TEFCold-...p2349624.m46890.l6249&mkrid=710-127635-2958-0

 

[-Bezza-]

Considering the bulk of the bottles themselves, the best I can see you doing is insulating the space where they are currently stored. You could build an insulated cupboard using something like celotex but at the end of the day, that's not going to be all that much cheaper than buying a second-hand larder fridge and doesn't have the advantage of active cooling.

Other alternative might be to make a swamp cooler that blows over the top of the beer but that would have limited benefit.

 

[An Ankoù]

Send them over to me. I'll look after them for you. I could probably manage 500 bottles.

 

[Eris solipsis]

Thanks boys and girls…… especially for the reeeeeelly sensible suggestions. Hazelwood Brewery wins the prize for enlightenment about InkBird temperature controllers for about £35 on Amazon. Plenty of cheap 2nd hand chest freezers on gumtree. So, a cheap thermally insulated box for my crates that I can temperature control when we have a summer. thanks everyone.

 

[RoomWithABrew]

@LeeH
I paid a quarter of that for my commercial fridge, converted to a keg fridge, takes 8 kegs and works a treat. They are cool.

@Eris solipsis Beer doesn't keep forever in bottles and does deteriorate unless it's really high gravity stuff. Drink it and make more fresh stuff.

 

[Brewnaldo]

Bury them. Mark the spot at which you buried them with an X. Make a simple map showing the location of X.

Bury the map.

 

[Clint]

Bury them. Mark the spot at which you buried them with an X. Make a simple map showing the location of X.

Bury the map.

Yes...and buy a pirates outfit for when you dig then up.
Incidentally...what's a pirates favourite letter?

 

[Nottsbeer]

Yes...and buy a pirates outfit for when you dig then up.
Incidentally...what's a pirates favourite letter?

R or C, depending on which kid I ask

 

[moto748]

Bring them into the house, it'll be a slightly warmer average temperature, but more stable environment.

That's what I thought! My beer stays in my kitchen, largely because I haven't got anywhere else convenient to put it. As Sadfield says, it might be slightly warmer than optimum, but at least it's roughly the same temp all the year round. I pretty much don't suffer from gushers these days.