A few questions before i embark on this homebrew adventure...

[MyQul]

If you decide to use wilko yeast and ferment at 14C you'll need two packs (won't break the bank as it's only £1.75 a pack) and it's take longer to finish fermenting as things happen slowly at colder temps

 

[Slid]

A trug isn't much bigger than your fv...

WOW I never realised that is what a trug is, I imagined something more like a skip!

SWMBO has had those floating around in the past for gardening. Never knew that they might actually be useful. :lol:

 

[Hoppyland]

In my present rented accommodation, I do ferment with an aquarium heater directly in the beer. There are differing views on this, and you might find the following thread on this forum interesting:

http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=59004

If you're using ale yeasts, I would recommend keeping the temperature at 18-20C if possible. depending upon the yeast strain, you can get funny flavours if the temperature goes much above 20C. I certainly think that the 24C mentioned in an earlier post would be too high for a lot of ale yeasts & wouldn't give you the best results.

cheers
Bill