Right Temp

[Yeastman]

Hi All. I have just started brewing for the first time, my introduction being in the form of a brubox by brupak. Everything seems ok apart from not being able to find a spot in the house where it will go below 22c. It is currently at 22c-24c. Is this ok only being slightly too high or is it imperative to get the optimum temperature and what is the optimum temperature?

[gullarm]

Is there a room you can stick the bucket in.

My bedroom is usually a lot cooler than the rest of the house, as I like it cool at night.

Or behind a curtain on a window sill, dont forget to cover the bucket to avoid light getting to the beer.

Try and keep it below 20 deg, slight variations in temp wont matter that much, try heating 40 pints of liquid on the stove it will take a long time and use a lot of energy. The effect on the beer will be slight.

I would invest in a decent Infrared thermometer, you dont actual have the touch the beer to check the temp, just point it at the side of the barrel/bucket and bingo theres your temp.

You can also put the bucket in a tray of water and cover the keg in a towel with the towel draping into the tray, this causes the keg to be cooled due to evaporation.

The best advice is not to worry and see what happens, my 1st brew was brewed in a warm cupboard, around 24-25 deg, that turned out fine.

[Ditch]

A possible alternative ~ depending on ye circumstances ~ would be to attack it from the other side. Stick it out in a shed / garage, where the temp's will be Arctic just now. Then work on bringing the temp up to a nice 19 F (my own preferred temp). That's dead easy. Drop a preset aquarium heater / stat in it and lightly insulate the FV.

[Yeastman]

Cheers guys i think i will have to try covering it in a damp towel as fermentation seems to be well underway and apparently not a good i idea to desturb it to much at this stage.

[Yeastman]

That's dead easy. Drop a preset aquarium heater / stat in it and lightly insulate the FV.

So you mean i can put a heater in to a brew to control the temp? Whats FV

[Ditch]

Sorry, mate. Ye'll soon get used to the abbreviations we use here. It becomes natural. There's a thread explaining them all somewhere ~ I'm sure someone'll find it. " FV " = Fermentation Vessel. Ye 'five gallon bucket'

Fish tank heater? Damn right ye can! Get down to the local pet shop and tell them ye have a five gallon aquarium to heat. Boosh! They'll hand ye the gear and charge ye about ten, fifteen quid. Ask for a Heater / Thermostat combination job, with the setting knob on the outside and a visible temperature setting slide.

That probably sounds a bit complicated? No worries. It's bog standard these days and ye'll see what's what as soon as ye get it in ye hand. Back in the day, we used to have a heater And a thermostat to mess with. And the 'stat had a vile little +/- screw. Guess work could take ye days to get the temp' right. Now ye just set it by the dial. Field Trial it in a jug of water. Bang it in the FV and relax

[D_C]

dont forget to cover the bucket to avoid light getting to the beer.

I've heard this before, read somewhere you should only use brown bottles for conditioning etc etc. What effect does it have? I've used clear bottles before and couldn't tell much difference, mind you the spare room doesn't catch much light this time of year. or is it just more importan for primary fermentation..?

Just wondering, sorry to go off on a tangent lads...

[JayBee]

I use clear as well as brown bottles. I like a couple of clear ones to see how the beer looks after a few days, how clear its becoming and that sort of thing. Its not a problem for me as I primary condition them in a dark cupboard before moving them, usually to a dark garage.