Go Back   CityProfile.com Forum - Local City and State Discussion Forums > United States City Forums > Texas > Houston
Click Here to Login

Reply
Old 12-14-2010, 01:07 PM  
Junior Member

Houston, Texas
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 16 | Kudos: +10
Quote:
Originally Posted by metaltim View Post
COLEMAN 48-QUART GREEN COOLER

and ~$10 on cpvc for manifold/valve.

who says it has to be $70?

Of course then you have a bulkhead. I used vinyl tubing (it fit through the cooler spigot nice and tight, so didn't need a bulkhead), with a cpvc valve on the outside. it worked flawlessly, but it was a pain. i needed two hands to open/close valve (since it was connected to vinyl tubing, it wasn't rigid, one hand to hold valve, other to open it)

So lots of the things you mentioned above, no they don't make the beer better, and i don't know anyone that would say that, however, they make your life easier. As of last brew, I spend the $35 for an all SS valve and bulkhead. It costs more than the mash tun itself, however, it makes my life easier. I can open/close it with one hand.

Same with blichman pots. they have sight glass, thermometers, valves, flase bottoms, sparge arms, etc.... all this makes your life easier, not your beer better. if you're handy and have tools, you can do almost all of this yourself for cheap. If you're not, you either spend the money, or do it w/o these luxuries.
I've been brewing with a buddy, but I'm ready to branch out on my own. So are you saying that the cheaper rectangular coolers will work just as well as the tall round ones for a mash tun? Are they close to equal in insulating capability? What about upgrading from your $20 cooler above to the $33 Igloo Maxcold? And I do like your suggestion to spring for a good SS valve. That seems like money well spent, especially since I will likely be brewing without any assistance.
__________________

Reply With Quote
Old 12-14-2010, 01:47 PM  
Junior Member

Houston, Texas
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 16 | Kudos: +10
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sturmanator View Post
I just finished five gallons of Dopple Bock. It is for New Years eve
Was it a lot harder to do a dopple bock than an ale? You have to have a cold place for fermentation, right? I'd love to brew me a Salvator clone, but I expect it will be quite a while before I will have a temp controlled fermentation chamber to do any kind of lager in Houston.
__________________

Reply With Quote
Old 12-14-2010, 01:51 PM  
Junior Member

Peoria, AZ
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 11 | Kudos: +10
Brewer here.. i have an IPA on tap, an oatmeal stout fermenting and brewing a fat tire clone this weekend.
Reply With Quote
Old 12-15-2010, 05:50 AM  
Member

Houston, TX
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 51 | Kudos: +11
Quote:
Originally Posted by 6August6Derleth6 View Post
Where was you lookin at a mill at? I've been considering the same thing, got a little more money right now than I thought I would have, and have been considering setting up large buckets to hold grain, and milling it myself. I want to become completely non-reliant on LHBS. Have to wait until spring to start growing some Cascades again tho. >_<*
austinhomebrew's mills seem decent, I was gonna start there.. haven't started really looking though. i'd imagine it would be them or northernbrewer or morebeer.

hops take a really long time to grow, like 2 years.. are you aware of that? 'm good with using farmhouse brewing supply. I placed 3 orders from them in nov, so I have about 4 lbs of hops in the freezer.. should last a while. and it was all about $50. spent $3 on a little manual ziplock freeerlock thing, works great.
Reply With Quote
Old 12-15-2010, 01:32 PM  
Member

Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 65 | Kudos: +12
Images: 10
Quote:
Originally Posted by metaltim View Post
austinhomebrew's mills seem decent, I was gonna start there.. haven't started really looking though. i'd imagine it would be them or northernbrewer or morebeer.

hops take a really long time to grow, like 2 years.. are you aware of that? 'm good with using farmhouse brewing supply. I placed 3 orders from them in nov, so I have about 4 lbs of hops in the freezer.. should last a while. and it was all about $50. spent $3 on a little manual ziplock freeerlock thing, works great.
Never seen a manual ziplock thing, sounds interesting.
And yeah, I'm aware of that. Note the word AGAIN, as in "I would like to grow hops AGAIN". I wasn't thinking oh i'll grow hops and use them in my next batch. I'm a horticulturist as well as a brewer, so I enjoy growing and seeing things flourish. An added bonus is that down the line I'll be able to use something I produced in yet another thing that I produced.
__________________
HABITUALLY PRACTICING MODERATION
Reply With Quote
Old 12-16-2010, 04:44 AM  
Member

Houston, Texas
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 51 | Kudos: +11
I planted some hops a couple of years ago and they produced cones this year but I didn't pick them. Don't know if its worth the effort. N.Brewer has mills for about $120 or so without the motor. So you'll have to scrounge one off an old washer or dryer or buy one at Granger along with a pulley and belt.

