Noob with questions

[Tetsuo1981]

Hi all

I was given some home-brewing kit from my wife for Christmas comprising of the following:

http://www.wilko.com/homebrew-gifts/wilko-pressure-barrel-5-gallon/invt/0441260

http://www.wilko.com/cider+beer-brewing/john-bull-traditional-english-ale-brewing-kit-18kg/invt/0435883#fullDesc

While I admit I am a complete novice I have read up a little bit and am uncertain whether I can use this pressure barrel to ferment and bottle this kit? Do I really need a separate fermentation vessel for this kit? Would it be worth trying to replace the CO2 valve with an air lock? Or should I do away with the pressure barrel and get a proper fermentation vessel and keep the pressure barrel for storing / racking into for bottling?

Eventually I want to get into mashing and doing everything from scratch but wanted to walk before running so any help.would be great.

Sorry for the long post!

 

[stevey]

Hi mate, in my opinion, it's much better to ferment in a dedicated fermenting vessel, they are quite cheap in wilko. You could ferment in the PB, but then you'll have to find 40 bottles and buy a capper and faff about sanitising all those bottles. Much easier to condition your beer in the PB. Some will say the beer keeps better in bottles, but my beer don't last long enough to make it an issue.

 

[GerritT]

Hi all

I was given some home-brewing kit from my wife for Christmas comprising of the following:

http://www.wilko.com/homebrew-gifts/wilko-pressure-barrel-5-gallon/invt/0441260

http://www.wilko.com/cider+beer-bre...sh-ale-brewing-kit-18kg/invt/0435883#fullDesc

While I admit I am a complete novice I have read up a little bit and am uncertain whether I can use this pressure barrel to ferment and bottle this kit? Do I really need a separate fermentation vessel for this kit? Would it be worth trying to replace the CO2 valve with an air lock? Or should I do away with the pressure barrel and get a proper fermentation vessel and keep the pressure barrel for storing / racking into for bottling?

Eventually I want to get into mashing and doing everything from scratch but wanted to walk before running so any help.would be great.

Sorry for the long post!

Nah, you want a bucket for fermenting, with waterlock, 15 pop?. Then when the dirty fermenty job has been done, transfer the beer to barrel.

Welcome here! One of us! One of us! :drink:

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi!
As @stevey wrote, get a fermentation bucket. Wilko's are reasonably priced; The Range and larger branches of Boyes also stock them.
Online, you have a wide choice.

 

[Tetsuo1981]

Cheers guys. I figured that'd be the general consensus but wanted to check first before cracking on. Will probably get one from wilko in the week as there's one a 15 min walk from me. And will probably look at bottling rather than using the pressure barrel as I'm the only one in the house who really drinks beer and as much as I can put it away it'll take me and my liver a while to work through all that! Probably start saving some PET bottles as and where I can or order some when I do my next order for my ecig juice, buy in bulk and all that jazz

 

[terrym]

Hi all

I was given some home-brewing kit from my wife for Christmas comprising of the following:

http://www.wilko.com/homebrew-gifts/wilko-pressure-barrel-5-gallon/invt/0441260

http://www.wilko.com/cider+beer-bre...sh-ale-brewing-kit-18kg/invt/0435883#fullDesc

While I admit I am a complete novice I have read up a little bit and am uncertain whether I can use this pressure barrel to ferment and bottle this kit? Do I really need a separate fermentation vessel for this kit? Would it be worth trying to replace the CO2 valve with an air lock? Or should I do away with the pressure barrel and get a proper fermentation vessel and keep the pressure barrel for storing / racking into for bottling?

Eventually I want to get into mashing and doing everything from scratch but wanted to walk before running so any help.would be great.

Sorry for the long post!

Try this first
Basic beginners guide to brewing your own beer from a kit - The HomeBrew Forum
and then this
Guide to a Standard Home Brew Pressure Barrel
You will need other basic eqiuipment to successfully brew your first beer. There are suggestions in the beginners guide.

