Inkbird?

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

Hey guys

I am just starting to get into beer-brewing along with my husband. We are considering an all-in-one machine. However, I am worried about temperature control of the fermentation. Will an inkbird and a heat pad do the job, without having to spend a fortune? I've no idea how they work at all. and I've seen some wiring setups that are quite frankly beyond us.

Not sure what is best to buy. Can anyone help please?

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

We are considering an all-in-one machine. However, I am worried about temperature control of the fermentation. Will an inkbird and a heat pad do the job, without having to spend a fortune?

Hiya!
You'll doubtless get a deluge of advice here about different options. But to be really honest if you're just starting out then so long as you're not going to brew something really temperature sensitive like a lager, then you can just let it ferment at room temperature and you will get excellent beer. Others will denounce me for such heresy ...

That said, temperature control of your fermentations is a good idea, depending on what it is you want to brew and what temperature your yeast wants (too hot can give you some funny flavours). If your target temperature is above ambient then yes indeed as you say a simple heat pad and ink bird (or, indeed, just a heat pad with a thermostat) will work fine. The problem tends to come if you need a target temperature below ambient, as that tends to mean you need to get hold of an old fridge - pretty much any one will do if it's big enough - and replace the thermostat with something like an ink bird - that's not as hard as it might sound though and certainly plenty of people here can help you understand how to do it.

Enjoy!

 

[marshbrewer]

I've got two fermentation fridges, both controlled by inkbirds. One of them is 'heating only', and the heat is supplied by a heatpa. It works fine for keeping brews at a stable temp.

 

[Ossiary]

Hi Lisa, I'd started a post, but basically it was everything the The Engineer That Brews said!
Temperature consistency is the goal.

 

[Dazzelknight]

I bought one a few months ago of Amazon. I obtained an old fridge for free and converted it along with a tube heater. Was really easy to set up, there’s lots of tutorials on YouTube. Inkbird was £27.49 and tube heater was about £15..The inkbird is easy to program, just remember to insulate the probe so it registers the wort and not the ambient temperature. I used a piece of thermoboard taped to the side of the FV. Great bit of kit and well worth the money

 

[Braufather]

Inkbird, fridge, and some type of heating device (I use a heat pad) And you are good to go.

ive a mate that’s done quite a few kits and was going to go all grain but I advised him first to invest in an ink bird and old fridge first and continue with kits for time being.
as long as you’ve room!

 

[Gerryjo]

Hiya!
You'll doubtless get a deluge of advice here about different options. But to be really honest if you're just starting out then so long as you're not going to brew something really temperature sensitive like a lager, then you can just let it ferment at room temperature and you will get excellent beer. Others will denounce me for such heresy ...

That said, temperature control of your fermentations is a good idea, depending on what it is you want to brew and what temperature your yeast wants (too hot can give you some funny flavours). If your target temperature is above ambient then yes indeed as you say a simple heat pad and ink bird (or, indeed, just a heat pad with a thermostat) will work fine. The problem tends to come if you need a target temperature below ambient, as that tends to mean you need to get hold of an old fridge - pretty much any one will do if it's big enough - and replace the thermostat with something like an ink bird - that's not as hard as it might sound though and certainly plenty of people here can help you understand how to do it.

Enjoy!

HERETIC....

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

Thank you everyone - I will carry on researching to learn even more.

Definitely won't be making lagers - Jim hates them along with wheat beers (and some of the people that drink them) He's been using the stove top method for a few months now but it's definitely time for something a little more sophisticated.

I've spent a few weeks swotting up on the whole beer-making process and playing with brewfather. Bit obsessed with it to be fair!

The water profile is the hardest thing for us to learn. We have a water report and we've come to the conclusion that we should use tesco ashbeck water as it's easy to know what's in it, plus the additions that brewfather suggests, gyspum etc. We have extremely hard water here so our stouts may turn out better than pales without having to do too much messing around. Of course we've only scratched the surface just yet.

@David Heath's YouTube channel is a massive help for us at the minute.

 

[Gerryjo]

Thank you everyone - I will carry on researching to learn even more.

Definitely won't be making lagers - Jim hates them along with wheat beers (and some of the people that drink them) He's been using the stove top method for a few months now but it's definitely time for something a little more sophisticated.

I've spent a few weeks swotting up on the whole beer-making process and playing with brewfather. Bit obsessed with it to be fair!

The water profile is the hardest thing for us to learn. We have a water report and we've come to the conclusion that we should use tesco ashbeck water as it's easy to know what's in it, plus the additions that brewfather suggests, gyspum etc. We have extremely hard water here so our stouts may turn out better than pales without having to do too much messing around. Of course we've only scratched the surface just yet.

@David Heath's YouTube channel is a massive help for us at the minute.

