Writing this post has just given me the name for this beer. I was going to call it Hoffman's Bicycle but now i'm going to have to call it ridiculous endings because that's how my brewday ended.
I was making a session IPA and despite being a bit rusty, having not brewed much recently, most of the brewday went well. I was trying a 35min boil to save some electricity and the mash and boil both went fine and I hit all my numbers. I chilled the wort and transferred 30L into my stainless steel fermentor. It was only when I got to putting it in the fermentation chamber that I remember that the last time I brewed there has been a small leak from around the tap. I noticed it was doing the same thing so tightened the tap with a spanner. This didn't help the leak but did twist the tap around so that the faucet was pressing against the floor, slowly undoing itself.
I realised I really needed to use PTFE tape on the tap threads and I would need to take the tap off the full fermentor to do so. After retrieving the tape I got the fermentor out of the fridge and onto a dolly I use to move it around when full. I knew I needed the fermentor on its back so the tap was above the wort. As it turns out, 30L of wort and a SS fermentor are quite heavy and difficult to maneuver, especially when you have to keep one finger over the airlock hole to stop the wort escaping. Somehow I managed to get it on its back using my one free hand. Then I went to undo the tap from the fermentor body but it was jammed pretty well. It took a few minutes of swearing to get it undone. I then had to apply PTFE tape to two lengths of thread with one hand. I find that tricky enough with two. Finally I got the tap back together and screwed in. Thankfully it stopped the leak and put the tap back in the right place.
I think I only lost about a litre of wort do not too bad all things considered. I just have to hope it was worth the effort now.
Recipe here if your interested.
I was making a session IPA and despite being a bit rusty, having not brewed much recently, most of the brewday went well. I was trying a 35min boil to save some electricity and the mash and boil both went fine and I hit all my numbers. I chilled the wort and transferred 30L into my stainless steel fermentor. It was only when I got to putting it in the fermentation chamber that I remember that the last time I brewed there has been a small leak from around the tap. I noticed it was doing the same thing so tightened the tap with a spanner. This didn't help the leak but did twist the tap around so that the faucet was pressing against the floor, slowly undoing itself.
I realised I really needed to use PTFE tape on the tap threads and I would need to take the tap off the full fermentor to do so. After retrieving the tape I got the fermentor out of the fridge and onto a dolly I use to move it around when full. I knew I needed the fermentor on its back so the tap was above the wort. As it turns out, 30L of wort and a SS fermentor are quite heavy and difficult to maneuver, especially when you have to keep one finger over the airlock hole to stop the wort escaping. Somehow I managed to get it on its back using my one free hand. Then I went to undo the tap from the fermentor body but it was jammed pretty well. It took a few minutes of swearing to get it undone. I then had to apply PTFE tape to two lengths of thread with one hand. I find that tricky enough with two. Finally I got the tap back together and screwed in. Thankfully it stopped the leak and put the tap back in the right place.
I think I only lost about a litre of wort do not too bad all things considered. I just have to hope it was worth the effort now.
Recipe here if your interested.
