[slickdaddy420]

I have just recently brewed my first 2 extract batches. I am planning on Brewing every other Saturday while my girlfriend is at work. I have a bi-weekly brewing schedule that I think would work really well. I was also wondering if anyone else does something similar?

As the title suggests,

This Saturday I will be bottling my first brew. I will be moving my second batch to a secondary. I will also be brewing a third beer Saturday.... obviously putting in a Primary.


My plan is to repeat this every two weeks. Most likely doing 2.5/3.0 gallon batches once I have a stockpile of beer that household consumption can't keep up with. 


Questions -

Is there any disadvantage to leave the beer in a Primary for 5-7 days after the fermentation stops?

If I am not dry hopping, should I just bottle after the initial 2 weeks or would the secondary still help?

If I missed a week, would 4 weeks in a Primary be ok to Bottle and would 6 weeks before bottling be too long? Or would I need to bottle and transfer asap?


Thanks!

[euge]

You can go straight to bottle after two weeks or leave it in primary for another week then rack to bottle. Secondary vessels have fallen out of favor with homebrewers. I know very few that do a secondary regularly.

It just isn;t necessary IMO, but a tool in your box to whip out when needed.

My method is to keg or bottle straight from primary after 2-3 weeks. Popular convention is that you can leave the beer on the yeast for longer but I shy away from this practice.

[metron-brewer]

My two cents, just make sure to let the beer set the schedule. My experience is a little extra time on the yeast will not hurt the beer and may improve it. A little time after primary allows the yeast to "clean-up" after themselves. I've had bigger ales on the yeast for 6-8 weeks and I've not noticed any off flavors. Like Euge, I very rarely secondary.

[Pi]

I am planning on Brewing every other Saturday while my girlfriend is at work... I was also wondering if anyone else does something similar?

Wish i could get my (wife) to work Saturdays.
+1what Euge says about secondary. Consider repitching your yeast cake. Get a spray bottle and fill with grain alcohol or no-foam star san and sanitize the neck of your carboy before repitching. Wyeast 1056 or white Lab's WLP001 will tolorate multiple repitchings before it starts to mutate, provided you remain vigil with clenliness.

[slickdaddy420]

I will need to look into re-pitching yeast to save some cash.


The main reason I need to use a secondary is that I have a Igloo cooler modified to hold a fermentation bucket so I can get temps in the upper 60s by swapping a frozen water bottle morning/late evening. I then can put the secondary into a make-shift holding area by directing the AC vent on the ceiling around 71-72' as the picture shows below. No basements in FL.





Is 4 weeks too long to wait to bottle for most beers?

Assuming I am in no rush and really only have every other Saturday to brew, does my plan sound like something that can work well? Or should I squeeze bottling sessions in during the week?

[weithman5]

i ferment in a 2gallon bucket for four weeks. then package.  i lager so i like to let it go longer.  i use a large styrofoam cooler with very thick walls.  used for shipping vaccines.  i use the foam ice packs that come with these to keep the temp down. i rotate these in and out depending on temp.  100 degrees out.  cooler in my garage.  i can keep the temp at 50 this way. i would rather see a second cooler for you than move the beer to a secondary.

[Pi]

Another method is to wrap wet towel around the carboy and hit it with a fan. Or wait a couple months and brew when it's cooler.

[Joe Sr.]

Four weeks on the yeast = no worries as far as I am concerned.

If you have enough fermenters to do it, skip the secondary.  Brew and bottle.

More important than the timing would be to make sure the beer is fully fermented before you package it.  Don't force the schedule.

I tend to do bigger beers, but I've had some that just don't want to cooperate at times and do their thing on their own schedule.

[a10t2]

The main reason I need to use a secondary is that I have a Igloo cooler modified to hold a fermentation bucket so I can get temps in the upper 60s by swapping a frozen water bottle morning/late evening.

What's the ambient temperature? Once the fermentation hits high krausen, which should be after 24-72 hours, there's no harm in raising it into the low-mid 70s Fahrenheit. It will also help the beer to reach FG sooner.

As long as you're doing average-gravity ales and your yeast health and pitching rates are solid, you could leave beers in the fermenter for two weeks, then bottle. Obviously you'd want to take a gravity reading a few days before bottling, to make sure the beer is at FG. But unless there's some sort of problem, any ale should reach FG in <10 days.

[slickdaddy420]

Thanks for all the replies. I will probably try to skip the secondaries. All the Northern Brewer kits recommended secondaries. Hence, why I planned to do it. Thanks again!

[erockrph]

Thanks for all the replies. I will probably try to skip the secondaries. All the Northern Brewer kits recommended secondaries. Hence, why I planned to do it. Thanks again!

You're going to find that recommendation on just about any kit you buy. There's still a prevalence of outdated information out there. It turns out that making good beer is way simpler than commonly thought. So long as you have great sanitation, pitch enough yeast, and control your fermentation temps, you're golden.

[euge]

Don't forget quality ingredients!

[coastsidemike]

Do y'all think the 'leave it in the primary' logic also applies to lagers? 

I typically keep things in the primary from 3 to 7 days, however with my last pilsner I left it in the primary for slightly over two weeks (~60 degrees).  I've got a bread-like taste that hits right in the middle of the palate.  Not real strong, but enough of an off-flavor to where I'm not handing it out.

AFAIK, it's from where the live yeasts start feeding on the yeast cake of the fermenter.  I've not had this problem with other yeasts.

Cheers.

[denny]

Do y'all think the 'leave it in the primary' logic also applies to lagers? 

I typically keep things in the primary from 3 to 7 days, however with my last pilsner I left it in the primary for slightly over two weeks (~60 degrees).  I've got a bread-like taste that hits right in the middle of the palate.  Not real strong, but enough of an off-flavor to where I'm not handing it out.

AFAIK, it's from where the live yeasts start feeding on the yeast cake of the fermenter.  I've not had this problem with other yeasts.

Cheers.

I've left lagers on the primary yeast for over a month with no problems.  Autolysis doesn't typically produce bready flavors, so given that and the short amount of time, I doubt it's autolysis.  Maybe from fermenting your lager too warm.

[weithman5]

all my beers are lagers, or get lagered, or certainly brewed at lager temps with lager yeast...
they all ferment in the primary bucket for four weeks. and i have pitched right on top of the yeast cake for another four weeks.  i think letting it get warm is worse than letting it go long.