Just an FYI. Plastic anything is not very good to store hops in unless it is high density like a plastic jar, I use old peanut butter jars. Plastic if looked at under a microscope looks like a lattice, kind of like a chain link fence. It is very permiable to smaller molecules like gas. That is why they use metal foil balloons for helium balloons. They don't deflate as fast by molecules squeezing through the lattice. If you buy hops in bulk like I do, the come in foil bags. If you plan on storing hops find another alternative to ziplocks or freezer bags. They are fine for short term storage, but they do let freezer funk into the bag, that is what I call the gaseous emmissions from whatever else you have in the freezer...the odor carrying water vapor drawn out of meat and veggies stored therein during the process resulting in "freezer burn". I have no doubt that the lighter hop oils are drawn out during long storage, but would be more concerned about the "added" flavors. They say hops lose about 10% of their potency per year.
Reply With Quote
Old 12-16-2010, 07:30 AM  
Member

Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 65 | Kudos: +12
Images: 10
Quote:
Originally Posted by KPatton View Post

Just an FYI. Plastic anything is not very good to store hops in
Thanks for all the info in your post! Exact reason that some people highly prefer carboys over buckets for fermentation is the porosity of the plastic. Usually only an actual issue with meads, which are going to be sitting for year(s).
I would definitely not be using buckets to hold hops. . .usually the way I store hops is by using vacuum sealed bags, put inside of freezer ziplock bags and placed in the freezer. Just to be extra sure, I may place them in a peanut butter jar! I could be wrong, but don't necessarily see a problem holding un-milled grain in a bucket.
__________________
HABITUALLY PRACTICING MODERATION
Reply With Quote
Old 12-16-2010, 08:44 AM  
Member

Houston, TX
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 51 | Kudos: +11
My hops come in the oxygen barrier foil type bags. They stay in that until first use. Once used, I just cut the top corner. Then, I put THAT bag into a ziplock, and suck the air out. Also, the only thing in my freezer (in the garage) are hops and beer glasses. So I'm not too concerned with it.

This is what I got
Amazon.com: S C Johnson Wax Ziploc Vacuum Pump/Bags Food Storage Bags & Wrap: Patio, Lawn & Garden

bags are cheap as well. it works great. I put 4 of the bags my hops come in into the gallon size ziploc, or two of them into a quart bag, and pump it empty.
Reply With Quote
Old 12-16-2010, 09:36 AM  
Member

Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 65 | Kudos: +12
Images: 10
Heh. Was initially fooled by the cost. After shipping, it's about $15 with an extra box of bags. Still doesn't seem to be too high, considering how expensive some of the automatic vacuum sealers are. Found them elsewhere for considerably cheaper, after adding in the cost of shipping from amazon.
The link to the page is found HERE
Thanks for the heads up on this product, Metal!
__________________
HABITUALLY PRACTICING MODERATION
Reply With Quote
Old 12-16-2010, 02:59 PM  
Member

Houston, TX
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 51 | Kudos: +11
Quote:
Originally Posted by 6August6Derleth6 View Post
Heh. Was initially fooled by the cost. After shipping, it's about $15 with an extra box of bags.!
oh I didn't mention I got it at HEB. It was <$5 for pump (came with a couple of quart bags) and an extra box of gallon bags.. sorry, i just linked amazon to show you. But def. just go to HEB, don't pay shipping for something that cheap. I started w/ a battery powered one made by reynolds, I got it free about 2 years ago from again HEB. (It was like 4th of july, you buy the big 5 pound roast and get a whole bunch of stuff free, this was in there). turns out, now i start to use it 2 years later, and they don't make it anymore, so bags are hard to come, and are like $30 a box!

Quote:
Originally Posted by dnett View Post
So are you saying that the cheaper rectangular coolers will work just as well as the tall round ones for a mash tun? Are they close to equal in insulating capability? What about upgrading from your $20 cooler above to the $33 Igloo Maxcold? And I do like your suggestion to spring for a good SS valve. That seems like money well spent, especially since I will likely be brewing without any assistance.
I've heard rectangular or round are about equal. When I mash, after mixing my strike water, if it's 155 deg, after an hour, it's 155 deg. I don't lose one degree. I have a little digital thermom. with a probe I keep in the mash. So, I'd say save the $15 bux and get that coleman.
__________________

Reply With Quote
Reply

Go Back   CityProfile.com Forum - Local City and State Discussion Forums > United States City Forums > Texas > Houston
Bookmark this Page!

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes


Suggested Threads

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.