[erockrph]

Took my first hydrometer reading as its almost been 4 weeks since it's gone in the fermenter.  I pulled out the tube w/ my hydrometer in it, and racked beer until it was almost full.  My reading said 1.011 and my OG was 1.048.  Does this sound about right?  I assume I should take another reading in a few days and if the reading is the same, I should be ready to bottle, correct?

Thanks,

Keith

Final gravity sounds right in the range I'd expect for an 1.048 extract beer. If you get the same reading in a couple days, then you're good to go.

[klickitat jim]

Ya it could be done. I'd test again in a few days. If no change AND the sample tastes good (no green apple or butterscotch) should be ready for bottles.

[garc_mall]

I don't think anyone pointed this out yet...

You are definitely in trouble. You have been bit by the "brewing bug." Your life and your closets/spare bathroom will never be the same!!! 

But for real, you will be fine. I hope you started batch #2 already.

[Keith G]

Thanks for the input guys.  I have a confession to make in that until about 2 months ago all I drank was commercial beer, and didn't much like craft beer.  Wow how my taste buds have changed, it's almost miraculous.  I still drink commercial beer, but a six pack at a time I have been exploring new tastes. 

Unfortunately, my wife hates the smell of me brewing so I have to find a burner for outside.  Another bummer is that I decided to join this amazing hobby and group of people after buying my first house, so I'm very low budget. 

Still doing all I can to learn, and the wife has requested a Pumpkin beer (her favorite) for the next batch (if anyone knows of any good/easy recipes).  Thanks again for all your help.

[reverseapachemaster]

You can brew on a relatively cheap system. You don't have to play keeping up with the Joneses with other homebrewers. You can spend thousands on an awesome brew system and kegging but you don't have to. I brew on a very basic set up and still bottle after five years of brewing (although I am slowly assembling a kegging set up). My equipment costs are easily under $1000 and much of it was acquired as birthday/Christmas gifts. If you keep your costs reasonable then you can actually brew beer for far less than you can buy it, especially if you go all grain, but the problem is like most hobbies it is easy to develop the "acquisition disorder" and want to upgrade and buy new toys.

[HoosierBrew]

You can brew on a relatively cheap system. You don't have to play keeping up with the Joneses with other homebrewers. You can spend thousands on an awesome brew system and kegging but you don't have to. I brew on a very basic set up and still bottle after five years of brewing (although I am slowly assembling a kegging set up). My equipment costs are easily under $1000 and much of it was acquired as birthday/Christmas gifts. If you keep your costs reasonable then you can actually brew beer for far less than you can buy it, especially if you go all grain, but the problem is like most hobbies it is easy to develop the "acquisition disorder" and want to upgrade and buy new toys.

+1, for sure.

[mattybrass]

Thanks for the input guys.  I have a confession to make in that until about 2 months ago all I drank was commercial beer, and didn't much like craft beer.  Wow how my taste buds have changed, it's almost miraculous.  I still drink commercial beer, but a six pack at a time I have been exploring new tastes. 

Unfortunately, my wife hates the smell of me brewing so I have to find a burner for outside.  Another bummer is that I decided to join this amazing hobby and group of people after buying my first house, so I'm very low budget. 

Still doing all I can to learn, and the wife has requested a Pumpkin beer (her favorite) for the next batch (if anyone knows of any good/easy recipes).  Thanks again for all your help.

This one looks pretty good to me. I think ive heard of the guy who wrote the book this recipe is from 

http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/homebrew-recipe/beer-recipe-of-the-week-cucurbito-pepo-pumpkin-ale-2/

Instead of the 10 lbs of pale malt use 6 lbs of Pilsen DME

[Keith G]

You can brew on a relatively cheap system. You don't have to play keeping up with the Joneses with other homebrewers. You can spend thousands on an awesome brew system and kegging but you don't have to. I brew on a very basic set up and still bottle after five years of brewing (although I am slowly assembling a kegging set up). My equipment costs are easily under $1000 and much of it was acquired as birthday/Christmas gifts. If you keep your costs reasonable then you can actually brew beer for far less than you can buy it, especially if you go all grain, but the problem is like most hobbies it is easy to develop the "acquisition disorder" and want to upgrade and buy new toys.

Yes, I think I'm going to take the same route.  It's very cool and enticing to see everyone's setup on here.  My first sample of my first batch tasted good (although I'm not a good judge of what Kolsch beer tastes like) and I'm excited to get my second going. 

My 2 priorities are to get a relatively inexpensive electric or gas burner (Preferably one I can keep accurate temperature control).  Second, is to install a weld less valve and thermometer on my 10 gal tallboy kettle.  Finally, and probably most important, is to get a grip on better temperature control during fermentation.