I checked my water report a few weeks back online and has changed a bit since 2017 though I do have to email NI water for a brewers report which they give to homebrewers as they don't give pH or certain salt and mineral content online.Check out @strange-steve beginners guide which as excellent content for beginners.

Beginners Guide to Water Treatment (plus links to more advanced water treatment in post #1) | The HomeBrew Forum

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

Thank you Gerry. Will have a look at this now.

 

[Benfleet Brewery]

I keep my FVs in the shed which is unheated and uninsulated so I have to have some kind of temperature control. I have two fridges, one stood on top of the other and each with a heater and Inkbird controller. I wouldn’t be without them even if the external temperatures were more constant. I think I paid less than a tenner each and they take up little more space than two FVs would.

 

[DocAnna]

Thank you everyone - I will carry on researching to learn even more.

Definitely won't be making lagers - Jim hates them along with wheat beers (and some of the people that drink them) He's been using the stove top method for a few months now but it's definitely time for something a little more sophisticated.

I've spent a few weeks swotting up on the whole beer-making process and playing with brewfather. Bit obsessed with it to be fair!

The water profile is the hardest thing for us to learn. We have a water report and we've come to the conclusion that we should use tesco ashbeck water as it's easy to know what's in it, plus the additions that brewfather suggests, gyspum etc. We have extremely hard water here so our stouts may turn out better than pales without having to do too much messing around. Of course we've only scratched the surface just yet.

@David Heath's YouTube channel is a massive help for us at the minute.

I'm loving your enthusiasm , obsessional swotting up and playing with brewfather is just brilliant too! I wouldn't worry too much about water adjustment to begin with other than a little metabisulphite at the beginning to deal with the chlorine. Temperature control is also much more about making sure the fermentation isn't too warm, generally it will cope just fine if cooler - just take a bit longer. There are of course exceptions but fermenting in a roughly stable room temperature as @Gerryjo says is fine in many circumstances. I still brew some things at room temperature due to the limited space in my fermentation fridge. Stepping up to all grain brewing will probably enough to keep you busy without needing to worry about water and fine temperature control to begin with

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

That's very helpful Anna thank you! I must give you the credit for getting me going with this, as after I tasted your lovely Neipa, I realised I do actually like beer, I just don't like the poisonous crap they sell in the shops

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

If anyone is interested, this is the water report that we had e-mailed over to us.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

If anyone is interested, this is the water report that we had e-mailed over to us.

OK so that looks like Ca 102.6, Mg 4.7, Na 15.0, SO4 78.2, Cl 29.1, total hardness 110, pH 7.34. Doesn't look like they tell you the Bicarbonate or Carbonate though, unless I'm missing it.

I don't think you should have too many problems brewing with that. It's not even that hard to be honest (my total hardness is 362).

With thanks to @Northern Brewer who's recently been setting me on the straight and narrow, I'd be rather cautious with the water profiles and additions that some of the tools suggest. Many of them follow the US ideas on such things which are really quite a bit different to UK. He referenced this useful article by Murphy & Son which is well worth reading, and which suggests the following profiles:

	Bitter	Mild	Porter	Lager
Calcium	170	100	100	50
Magnesium	15	10	10	2
Bicarbonate	25	50	100	25
Chloride	200	200	300	10
Sulphate	400	150	100	10

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

Very helpful, thank you. ☺

 

[Gerryjo]

This is part of my water report that doesn't appear online.

As you have not supplied an address or Postcode, NI Water have used the BT47 2AB
Postcode, as relating to Corrody Road, Derry, for the analysis below and based on
2020 results, the ZN0607 Corrody, Derry supply zone covering the above area had an
average hardness of 31.6 mg Ca/l. The average Magnesium level was 2.9 mg/l.
NI Water’s regulatory sampling does not include any test for Carbonate. However, an
experienced member of staff has provided an estimated average Carbonate/alkalinity
level of 36.1 mg/l CaCO The Water Quality Report for 2020 for this area shows the Sodium (Na) and Chloride
(Cl) levels per litre (/l). These were 12.714 mg Na/l and 18.167 mg Cl/l. For the same
period, the average Sulphate level was 60.500 mg SO4/l. You can see the pH level
under ‘Hydrogen Ion’ and, for this period, it was 7.382.
NI Water’s Water Hardness area on its Internet site includes a link to the Water Quality
Report for your area, should you need to refer to it again.

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

I was watching a video and it said to times something by 1.22 to work out the HCo3, but I can't remember what. ugh. Tesco ashbeck water tells you the bicarbonate level though on the website. piecing together the puzzle bit by bit. When I fully understand it I'll be dangerous

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

Husband just sent me this.

 

[Justin Dean]

Spotless water then in dial in profile for the beer I want to brew, I use brewfather