Homebrewers Association | AHA Forum
General Category => Equipment and Software => Topic started by: Kit B on June 24, 2011, 01:53:29 PM
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After years of going without temperature control & never making lagers, I have finally made a step in the right direction.
I had purchased a Johnson digital controller, last week (planning ahead).
Then, 2 days ago, I got a free (YES...FREE) 10 cu ft chest freezer, on craigslist.
Last night, I added a 2x6 cedar collar.
(Incidently, my house & garage smell freakin' marvelous, right now.)
(http://i837.photobucket.com/albums/zz294/kitbutterfield/brewing/2.jpg)
(http://i837.photobucket.com/albums/zz294/kitbutterfield/brewing/3-1.jpg)
It's very plain, but I'm extremely happy & excited.
Maybe some day I'll get around to making it pretty.
This afternoon, I'm brewing an American Lager.
Can't wait!!!
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Maybe some day I'll get around to making it pretty.
If it dispenses beer, it's pretty. ;)
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It's just silly that it took me over 15 years to get this ball rolling.
I'm reluctant to add taps, because I can just imagine my 15 month-old son taking an IPA shower.
...Better to have them in a safer place, out of reach.
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Damn, I am jealous. I'm planning to purchase a chest freezer and Johnson controller this fall as well to start with fermentation temperature control. But free for the freezer! That's insane. I wish I could be so lucky...
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It's just silly that it took me over 15 years to get this ball rolling.
+1! 15 years of off 'n' on brewing and I also finally got a chest freezer a few months ago. WOW! what a difference. I'm drinking on a keg of brown ale that I fermented at 60 deg with US-05. It is so clean tasting that it's hard to believe that an 8% beer can be this drinkable. Congrats on your new equipment!
-J.K.L.
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Are you going to add a liner of styrofoam insulation on the cedar? I'm not sure if you need to but I've seen that before. Looks like you have room so it might not hurt. I just bought a brand new freezer so I can make my older one into a beer freezer. Not quite the deal you got. Gets delivered today.
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Are you going to add a liner of styrofoam insulation on the cedar? I'm not sure if you need to but I've seen that before. Looks like you have room so it might not hurt. I just bought a brand new freezer so I can make my older one into a beer freezer. Not quite the deal you got. Gets delivered today.
It holds the temperature pretty well, so I may not bother...Time will tell.
Damn, I am jealous. I'm planning to purchase a chest freezer and Johnson controller this fall as well to start with fermentation temperature control. But free for the freezer! That's insane. I wish I could be so lucky...
It actually took me a few weeks of very intense searching, to find this one.
I called & emailed so many, I started to seriously confuse myself as to which ones were which.
I was just about to give up & buy one from Menard's, when I saw the ad for this one.
Persistence pays off.
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Awesome! This will revolutionize your brewing. It'll take getting used to but I love just putting the fermenter(s) in and walking away. No fiddling with ice-packs or watching the thermometer. No real temp swings that the controller can't take care of. I have mine set at 65F for now. Fluctuates between 62-65 and the batches that have been coming out have been exceptional.
Wish I had done this years ago.
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Awesome. It looks plenty pretty to me. :)
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Congrats! That looks great man! Good luck with your American Lager. You'll be very very pleased with the results!
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Damn, I am jealous. I'm planning to purchase a chest freezer and Johnson controller this fall as well to start with fermentation temperature control. But free for the freezer! That's insane. I wish I could be so lucky...
It actually took me a few weeks of very intense searching, to find this one.
I called & emailed so many, I started to seriously confuse myself as to which ones were which.
I was just about to give up & buy one from Menard's, when I saw the ad for this one.
Persistence pays off.
Funnily enough, my stepdad told me that a friend of his has two 5 cf chest freezers he's trying to get rid of, both in good shape and free. I was planning to downsize my batches to 3 gallon batches and ferment in 5 gallon kegs anyway, so this sounds like I scored a deal also.
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My first lager is happily bubbling.
;D
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Cool. What was your method for chilling to pitching temp?
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My water comes out of the tap, quite cold...Like roughly 45-50.
So, I just chilled with my immersion chiller, transferred to the carboy, placed it into the freezer & pitched.
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Ah, that's cool. Perhaps I should only brew lagers in the winter and spring months when the water coming out of the tap is sure to be colder. Otherwise, I can't do that in the summer as I'm pretty sure the water doesn't get that cold.
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In this season at it's coldest my tap is 86F. That's the summer for ya! But I cooled 6 gallons last evening to 62 in 35 minutes total with an ice-water recirc after the wort hit 88. It went into the fermenteezer. :D A few more minutes with the ice-recirc and the wort would have been at lager pitching temps.
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Ah, that's cool. Perhaps I should only brew lagers in the winter and spring months when the water coming out of the tap is sure to be colder. Otherwise, I can't do that in the summer as I'm pretty sure the water doesn't get that cold.
I didn't actually get my wort down to 50...I just got down to about 68, then let the freezer take care of the rest.
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I added some parts:
(http://i837.photobucket.com/albums/zz294/kitbutterfield/brewing/10037163476326_ORIG.jpg)
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Nice. That makes me thirsty.
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A solid pickup! Adding a freezer and a controller was probably the best thing I could have done for my beer! I can't believe I went without it. Now I just need to get another one to set up for kegs like you did!
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Nice. I just added a second chest for fermentation. I have one for lagering but needed a dedicated chest for fermentation to facilitate my process. Welcome to the obsession. :)
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Just got a 15 CF freezer to ferment with last Saturday. Last night my temp controller arrived and it turned out to be the model that doesn't come pre-wired :( . I can't wait to try my hand at some lagers.