Home brew Newbie - My First Setup Recommendations

[Osheac10]

Hi, as always some great advice here for you. I would only add - check out eBay/gumtree to see if anyone is selling some kit near by, an excellent way to get cheap and sometimes seldom used items. Also, I found one of the best improvements I made to my beer was to treat my tap water with a campden tablet the day before brewing. There are threads on this you can find on here, as well as the very informative thread on doing a simple AG brew when you are feeling confident. Good luck and happy brewing

Appreciate the reply! I might look into that with regards to shopping on eBay. I was thinking of installing a RO/DI unit as I can use it for beer making and for my reef tank. Those two hobbies are a great combination.

Cheers

 

[Nottsbeer]

I really appreciate this post! Made me laugh about the ghost ship from asda as that’s where I’d get most beers from. I think your right about enjoying the grind of it all. I wanna give it a go and maybe after the first 10 brews or something I might invest in things that make the whole thing easier. I do worry about how to maintain temps but I guess thats where I’ll learn. I’ve heard kegging will save a lot of aggravation but please if anyone thinks that’s not true let me know. I’m not in a rush so will make sure I’ve got everything sorted before I take the plunge.

If you are worried about maintaining a stable temperature for fermenting then you should check out a fermentation fridge set-up....can be done quite cheaply depending on the size of the fridge (I use a small undercounter fridge for 13l brews, cost me about £50 in total for all bits). Some good posts on here again about doing that. If you have a room with a stable temp suitable for happy yeast then you could get away without one. Regarding kegs, no idea. I bottle and find it no bother, tho again not a big deal for my small volumes.

 

[m_kc]

I really appreciate this post! Made me laugh about the ghost ship from asda as that’s where I’d get most beers from. I think your right about enjoying the grind of it all. I wanna give it a go and maybe after the first 10 brews or something I might invest in things that make the whole thing easier. I do worry about how to maintain temps but I guess thats where I’ll learn. I’ve heard kegging will save a lot of aggravation but please if anyone thinks that’s not true let me know. I’m not in a rush so will make sure I’ve got everything sorted before I take the plunge.

Fermentation temp can be a real challenge during the summer months without any real control, I envy those who can - but when autumn and winter come I feel you can always find a sweet spot in your house/garage and submersing your fermenter in water can help buffer against variations in the ambient temps. Roll on the winter :) - I've learned how elevated temps can effect your beer this year!
Another thing I learned (as a new brewer who has made a ton of mistakes this year), if you are using anything chlorine based to clean your equipment rinse well, it shows up in the end product.

 

[stripeyjoe]

You can get a kit of most of the things you need to dip your toes in, nearly all of it will be useful still if you like the hobby and want to move to all grain brewing.
these are fairly good examples, I found getting a bottle washer and drying rack made bottling a heap easier.
Also get a big tub of Oxi type cleaner and 500ml of star san so you can keep everything clean. The kits tend to come with only enough cleaner for a couple of brews.
good luck!
https://www.geterbrewed.com/beginner-brewing-starter-kits/

 

[Andrew Booth]

Lots of simple ways to brew I started on Youngs Microbrewery Set in 2009 the included beer was Wherry which I have done loads of times over the years. About 5 years ago I got a old tea boiler and commenced brew in a bag when the boiler died I got a Peco Electrim mash bucket/boiler used that till earlier this year when I upgraded to a 40l Brewster Beacon it’s been a learning curve with that machine. You can spend a fortune on brewing equipment I reckon over the last 12 years I’ve spent no more than 1500 on equipment the biggest expense for me was getting into corny kegs. My advice? Start basic on kits and grow from there if you do go down the all grain route eventually you will find mash kits you can buy from various Homebrew Shops and Cleanliness and Sanitising is essential.

 

[Binkei Huckaback]

I started with kits, then moved to extract, then to 3 vessel all grain, then to a Grainfather. Spending more money doesn't necessarily make better beer.

Freecycle can be a good place to look for equipment I once managed to get a free Baby Burco boiler.

There are pitfalls to watch out for. For example, if you decide to use a 'tea urn' type boiler, the very old Baby Burco boilers boil and boil and boil (which is what you want) and have a hidden element, where as the modern ones have a simmer stat which stops a continous boil and obviously needs disabling.

Tips I can offer:

- Use a no rinse sanitiser. This will save you much water and time.
- Other than kits, every brew day seems to take longer than expected until you get into the swing of things
- Don't buy an autosyphon
- Clean any new equipment thoroughly before you use it for the first time

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

Where in Kent are you @Osheac10 ?

I live in Maidstone and may have a couple of bits to help get you started. You could also come and watch an all-grain brew-day and ask questions.

