Messages

31

General Homebrew Discussion / Re: Lager chamber

« on: February 15, 2013, 07:06:19 am »

I don't understand the reasoning behind insulating the probe. Couldn't that potentially cause you to overcool the beer in the fermenter?

If the probe is well insulated, and you're looking to cool your fementer down 10+ degrees- it's going to take a while. In the meantime, your chest freezer keeps plugging away. By the time your beer gets down to the intended temperature, the air/wall temp is well below your set temp. Wouldn't that cause your fermenter to keep getting cooler before eventually equaling out?

32

Going Pro / Re: Brewers guild...

« on: February 06, 2013, 04:25:53 pm »

I'm enrolled in the CBA class that starts in January 2014 and I'm incredibly excited. For me, it's one more step in gaining knowledge that will help me open my own micro in 5-7 years.

Can't really add much, as I obviously haven't started yet. I can talk about the application process if you'd like, but it's pretty straightforward. They did send the course materials, so I've been reading them a bit. Also, I'm hoping that my GI Bill will pay for it, but I'll start that battle next month.

33

Events / Re: Congrats to the lucky few

« on: February 05, 2013, 02:59:50 pm »

I was at my computer from the starting gun and I couldn't get through for 45 minutes. Decided to try and commute home and wound up getting wait-listed for the full conference.

26 minutes later I was confirmed. Very happy.

34

Events / Re: NHC 2013 Hotel?

« on: February 05, 2013, 07:30:38 am »

Call this number:  1-877-212-5752 and tell them you're with the conference.

I finally got thru to the hotel and they gave me this number.  Sounds like it's selling fast.

After hitting F5 for 3 minutes, and 15 phone calls that ended in a busy signal- I just did this. And it worked like a charm.

35

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Newbie Kegging Questions

« on: January 31, 2013, 06:56:16 am »

In my experience it is harder to force carbonate a keg with less headspace. And I'm pretty sure if I did what you did with a very full keg, the carbonation would still be low. I'd draw a few "samples" then shake again. That should help.

Thanks for the info. I'll take a few samples, for science, and try again tonight.

36

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Newbie Kegging Questions

« on: January 30, 2013, 06:16:16 pm »

So I set the gauge to about 10psi and rolled it back and forth with my foot for about 10 minutes.  Beer was chilled to 40F. It's been in the keezer about two days now, and I feel like the carbonation is still a little low. I checked the posts/lid with star san and I don't see anything. Also, the high side gauge hasn't dropped any (at least not noticeably). What could I be doing wrong?

Also, I put close to 5.5 gallons in the keg- could the lack of headspace affect the force carbing?

37

Kegging and Bottling / Re: CO2 Pressure vs Temperature Chart

« on: January 28, 2013, 12:42:50 pm »

It is the temperature of the beer that matters, not the temperature of the tank.

Right, but the temp of the tank affects the reading on the gauge. I'm just trying to determine how much, if any, I need to adjust.

The temp of the tank affects the high pressure reading because a fixed quantity and volume of gas at a lower temperature has lower pressure. This does not affect the low pressure gauge because the quantity of gas on the low pressure side is not fixed. The regulator will let gas through until it reaches 10psi (or whatever). No temperature adjustment is needed.
 
If you think about it, the CO2 on the low pressure side (in the keg) is always at serving temperature regardless of where the tank is.

Excellent, now I understand. Thanks for the explanation.

38

Kegging and Bottling / Re: CO2 Pressure vs Temperature Chart

« on: January 28, 2013, 12:32:50 pm »

It is the temperature of the beer that matters, not the temperature of the tank.

Right, but the temp of the tank affects the reading on the gauge. I'm just trying to determine how much, if any, I need to adjust.

39

Kegging and Bottling / CO2 Pressure vs Temperature Chart

« on: January 28, 2013, 11:55:17 am »

Just finished my keezer and my buffalo sweat clone is carbing as I type this. I'm going to put the CO2 tank inside, and I'm trying to find a pressure vs temp chart, to account for the lower tank temp, and I've been unsuccessful. Can anyone help me out, or does it not really matter at such low pressures?

40

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Newbie Kegging Questions

« on: January 15, 2013, 05:38:56 pm »

On the liquid side I'm connecting the tubing to a 1/4" tail piece; do I need to clamp the tubing, or will it be ok?

41

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Newbie Kegging Questions

« on: January 15, 2013, 11:45:50 am »

Forgot to add,

- Faucets are Perlick
- Liquid side tubing is 3/16" ID

So if I set it at 11-12 PSI, shook it for a while (10-12 minutes), let it sit for a day or two, still at 11-12 PSI, would that work?

Only thing I'd add is let the beer cool to serving temp before shaking. If it is warm you're just fighting the laws of physics.

Will do, I wrestled with them enough in college. I never won.

42

Kegging and Bottling / Re: Newbie Kegging Questions

« on: January 15, 2013, 09:35:24 am »

Forgot to add,

- Faucets are Perlick
- Liquid side tubing is 3/16" ID

So if I set it at 11-12 PSI, shook it for a while (10-12 minutes), let it sit for a day or two, still at 11-12 PSI, would that work?

43

Kegging and Bottling / Newbie Kegging Questions

« on: January 15, 2013, 07:55:18 am »

I got sick of bottling, so now I'm in the middle of constructing a three tap keezer that hopefully doesn't turn out looking like Homer's spice rack. Craftsmanship skills aside, I've been browsing this sub-forum and after reading all about line length, elevation, temperature, etc- I'm now completely confused and realize I know nothing. I'll list all the details about my setup, if you could answer some basic questions I'd be grateful. Thanks!

Details:
- three tap keezer
- 5 lb co2 tank
- roughly 5 feet of liquid line
- elevation between the top of the keg and faucet is only about 6 inches

Questions:
- The first beer that I'm kegging is a sweet oatmeal stout. At about 2.2 volumes, and 45 degrees, TastyBrew lists a recommended pressure of 11.4 PSI. So do I just set this pressure and be done with it? Should I cold crash the beer first, after it's done fermenting? About how long will it take to carbonate? How does my line length and elevation affect this? Thanks for all your help.

44

Classifieds / Re: 2 Ball lock kegs $50 each/$90 for both - Burlington, VT

« on: September 06, 2012, 05:33:13 am »

The title says it all.  Used ball lock.  Bought for a wedding and now I no longer need them.

Contact if interested.  Thanks.

PM Sent!

45

The Pub / Re: How often do you have a crowning moment of brain damage?

« on: August 23, 2012, 12:46:55 pm »

About how often would you say you realize your brain isn't quite functional today or things are wired wrong?

I get the standard fare I like to think, just not thinking, not seeing what's in front of me, etc.  It happens, it gets corrected, I roll my eyes and move on.

Then my entire train of thought is completely derailed because the forum has a link at the top of each thread that says "Go Down," and my brain explodes trying to interpret the implications.  At that point all I can do is stop, make a David Silverman face at myself, and wonder if I should just go home and go back to bed.

Maybe it's just the artist/neuroscience chick I was talking to last night, who decided to launch a lengthy discussion about how impressionism artists seem to universally paint an intense fear of sex into their work as a common theme.  The guy who painted The Scream was apparently terrified of kissing and did a recurring work (painted the same thing over and over, slightly different each time) of two people kissing, where one was consuming the other's face in a horrifying manner.

I think this made more sense in your head than it does in real life.