getting set up

[gruffdris]

hi
im new to all this and have been reading all i can find but carnt find anywhere near me to get the equiptment to set myself up. live in rhyl, north wales. wilkinsons near me have the demijons, wine and bitter kits but only coopers and geordies larger and no fermentors. any surgestions on where my nearest homebrew shop is. or if there is anything else i can use for fermenting in. also where to get other largers. i know there is online shops but delivery on a kit nearly doubles the price. want to start on kits as they do sound easier for a begginer.
i have access to the bottles and crates ill need for secondary and storage as i work in a bar.

[Danny]

If you work in a pub you could try getting your hands on a 25-30L plastic bucket that oil or something else comes in ... that'll do you for a fermenter ... ideally you'll want a tap on it but it can be transferred by siphon ... other than pipes and stuff the main bit of kit you'll need is a pressure barrel ... ebay is the answer ... price plus postage is generally around £15-20 which is cheaper than a new one with delivery and they dont deteriorate with age to speak of ..

[gruffdris]

had a look around this morning and their is some old oil containers shaped like a jerry cans but wider i think there 50l is it possible to fit a tap and airlock and use these as fv?
was going to bottle so i wouldnt need a presure barrel would i?
the problem is the more i read the more i want to just start AG instead of tins. but no homebrew shops mean everything is mailorder i think

[stevezx7r]

If you work in a bar, try "borrowing" some of the ss kegs they deliver beer in

Given your distance from any decent HB shops it looks like either mail order or have you tried Freecycle?

If your thinking of going AG first it might be worth while to take a trip a bit further affield so you can get everything in one go (including ingredients).

AG sounds hard but the hardest part is taking a whole day to clean then make the beer....then wait 10 more days to confirm you have beer....then wait 4 more weeks to confirm you have great beer

[gruffdris]

the problem id have with using a keg and doing ag that way is im 3 floors up in a flat with an electric stove. found 1 or 2 inspiring vids on youtube but they both used gas to control temps. how would i depresurise the keg?

borrowed a 10lt pan to make up my first brew kit (youngs larger) and have everything involved in to sanatise now. should be a fun experiment. after asking a lad in wilkinsons they managed to find a fermenttion bin in the back, was fun to get home as im a biker.

so current equiptment is
4x airlocks
2x hydrometers
1x alcoholmeter 0-100 % (borrowed off TS, lol)
2x test jars
1 fermentation bin
youngs sanatiser
youngs super wine yeast
yeast nutriment
8mmx 1.2m syphon tube

demijon (in use with 10% sugar wash) will bottle with high juice as primer.
last lot like this tasted similar to the fruit koppenberg.

[Madbrewer]

had a look around this morning and their is some old oil containers shaped like a jerry cans but wider i think there 50l is it possible to fit a tap and airlock and use these as fv?
was going to bottle so i wouldnt need a presure barrel would i?
the problem is the more i read the more i want to just start AG instead of tins. but no homebrew shops mean everything is mailorder i think

Gruffdris just wanted to say Welcome to the hobby and well done! You are on the right lines don't get put off by the availability locally. FYI you are starting off just like I did and I progressed quickly onto all grain this site will be invaluable to you.

Some frying oil manufacturers make 20 litre 'buckets' (when I started one such company was called frymax.) I worked in a resturant and took a surplus one. I now wish I had taken more. Ideally though I needed a slightly bigger one, as I brew 23litres not 20. That said you could either have the beer slightly stronger or keep back a little bit of the 'syrup'. Ask at Mac'd's, Ask at the fast food outlets, look on ebay for old home brew kit etc. Then get yourself to a home brew shop (asap). I don't know of any near you but a list of things and a little drive might work out well expect Manchester will have one?

The home brew shop (Farnborough, Hants) will mail order stuff though, I expect a bulky food grade bucket (which is what you require) may not be cheap to actually send?

I would recommend starting off with :-
1* 23l Litre food grade bucket/ fermenting bin
1* 23l Wine Fermenter/ airlock fermenter
1* 3mtr Syphon tube
1* tap for said tube (cut off a foot of tube and use teh tap to start stop beer going into each bottle)
1* big plastic spoon
bottle capper 7 caps (don't buy the cheapest)
the Kit you want to start off with (get a 3kilo kit in my opinion)
Thermometer
Hydrometer
airlock
bung


If that's too much you could do without the wine fermenter for now, and use PET bottles to get aroun dthe need for a capper. Any food grade 23litre un scratched bucket will do. A home brew shop will get you one for £8.10 though and is worth considering.

get practiced in Kits then do AG a few brews down the line. you will need more kit though.

Hope this helps

[gruffdris]

think these demijons were from julies homebrew in manchester many moons ago. had an idea for frementaion vats will post pics. just going BnQ to get a water butt tap to fit to the youngs fermenter.

think the only think stoping me from ag is good controlable heat source and availablity of ingedients.

2 cases of newcastle bottles have been set to the side also. just need a capper.

no look with freecycle btw

[gruffdris]

i forgot to mention my usual drinks are. peroni, grosh and kronenberg occasional corona or sol. so need to find similar/suppioror recipes

[Madbrewer]

i forgot to mention my usual drinks are. peroni, grosh and kronenberg occasional corona or sol. so need to find similar/suppioror recipes

Might be able to help you regarding a recipe. Lagers are a little harder to do though in my opinion. Are there any ales/bitters you like just enough to 'learn' AG with first? True lager yeast works at lower temperatures, some lager malts benefit from stepped temperature mash's. Does anyone on here know whether a simple recipe (like Hornden's Lager recipe http://uk-homebrew.tripod.com/id26.html will work with Nottingham yeast instead?)

So you have a boiler and something to 'mash' in already? Sorry for not keeping up.

[gruffdris]

i have access to 10-100L stock pots that i can borrow. pain in the arse to transport but possible. its just controling the tempritures.

water butt tap is now fitted to my fermentor will have to find a way to scale it down from a garden hose size though. left just under a litter dead space. think my TC is nearly ready for bottling but doubt 4.5 litters will last till my larger is ready.

[Madbrewer]

water butt tap is now fitted to my fermentor will have to find a way to scale it down from a garden hose size though.

Not sure you will, you could get a fat piece of syphon tubing (as well as the thin stuff for bottling duties) as long as you don't open up and splash lots when you empty it.

Crickey you're fast are you playing 'sims homebrew' or something? Every time i repond you've either just bought a tap, gor ot hold of a vat, bought a pub, brewed a cider, cycled from somewhere with a firkin on your back or invented something ...... brew day takes me 6 hours!

PM sent

well done

Phil

[gruffdris]

TC mk2 has been on for 2 weeks as i gathered that this was the easyiest place to start. while i read up on everything i could.
i dont like the waiting to be ready bit and try to do as much as i can as soon as. will be a pain in the arse waiting for it to condition but ive still got my tc and spirts to tide me over.

think ill have to wait till tomorrow for brew day whats the youngs larger like?

[Horden Hillbilly]

Does anyone on here know whether a simple recipe (like Hornden's Lager recipe http://uk-homebrew.tripod.com/id26.html will work with Nottingham yeast instead?)

Yes it will. Nottingham is a "neutral" yeast. Don't expect true lager charateristics though. I tend to brew Mrs H's lagers during the cooler winter months of the year with Saflager S 23.

[gruffdris]

found a HB shop thats only 15 miles from me so having a drive down this afternoon. its pay day too

need a capper and bottling tube but will no doubt spend more than i want to

[maxashton]

I second the above comments. You can make a good blond ale at the home, but unless you can get the brew down close to freezing you can't lager.