 

[Druncan]

A few more things that may help with kits;

• Invest in Starsan. Dirty Clean everything everytime with scratch free scrubbie, rinse and then Sanitise and don't fear the foam!
• If using kits the HLME doesn't need boiling it's been done already. Heat to 75*C then transfer into FV slowly, add water slowly until below 35*C then spray the remainder to oxygenate the wort.
• Forget the fermentation lock, go for a bulkhead ferrule to silicon tube and a 2L ex milk bottle bubbler with more SS inside.
• Do not peek while its fermenting- take a sample from tap. Less spoilt brews.
• Only open the lid for dry hop and spray with SS as you do.
• Lift the bubbler tube when you bottle,,,
• Mix your priming solution and dose with a big clean syringe before capping.
• Get a 4hr brewing playlist in preparation for future brew days,,,

 

[Tommo 2]

A few more things that may help with kits;

• Invest in Starsan. Dirty Clean everything everytime with scratch free scrubbie, rinse and then Sanitise and don't fear the foam!
• If using kits the HLME doesn't need boiling it's been done already. Heat to 75*C then transfer into FV slowly, add water slowly until below 35*C then spray the remainder to oxygenate the wort.
• Forget the fermentation lock, go for a bulkhead ferrule to silicon tube and a 2L ex milk bottle bubbler with more SS inside.
• Do not peek while its fermenting- take a sample from tap. Less spoilt brews.
• Only open the lid for dry hop and spray with SS as you do.
• Lift the bubbler tube when you bottle,,,
• Mix your priming solution and dose with a big clean syringe before capping.
• Get a 4hr brewing playlist in preparation for future brew days,,,

Just my option osheac10, and welcome to the forum mate, and like others have advised you get a couple of good kits on to get your confidence up and get used to the procedures of brewing and a good sanitation routine, to my mind that’s the most important part of brewing anything, and your half way there.Again this is just my opinion but at the moment to me the best kits on market today is the new flag ship range from muntons, have brewed the west coast and the hazy ipa with fantastic success, don’t think many would be able to tell the difference from all grain, the hazy being my favourite, give them a go I think any home brewer would be impressed

 

[DavidDetroit]

I found the online manual for beer making by John Palmer (John Palmer's How To Brew) useful as it does a step by step. Aside from recommending a secondary vessel, it's pretty good.

 

[Osheac10]

Where in Kent are you @Osheac10 ?

I live in Maidstone and may have a couple of bits to help get you started. You could also come and watch an all-grain brew-day and ask questions.

I’m in dartford, that’s a great offer, much appreciated. I might not be much help but that would be great.

 

[Osheac10]

I found the online manual for beer making by John Palmer (John Palmer's How To Brew) useful as it does a step by step. Aside from recommending a secondary vessel, it's pretty good.

Thanks I’ll check that out.

 

[Osheac10]

A few more things that may help with kits;

• Invest in Starsan. Dirty Clean everything everytime with scratch free scrubbie, rinse and then Sanitise and don't fear the foam!
• If using kits the HLME doesn't need boiling it's been done already. Heat to 75*C then transfer into FV slowly, add water slowly until below 35*C then spray the remainder to oxygenate the wort.
• Forget the fermentation lock, go for a bulkhead ferrule to silicon tube and a 2L ex milk bottle bubbler with more SS inside.
• Do not peek while its fermenting- take a sample from tap. Less spoilt brews.
• Only open the lid for dry hop and spray with SS as you do.
• Lift the bubbler tube when you bottle,,,
• Mix your priming solution and dose with a big clean syringe before capping.
• Get a 4hr brewing playlist in preparation for future brew days,,,

I’ll note this down, start working on the playlist now :)

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

I’m in dartford, that’s a great offer, much appreciated. I might not be much help but that would be great.

If you’re happy to make the trip to Maidstone I’m happy to have you along. There’s nothing you need to do but get the most from the visit. I’ll be planning a brew-day some time over the next few days and will drop you a private message to make arrangements.

 

[johncrobinson]

Keeping a reef tank is a great reason to get a RO unit.

BUT you dont need to spend grands to get into the hobby,The baron talks a lot of sense and hazelwoods offer is generious, I would accept if i were you.

 

[Osheac10]

If you’re happy to make the trip to Maidstone I’m happy to have you along. There’s nothing you need to do but get the most from the visit. I’ll be planning a brew-day some time over the next few days and will drop you a private message to make arrangements.

Sounds great hope i can pop by.

 

[doccy]

When I started out I used PET bottles rather than glass, I was worried about over carbing and bottles bombs. Three years+ later I'm still using them

 

[Osheac10]

When I started out I used PET bottles rather than glass, I was worried about over carbing and bottles bombs. Three years+ later I'm still using them

That’s good to know

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

Sounds great hope i can pop by.

Absolutely. I seem to be in need of four brews, which would be of most interest? (You’re welcome to watch all 4 but I’m thinking of your journeys)…

Czech Pilsner
English Bitter
Irish Stout
American IPA

 

[Osheac10]

Absolutely. I seem to be in need of four brews, which would be of most interest? (You’re welcome to watch all 4 but I’m thinking of your journeys)…

Czech Pilsner
English Bitter
Irish Stout
American IPA

I’d love to see the process of an American IPA. Please me know some dates just to make sure I’d be able to pop round.