Getting close to my 1st brew in 20 years or so.

[Mick Almost Total Newb]

Following my introduction email 2 weeks ago and advice given by @Bitter_Dave (Thanks Dave).
I have bought a 2nd hand fridge 150cm tall, which is am hoping will fit a 32l fermzilla with hopbong attatched.

I've set it up with rapt controller and got the accompanying hydrometer. Also 40w Greenhouse heater.

My Fermziller 32l with pressure kit is in the post and hopefully will arrive on Monday,.

I've got a Muntons Export Pilsner for my 1st brew, which I'm intending to pressure brew at about 12psi.
The instructions for the kit recommend upgrading the yeast and substituting some sugar for spraymalt.

So ordered these

Mangrove Jack’s Craft Series Yeast M76 Bavarian Lager​

Spraymalt Light Malt Extract DME 500g​

Planning 500g of the Spraymalt with 500g of brewers sugar.

I'm not sure what a good temperature would be for this.

I've decided on bottling for my 1st few batches then looking to convert an old freezer i have to a keezer.

Also the kit says after bottling to add sugar to each bottle then store in a warm place for a couple of days before moving somewhere cold.
I was intending to crash the temperature for 24 hours after the brewing ends in the fridge, will this alter what I need to do when I've bottled ?

Also not sure what to buy gas wise. I expect I will need a gas cylinder to transfer the beer to bottles, but I'm not sure what I need. Co2? Nitrogen?
As I will Also need it for my keezer when i move to that, I suspect soda street bottles won't be sufficient. If anyone can recommend anywhere in west Lancs as everywhere I see I'd be looking at over £80 for a bottle then £60 each fill.

I'd appreciate any advice or tips from anyone who knows more than I do, which is probably pretty much everyone here.
Thanks, Mick.

 

[MashBag]

The one bit of advice I someone had given me is..

Brew some beer in a bucket. And stop buying stuff you prolly don't need.

I have all manner of *****, that I don't use.

 

[Mick Almost Total Newb]

Thanks Mashbag.
I did lots of bucket brewing many years ago, but a lot of it turned out terrible. Back then there was no wealth of Internet info that there is now.
Where i belive I went so badly wrong in the past would be down to 3 things.

Sanitation - Although I was meticulous in sterilising everything, I then rinsed it all with tap water. I would them open the bucket several times during the brew to check the gravity.
Temperature Control - i never had anywhere that could keep a stable temperature and I suspect it would regularly shift between 15-25 degrees C.
Light - I had no idea I should brew in a dark environment, any would leave the fermentation bucket anywhere it wasn't in the way.

Hoping the temperature controlled fridge with a fermziller and floating hydrometer will solve all that.

But you are no doubt right and I've been wasting money.

 

[Rwilts]

No the cold crash wont effect bottle conditioning , nothing addittional is required - Your beer will need 2 weeks at ideally fermentation temp (or 20) to carbonate and I find for best results a further 2 weeks at a cold temp.. Obvs your going to need to QA in between !

You dont need gas to bottle (you mostly do if Kegging). There are various opinions here on best method - I dissolve sugar and add to a bottling bucket , then syphon from Fermzilla into bucket , let stand for 10 - 15 minuets then bottle using a bottling wand. Others will advicate adding sugar to each bottle but either way they all work.

 

[Mick Almost Total Newb]

Thanks Rwilts.
I'm not sure what QA means.
I will need to add a bottling bucket to my shopping list, but much cheaper than gas. I will decide over the next couple of weeks if to go with that, or to get the gas that I will need for my keezer anyway.
How do you find your Fermzilla? I'm really impressed with what I've seen online. I fancy trying all grain in the future and would like to add the hopbong (again need co2). Also wondering if I bought a 55l tank i could swap it out for the 32 and do larger brews.

 

[Rwilts]

QA = quality assure

I love my fermzilla but being honest if I bought again I would buy without the collection jar. Maybe the most recent revision with the two ports on the same size may change my mind.

 

[Mick Almost Total Newb]

I thought the collection jar was a great feature to remove the sediment and avoid it entering the bottles/keg

 

[Rwilts]

I thought the collection jar was a great feature to remove the sediment and avoid it entering the bottles/keg

So did I

No it is and useful I have never used it

 

[MashBag]

So did I

No it is and useful I have never used it

Hmm

 

[jof]

You don't need a bottling bucket if your existing fermenting bin has a tap on it.
I just add 1 coffee spoon of sugar per 500ml bottle & fill straight from the fermenting bin. No siphoning required.

 

[MashBag]

I don't use a fermenting bin

But yes I do the same, straight out of the tap and into a dosed bottle.

 

[Mick Almost Total Newb]

I've ordered the Fermzilla fermenter, which only has access from the top, so will need to transfer it 1st unless I transfer under pressure.