At this time of year it is essential to ensure your brew is kept at about 19-20*C throughout the primary fermentation. If you dont have a consistently warm room available in which to brew you could consider this set up.
How to Set up a Water Bath for your FV - The HomeBrew Forum

Finally when you get to brew your beer you will get a better result if you use dried or liquid malt extract rather than just brewing sugar or worse table sugar.

 

[Tetsuo1981]

Try this first
Basic beginners guide to brewing your own beer from a kit - The HomeBrew Forum
and then this
Guide to a Standard Home Brew Pressure Barrel
You will need other basic eqiuipment to successfully brew your first beer. There are suggestions in the beginners guide.

At this time of year it is essential to ensure your brew is kept at about 19-20*C throughout the primary fermentation. If you dont have a consistently warm room available in which to brew you could consider this set up.
How to Set up a Water Bath for your FV - The HomeBrew Forum

Cheers for that, that's my bedtime reading sorted! Already been looking at heating belts and other bits on eBay, my house keeps a quite nice ambient temperature (better than my last dingy flat!) So thinking of reclaiming either under the stairs or the airing cupboard beneath the boiler for temperature. Still thinking of just using the pressure barrel as a 2nd racking / bottling vessel as I'm not sure I want compressed gas about with kids at home but I'll cross that bridge once I've read up and got my first brew on the go

 

[terrym]

Try this first
Basic beginners guide to brewing your own beer from a kit - The HomeBrew Forum
and then this
Guide to a Standard Home Brew Pressure Barrel
You will need other basic eqiuipment to successfully brew your first beer. There are suggestions in the beginners guide.

At this time of year it is essential to ensure your brew is kept at about 19-20*C throughout the primary fermentation. If you dont have a consistently warm room available in which to brew you could consider this set up.
How to Set up a Water Bath for your FV - The HomeBrew Forum

Still thinking of just using the pressure barrel as a 2nd racking / bottling vessel as I'm not sure I want compressed gas about with kids at home but I'll cross that bridge once I've read up and got my first brew on the go

You don't need to rack off and you don't need a bottling bucket to get started. Many on here don't rack off nor use bottling buckets, although others do. Different strokes for different folks. For example I rack most of my beers but don't use a bottling bucket. However if you are going to do either its probably better to just get a second FV which will give you more flexility.
PBs are safe to operate provided you don't overpressurise them. And this is difficult to do since they all should be fitted with a working pressure relief device which will vent any excess pressure through either too much priming sugar or too much gas bulb or cylinder CO2. In the unlikely event a PB is not fitted with a pressure relief it should not be pressurised in my view.

 

[Tetsuo1981]

PBs are safe to operate provided you don't overpressurise them. And this is difficult to do since they all should be fitted with a working pressure relief device which will vent any excess pressure through either too much priming sugar or too much gas bulb or cylinder CO2. In the unlikely event a PB is not fitted with a pressure relief it should not be pressurised in my view.

My thoughts and concerns exactly. I'm new to home brew but use pressure bottles for work (with quite high pressures too) but looking at my PB I can't find an emergency dump valve on it (unless it's part of the intake valve, have no way of testing if that's the case).

As for racking for bottling I think that's going to be another thread hunt and Google exercise for pros and cons. Such a lot to learn!! But thank you so far for the help 👍

 

[terrym]

My thoughts and concerns exactly. I'm new to home brew but use pressure bottles for work (with quite high pressures too) but looking at my PB I can't find an emergency dump valve on it (unless it's part of the intake valve, have no way of testing if that's the case).

As for racking for bottling I think that's going to be another thread hunt and Google exercise for pros and cons. Such a lot to learn!! But thank you so far for the help 👍

The pressure relief device on your PB, is likely to be in the cap, in the form of a rubber 'band' over the injection valve (in which there is a hole through to the PB gas space).

 

[Tetsuo1981]

The pressure relief device on your PB, is likely to be in the cap, in the form of a rubber 'band' over the injection valve (in which there is a hole through to the PB gas space).

