new brewer in the house

[punkass]

a big hello to all my fellow brewers. i have wanted to have a go at brewing my own beer for a few years now and yesterday i got a youngs brew buddy (bitter) from wilkinsons. a couple of things i wanted to ask you experts is
1, i have read that its not too clever to use sugar you find in the kitchen in the first part of the brewing stage so is it the beer enhancer i use in its place? and would it be kg for kg? (a kg of the enhancer if the instructions say a kg of sugar)
2, would it be ok to brew it in the shed?
any hints and tips for a brewing virgin would be most welcome
thanks all

[Barnsley_Brewer]

Hiya,

Welcome from a fellow newbie

Only just started myself, but this is what I know so far !...

You should use Brewing Sugar (Dextrose Monohydrate) in place of normal granulated...this because the Dextrose Monohydrate has a slightly
different chemical makeup than that or normal household sugar and it also disolves a heck of a lot quicker..

I have just bottled and barrelled my 1st batch of Harvest Pilsner and used Dextrose Monohydrate as the primer too. ( to carbonate the brew )

I have also set a batch of Magnum Apple Cider off, again, using Dextrose Monohydrate and I have also set a batch of BrewMaker Victorian Bitter off, but
instead of using the Dextrose Monohydrate I have used a Beer Kit Enhancer, which is basicaly a mix of dried Spray Malt & Dextrose Monohydrate..

I also repaced the yeast trhat came in the Beer Kit with a sachet of Muntons Premium Gold Yeast which forms a jelly like crust at the bottom when it's done...

Will use the other brewers yeast to make some Ginger Beer or Turbo Cider at some point...

As far as your shed is concerned, as long as you can maintain the temprature to what the kit needs and you can keep your brew free from dust and bugs etc
no reason why you can't brew there...

There's a thread about using Aquarium heaters...have a look at that...I have just bought a 100w one to build a small water bath for temprature control and
will be finding out the best way of doing things as I go on !..

There are many more brewing guru's out there, so read the posts and you will see who they are

Cheers

[Garth]

welcome to the forum punkass, your questions will always be answered on here.

A while since I did kits but yes BKE is the way to go, it's a mix of dried spraymalt and dextrose I think, still sugar but in a different form, and yes, just replace it kg for kg, must better than household white sugar which will make the brew watery tasting and with a sharp tang.

brewing in the shed is fine as long as it's reasonably clean, and when fermenting you can keep the temperature between 17/18C and 22C, best not go over this as it'll create some odd flavours and possibly nasty alcohol, and go below it and the yeast will go to sleep, possibly not finishing the job, a fermenting fridge with heating and cooling ability is ideal for this.

[simco999]

An alternative is to use a builders trub with an aquarium heater in it. Obviously you need power in the shed for this. You should be ok in the summer for this without a heater - or you can get a belt heater. (Which also needs power - doh!!!)

Its really difficult to stuff a brew - but sanitisation is essential - everything has to be clean.

[Uncle Joshua]

I think a top tip would be to find your local HB shop and have a chat with whoever owns it...my guy (Morley Homebrew) is a huge help to me.

[punkass]

thanks for the replys,the mrs has let me do it in the kitchen (result). i added the yeast when it was 21 degrees, that was about 24 hours ago now and i have big foamy top on my beer but i can see no bubbles.
is this normal?
sorry if its a silly Q but this is my first time at this.
thanks

[oldbloke]

It can take a while for bubbling to start. I have a gallon fermenting bucket where the airlock /never/ bubbles - the CO2 leaks out somewhere else
That foamy top is the yeast multiplying, it will already be producing CO2 but in the next 24 hrs it'll go nuts, don't worry
The thing about this hobby, it's like the best board games - easy to do to an acceptable level, but hard to perfect. What I mean is, you'll get decent results even if you make all kinds of mistakes, but the very very best prize-winning brews take a bit (a lot, actually) more effort. It's very rare that you have to throw a brew away.

[punkass]

getting worried now, foamy top has gone down and still no bubbles. when i added the yeast i put the hydrometer in and thought it would be a good idea to leave it in there and just lift the lid and check it. will i get a dodgy reading by doing this?

[simco999]

Not a biggy - I had one the other day that did the same - what temp are you fermenting at?

Leaving the hydrometer in the FV is fine - just check every few days that the reading is dropping - if not try to move it somewhere warmer - or get yourself an aquarium heater. Sanitise it before dropping into the FV.

[punkass]

just checked it, the hydrometer is no longer in there, it was reading 1.011. it is 21 degrees. there is very small movement on the surface, but hardly any foam

[simco999]

Its brewing - check it three days running - if it doesnt change for three days bottle or keg it.

[punkass]

thanks for the help mate, will update on here my progress.
thanks again

[punkass]

quick update, still no bubbles but it is dropping, i read the hydrometer wrong yesterday, i should have said 1.012 and is is now 1.010. when it goes crazy with the bubbles how long does it do it for? could i have missed it?

[Stomach]

As patients builds, you learn to absolutley leave it alone for a week to 2 weeks. I try and leave it for at leat 2 weeks.

Usually you will foam up after a few days which will subside after a few more days. Fermenting then carries on.

My last few brews have taken 3 weeks to fully ferment out.

You are under the magic 1015 so well on the way to coming to an end.

Cheers.

[simco999]

In my limited experience all brews are different. Some will go mad others will foam up for one day then drop back (mainly the ciders I have done).

Yeast can be a top fermenter or a bottom fermenter - I'm no expert but that is what I've seen on here.

Your hydrometer is your best indicator of fermentation. Trust it. BTW - make sure you have a spare - cos you will smash one at some point.