Hi all I'm Dan and thinking of starting home-brewing,any

[danmac]

Hi all any advice for a complete novice would be greatly appreciated

 

[danmac]

Hi I'm new to this and looking to buy a homebrew kit,any advice would be gratefully received thanks in advance.
Dan


Threads Merged C_T.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Hi all any advice for a complete novice would be greatly appreciated

Welcome to the forum.
This will keep you busy for a while - Basic beginners guide to brewing your own beer from a kit

 

[danmac]

Thanks chippy tea I'll take a look now I'm quite excited about starting this

 

[fury_tea]

What are you planning on brewing?

General advice: get a good no rinse sanitiser like star san or chem san, a litre will last years. Get some sodium percarbonate cleaner (I used to use Vanish Oxi Action from the laundry department in the supermarket - the white one has no perfume)

Use the sodium percarbonate to clean (you can soak buckets etc if heavily soiled), then rinse your equipment thoroughly, then use the no rinse sanitiser and 'don't fear the foam' i.e. no need to wash it away.

If you want any more specific info about anything this forum is a font of knowledge!

 

[danmac]

What are you planning on brewing?

General advice: get a good no rinse sanitiser like star san or chem san, a litre will last years. Get some sodium percarbonate cleaner (I used to use Vanish Oxi Action from the laundry department in the supermarket - the white one has no perfume)

Use the sodium percarbonate to clean (you can soak buckets etc if heavily soiled), then rinse your equipment thoroughly, then use the no rinse sanitiser and 'don't fear the foam' i.e. no need to wash it away.

If you want any more specific info about anything this forum is a font of knowledge!

I'm not sure yet is there any you can recommend I have seen People say star San is the best is it better to buy a starter kit or individually is there anything specific which will make it easier that the starter kits don't provide.

 

[lupinehorror]

hello and welcome to the forum. you'll have things bubbling in no time

 

[danmac]

hello and welcome to the forum. you'll have things bubbling in no time

Haha hopefully a good batch for summer

 

[Clint]

What are you planning to brew? Beers,cider,wine? Do you want to brew kits or start with malt/grains?
What's your budget? How much time can you commit to a brew day? Have you much storage space? Have you decided on somewhere to site your fermentation bucket when you've got a brew going? Have you thought about bottles or kegs? You can start brewing beer very cheaply and then if you decide it's not for you it's not so painful.

 

[Gerryjo]

What are you planning to brew? Beers,cider,wine? Do you want to brew kits or start with malt/grains?
What's your budget? How much time can you commit to a brew day? Have you much storage space? Have you decided on somewhere to site your fermentation bucket when you've got a brew going? Have you thought about bottles or kegs? You can start brewing beer very cheaply and then if you decide it's not for you it's not so painful.

You ask a lot of questions....

 

[Clint]

 

[danmac]

What are you planning to brew? Beers,cider,wine? Do you want to brew kits or start with malt/grains?
What's your budget? How much time can you commit to a brew day? Have you much storage space? Have you decided on somewhere to site your fermentation bucket when you've got a brew going? Have you thought about bottles or kegs? You can start brewing beer very cheaply and then if you decide it's not for you it's not so painful.

Hi Clint, I have a decent amount of time I was going to ferment under my stairs as it's quite warm there I'm gonna do beer and start with whichever is easiest until I understand the logistics of it I was gonna do bottles yet this may be trickier than a keg to start off with

 

[Obadiah Boondoggle]

any advice would be gratefully received thanks in advance.

- Be patient - don't rush it

- Give it time to condition properly

- Cleanliness is next to godliness

- Fermentation temperatures are important

- Don't be afraid to ask for advice

- Remember that the human race has been brewing beer for thousands of years, it's harder to mess up than you think

 

[Clint]

THIS! Well the world's your lobster! Kits are easy to get you started and the premium ones make great beer.
There's a review section on the forum somewhere to various kits members have done. If you get stuck give us all a shout.

 

[PerthRod]

For a "brewing virgin" I would recommend trying one of the Brewferm range of kits. Most of these make 9 litres of excellent quality Belgian style beer. They are easily made with minimum mess/fuss and will give you a feel for brewing with minimal outlay.

 

[danmac]

- Be patient - don't rush it

- Give it time to condition properly

- Cleanliness is next to godliness

- Fermentation temperatures are important

- Don't be afraid to ask for advice

- Remember that the human race has been brewing beer for thousands of years, it's harder to mess up than you think

Are the Milton sterilising tablets ok to use it says their non rinse

 

[Obadiah Boondoggle]

Hi Dan

Milton sterilising tablets - I have a suspicion that you are a dad!

I would not use them myself - the one time I did a brew using them it became infected (in all fairness they were out of date)

Have a look at this

https://www.jimsbeerkit.co.uk/sterilising.htm

 

[An Ankoù]

Advice: get a decent book. Wheeler is a good start, Greg Hughes' is OK. Palmer is too in depth for a beginner- you need to cover the field first- and give it a good reading.
Welcome.

 

[danmac]

Hi Dan

Milton sterilising tablets - I have a suspicion that you are a dad!

I would not use them myself - the one time I did a brew using them it became infected (in all fairness they were out of date)

Have a look at this

https://www.jimsbeerkit.co.uk/sterilising.htm

Yes I'm a dad lol

 

[BrewMeHappy]

You can get decent starter kits from home brew shops (try the forum sponsors for a start) which come with all the basic bits to get you going including fermenting vessel, hydrometer, bottles etc... Some you get a choice of beer kit you'd like too. Depending on what you like to drink will obviously depend on what beer kit your want (assuming you drink beer). Look on here for reviews. The Coopers kits are very good for single can kits, there are other very good makes too, plus two can premium kits from other manufacturers are worth a look.

Bottles are the simplest route to take as a beginner, so I would forget barrels for now.

You will need sterilising solutions or tablets to sanitise stuff, but I have used diluted thin bleach for years and years as my path of choice. Don't use thick bleach if you go that route.

You'll possibly need some standard white sugar for carbonating your bottles should your starter kit or beer kit not come with priming sugar or carbonation tablets.

Then all you need is a bit of time a patience.