Ah, that's good to know. Didn't think wilko would sell something without a safety feature! Thanks again!

 

[GerritT]

My thoughts and concerns exactly. I'm new to home brew but use pressure bottles for work (with quite high pressures too) but looking at my PB I can't find an emergency dump valve on it (unless it's part of the intake valve, have no way of testing if that's the case).

As for racking for bottling I think that's going to be another thread hunt and Google exercise for pros and cons. Such a lot to learn!! But thank you so far for the help 👍

Mkay, you gonna need 2 buckets then, with taps :)
Why: first one to ferment the mass in for 2 weeks, then open the tap and let it carefully drizzle into the second bucket. Close that bucket, put it outside (assuming it's typical weather there, between 4 and 10º C) for a few days, THEN bottle. Man, clear as ****.
Unless you want to dryhop, in that case you need a second bucket anyway.
And you might want these: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B002LDGDMS/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

But then cheaper, elsewhere. Flip tops ROCK.

 

[terrym]

Mkay, you gonna need 2 buckets then, with taps :)
Why: first one to ferment the mass in for 2 weeks, then open the tap and let it carefully drizzle into the second bucket. Close that bucket, put it outside (assuming it's typical weather there, between 4 and 10º C) for a few days, THEN bottle. Man, clear as ****.

You don't actually need taps on FVs. It's down to personal choice. I don't bother, I use a siphon, although I know lots of people on here do use them.

 

[Robin54]

You don't need two buckets either, even if you are dry hopping

 

[GerritT]

You don't actually need taps on FVs. It's down to personal choice. I don't bother, I use a siphon, although I know lots of people on here do use them.

True, but both is most of the times better. Apart from the extra infection vector, but a siphon is one too.
Look, most brewers at one time have more than 1 brew fermenting. Hence 2 vessels. And it's always convenient to have a spare. AND an empty one is a great place to store brewing equipment.

 

[terrym]

True, but both is most of the times better. Apart from the extra infection vector, but a siphon is one too.
Look, most brewers at one time have more than 1 brew fermenting. Hence 2 vessels. And it's always convenient to have a spare. AND an empty one is a great place to store brewing equipment.

For taps on FVs we each do it differently. From having done both, neither way is 'better' in my view. But you and others will or may think differently, which means its down to personal choice, and what suits us best.
And what's an FV with or without a tap got to do with having a spare FV?

 

[GerritT]

For taps on FVs we each do it differently. From having done both, neither way is 'better' in my view. But you and others will or may think differently, which means its down to personal choice, and what suits us best.
And what's an FV with or without a tap got to do with having a spare FV?

Not much directly, my wording was indeed confusing. One bucket with and one without a tap? The both of them can be used to make a sparge system, with some proper mesh, if someone wants to go for big mouths or 5 gallon dj's.

 

[Robin54]

Not much directly, my wording was indeed confusing. One bucket with and one without a tap? The both of them can be used to make a sparge system, with some proper mesh, if someone wants to go for big mouths or 5 gallon dj's.

I've got one FV without tap, a pan, and a sieve and can do all grain with ease. Im obviously doing something wrong and will probably throw it all away and start again properly. As for the 125 litres Ive made since October, its all destined far the drain. It can't be any good.

 

[GerritT]

I've got one FV without tap, a pan, and a sieve and can do all grain with ease. Im obviously doing something wrong and will probably throw it all away and start again properly. As for the 125 litres Ive made since October, its all destined far the drain. It can't be any good.

Touchy, aren't we?
And you crush the grain with your own teeth, I assume? And stick your tongue into the wort until the temp is low enough to pitch? OG and FG by sniffing, probably?

Chill.

 

[Robin54]

Touchy, aren't we?
And you crush the grain with your own teeth, I assume? And stick your tongue into the wort until the temp is low enough to pitch? OG and FG by sniffing, probably?

Chill.

All gone, thanks for the advice