I've seen some good/inexpensive ways to work on temp. control for fermentation, but does anyone have any suggestions or an outdoorish heat source and how to install the valve on my tallboy?

Thanks again.

[Keith G]

Thanks for the input guys.  I have a confession to make in that until about 2 months ago all I drank was commercial beer, and didn't much like craft beer.  Wow how my taste buds have changed, it's almost miraculous.  I still drink commercial beer, but a six pack at a time I have been exploring new tastes. 

Unfortunately, my wife hates the smell of me brewing so I have to find a burner for outside.  Another bummer is that I decided to join this amazing hobby and group of people after buying my first house, so I'm very low budget. 

Still doing all I can to learn, and the wife has requested a Pumpkin beer (her favorite) for the next batch (if anyone knows of any good/easy recipes).  Thanks again for all your help.

This one looks pretty good to me. I think ive heard of the guy who wrote the book this recipe is from 

http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/homebrew-recipe/beer-recipe-of-the-week-cucurbito-pepo-pumpkin-ale-2/

Instead of the 10 lbs of pale malt use 6 lbs of Pilsen DME

Fresh pumpkin isn't in season yet, think I can use canned pumpkin?  If so, any ideas on the ratio from fresh to canned?

[Stevie]

Good quality canned pumpkin is 100% pumpkin. You should be able to use it at a 1:1 ratio.

[garc_mall]

You can brew on a relatively cheap system. You don't have to play keeping up with the Joneses with other homebrewers. You can spend thousands on an awesome brew system and kegging but you don't have to. I brew on a very basic set up and still bottle after five years of brewing (although I am slowly assembling a kegging set up). My equipment costs are easily under $1000 and much of it was acquired as birthday/Christmas gifts. If you keep your costs reasonable then you can actually brew beer for far less than you can buy it, especially if you go all grain, but the problem is like most hobbies it is easy to develop the "acquisition disorder" and want to upgrade and buy new toys.

Yes, I think I'm going to take the same route.  It's very cool and enticing to see everyone's setup on here.  My first sample of my first batch tasted good (although I'm not a good judge of what Kolsch beer tastes like) and I'm excited to get my second going. 

My 2 priorities are to get a relatively inexpensive electric or gas burner (Preferably one I can keep accurate temperature control).  Second, is to install a weld less valve and thermometer on my 10 gal tallboy kettle.  Finally, and probably most important, is to get a grip on better temperature control during fermentation.

I've seen some good/inexpensive ways to work on temp. control for fermentation, but does anyone have any suggestions or an outdoorish heat source and how to install the valve on my tallboy?

Thanks again.

I have had very good luck with a Turkey Fryer (Purchased for $65 with a "brewpot" the day before my first brewday), and I am pretty sure Jim has great luck using a camp chef camp stove as a 2 burner set up.

When I went from Extract to all grain, I converted an old cooler I had lying about the place with a kettle screen (Something about toilet supply hose sounded weird  ) and a ball valve, and I have a great Mash/Lauter Tun.

Not counting my Kegging system, I think I have spent 400-500 dollars total on my system, and it brews everything I want.

[santoch]

The big thing about going outside (and to full boils) is that
1) You need a boil pot big enough so that you don't have boil overs.  8 gallons is the bare minimum for a 5 gallon batch, in my experience.  10 g is better.  Regardless, its big.
2) If you are going to boil a big pot of water, you need plenty of heat (usually a turkey fryer as said above).
3) You won't be able to get away with an ice bath any more.  You'll need a wort chiller or you'll be there overnight waiting for the wort to cool down so you can proceed aerating and pitching the yeast.

My point is, those 3 things go together.

[klickitat jim]

Yup. I use the camp chef two burner and get a great boil with my 7-8 gallon starting size boils. I have 15 gallon kettles so boil overs only occur if I space out and dont pull the foil off before 212.

Big thumbs up on biggest IC you can get. I built mine and its 60' of 1/2 inch with recirculation/whirlpool.

[Keith G]

Okay so my next dumb question is:

What's the pros/cons of a full boil over a partial boil?  I've only done one extract boil and it was a partial (which assume means not boiling the full 5 gal).

I figured I could still do a partial boil outside as well, is that not the case? 

[Keith G]

Wanted to give everyone an update.  I bottled my first batch and everything went fairly smooth except I dropped and shattered my hydrometer!  Hopefully I was able to rack to the bottling bucket and into the bottles with minimal oxygen as there was some bubbling in the transfer, due to air pockets in the hose.

It made pretty much exactly 2 cases(48 bottles).  I bottled one extra by tilting the bottling bucket, but I wanted to experience one that may have more trub than the others.  This way I know what to look for.  Hopefully it'll be ready for our Labor Day party, although that might be a little sooner than id like for bottle conditioning.