 

[Sozzled Sab]

The one bit of advice I someone had given me is..

Brew some beer in a bucket. And stop buying stuff you prolly don't need.

I have all manner of *****, that I don't use.

This was one of my new years resolutions.

 

[Tanglefoot]

Seems amazing that Muntins supply a kit and advise you to swap the yeast.
Why not just include one fit for purpose, the difference in price must be negligible ?

Good luck with your first brew, you've made a good choice with a temperature controlled fridge.

 

[MashBag]

Really... Not seen that

 

[Bitter_Dave]

Good luck with your first brew, you've made a good choice with a temperature controlled fridge.

I agree, you are going to appreciate that fermentation fridge given your fluctuating fermentation temps. It is the one bit of kit people don't seem to regret buying (not that I would argue that everyone needs one, or that there are not other options that might suit others).

 

[Mick Almost Total Newb]

Seems amazing that Muntins supply a kit and advise you to swap the yeast.
Why not just include one fit for purpose, the difference in price must be negligible ?

Good luck with your first brew, you've made a good choice with a temperature controlled fridge.

I agree. It does say it recommends upgrading to their own gold yeast but I couldn't find that anywhere.

 

[Mick Almost Total Newb]

I agree, you are going to appreciate that fermentation fridge given your fluctuating fermentation temps. It is the one bit of kit people don't seem to regret buying (not that I would argue that everyone needs one, or that there are not other options that might suit others).

Thanks Dave.
Only time will tell, but I am optimistic for a good beer out of it.

 

[Bitter_Dave]

I agree. It does say it recommends upgrading to their own gold yeast but I couldn't find that anywhere.

Yes, a bit ridiculous that they are recommending a yeast they no longer make. You are better off with a lager yeast anyway for the beer you are making, especially as you now have temp control.

The yeast they provide with the kit is supposed to work better when the brewer adds 1kg of sugar (it attenuates what malt is in it less). The gold yeast is better when additional malt is added. I've never made a kit with a kilo of sugar though. Safale 04 is a good replacement for the gold yeast in my experience.

 

[Davegase]

Following my introduction email 2 weeks ago and advice given by @Bitter_Dave (Thanks Dave).
I have bought a 2nd hand fridge 150cm tall, which is am hoping will fit a 32l fermzilla with hopbong attatched.

I've set it up with rapt controller and got the accompanying hydrometer. Also 40w Greenhouse heater.

My Fermziller 32l with pressure kit is in the post and hopefully will arrive on Monday,.

I've got a Muntons Export Pilsner for my 1st brew, which I'm intending to pressure brew at about 12psi.
The instructions for the kit recommend upgrading the yeast and substituting some sugar for spraymalt.

So ordered these

Mangrove Jack’s Craft Series Yeast M76 Bavarian Lager​

Spraymalt Light Malt Extract DME 500g​

Planning 500g of the Spraymalt with 500g of brewers sugar.

I'm not sure what a good temperature would be for this.

I've decided on bottling for my 1st few batches then looking to convert an old freezer i have to a keezer.

Also the kit says after bottling to add sugar to each bottle then store in a warm place for a couple of days before moving somewhere cold.
I was intending to crash the temperature for 24 hours after the brewing ends in the fridge, will this alter what I need to do when I've bottled ?

Also not sure what to buy gas wise. I expect I will need a gas cylinder to transfer the beer to bottles, but I'm not sure what I need. Co2? Nitrogen?
As I will Also need it for my keezer when i move to that, I suspect soda street bottles won't be sufficient. If anyone can recommend anywhere in west Lancs as everywhere I see I'd be looking at over £80 for a bottle then £60 each fill.

I'd appreciate any advice or tips from anyone who knows more than I do, which is probably pretty much everyone here.
Thanks, Mick.

The mangrove jacks M76 yeast is recommended to ferment at 8 to 14°C.
You say your aiming to ferment under pressure in the Fermzilla at about 12 PSI. That will mean by the end of fermentation you will have carbonated beer so you won't be adding sugar to the bottle beer, and you will need some type of counter pressure bottling device and yes you will need CO2 gas to provide the counter pressure.
The use of a hop bong also requires CO2. I've been using pressure fermentation for a long time and I've never needed a hop bong, so unless you're going to attempt heavily dry hopped beers I wouldn't bother.
At 10°C and 12 PSI carbonation will be a little low for a lager. If you increase the pressure towards the end of fermentation that will increase carbonation. The amount of carbonation is dependent on a combination of temperature and pressure.
You won't need a bottleing bucket as you will be bottling direct from the Fermzilla.
Here is a link for a carbonation calculator.

https://drhansbrewery.com/beercarbonationcalculator/