First brew this weekend..a few questions to get there first!

CoFlyGuy

CoFlyGuy

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Greetings from the warm climes of the Metro Denver Area. So big new for the day is that I am now the proud owner of a Brewmaster Deluxe Brew Kit. I also got my ingredients for a recipe for a Pale Ale I am going to be brewing this coming weekend.

So here are my questions. Some Equipment related to Brewer's Friend and a few non-equipment related.

Equipment
  1. There are a bunch of numbers in My Equipment Profile that I am not really sure how to calibrate currently.
  • One is my Boil Evaporation Rate.
  • My Kettle Losses
  • Cooling Shrinkage
 
Congrats!

Full your kettle with 2 or 3 gallons of water. Get it to a boil and measure how much you lose in 30 minutes. If your kettle doesn't have volume markings you can mark a wooden spoon with a sharpie in 1/2 gallon increments

Kettle loss is the wort leftover in the kettle post-boil. If you're dumping your kettle into the fermenter, this will be close to zero. If you're siphoning then it might be 1/2 -1 quart

Don't worry about cooling shrinkage. Leave it at default or just input whatever the equipment profile says to.
 
Amen yup drain the test liquid out the kettle however your desired method and then measure what's left that's your dead space losses.

Remember cooled wort is a little different to just water
 
What @Sunfire96 said above, but the losses will be a bit more based on hop debris and break materials.
Also, with new equipment, it's a good idea to boil in it with some cleaner(PBW) or something similar prior to making your beer. You'd be surprised at what may be hidden in there from the manufacturing and packing process.
One last thing, your boil temp and evaporation rate will ber different than others that aren't at 5000 ft elevation.
Good luck!
Brian
 
Good question and good answers.
Don't look too much at the numbers. You'll just put in your best estimated guess and after the brew, you can adjust your figures again.
Just measure and record.
Good luck and have fun!
 
Did you buy a wort chiller? That will make life much easier when you get ready to pitch. I really can't get too much below 80 with our water, but I do put some ice in a container to push another couple of degrees before I transfer into the fermenter.
I agree with the others about the boil off rate. Mine is only 1 gallon per hour, but I am at 100 feet in a humid climate, not 5000 feet in a dry one.
 
Thank you all for the assistance. I am going to play a bit with my equipment this weekend as well due to the hear we are having.
 
I've used both PBW and Oxiclean Free and can't tell a difference between them, but oxiclean is cheaper and available at the grocery store. Jusy dont use dish siap to clean your brew equipment. Have you got sanitizer yet? Most people use Star San, but I prefer Iodophor. Just make sure whatever you use is food safe. Cleaning and sanitation are a super important part of the brewing process and shouldn't be overlooked
 
I'm used to the heat. I just start right after sunrise and do as much setting up as I can the night before. If you are talking about fermenting without a refrigerator, that might be a problem. You can put it in a closet under an AC vent with a fan though. S-05 might take another couple of degrees above 68.
My house is at 80 most of the year, so that wouldn't work very well for me.
 
Sunfire96 said:
I've used both PBW and Oxiclean Free and can't tell a difference between them, but oxiclean is cheaper and available at the grocery store. Jusy dont use dish siap to clean your brew equipment. Have you got sanitizer yet? Most people use Star San, but I prefer Iodophor. Just make sure whatever you use is food safe. Cleaning and sanitation are a super important part of the brewing process and shouldn't be overlooked
Click to expand...
Second this! All your work can be ruined with poor sanitation.

As for boil off and all that, honestly wouldn't even worry about it yet. Make your first batch, have fun, drink a beer and relax. Even if it don't come out perfect, you will learn allot in those first 5 batches and can zero in on your process. It will still be beer. ;)
 
Of course, everything needs to be clean.

But the hot side is sanitized by boiling. The cold side absolutely must be sanitized.

Everything after the boil is the cold side once the temperatures fall below maybe 150F.
 
Where's your water coming from? If it's city water that's been chlorinated, you'll want to account for that. Chlorinated water will ruin the beer as will bleach for any cleaning.

Also, your process. What are you using or following for your step by step? There's a pretty good brew day sheet on the site here under the Tools section.

Finally, good idea to play with the set up before brewing with it.
 
All of the above. I usually have a bunch of Star San in my fermenter a few days before. I also have the brew day equipment pulled out next to my buckets so I don't forget anything. You do want a list of steps or have them in your head so you don't forget anything.
One other thing I have to think about with BIAB is how I am going to get my mash temps. How hot does my strike water need to be before adding grain? The cooler grain temperature will lower the strike water temps when you mash. In a 15-gallon kettle on a hot day, it is usually lowered by about 6-8 degrees assuming I put the lid on the kettle and put a towel on top of the lid to seal in some heat. You heat the water to a certain point, cut off the heat, and add your grain. After that, let it sit for an hour while you listen to 80s (in my case) and drink a beer.
Make sure you know where you want to add your hops in the boil.
Make sure you clean your equipment as soon as possible or else the process becomes more difficult.
 
Oh, and take a gravity reading pre-boil. Take another for OG when you are transferring into the fermenter.
 
Sandy Feet said:
All of the above. I usually have a bunch of Star San in my fermenter a few days before. I also have the brew day equipment pulled out next to my buckets so I don't forget anything. You do want a list of steps or have them in your head so you don't forget anything.
One other thing I have to think about with BIAB is how I am going to get my mash temps. How hot does my strike water need to be before adding grain? The cooler grain temperature will lower the strike water temps when you mash. In a 15-gallon kettle on a hot day, it is usually lowered by about 6-8 degrees assuming I put the lid on the kettle and put a towel on top of the lid to seal in some heat. You heat the water to a certain point, cut off the heat, and add your grain. After that, let it sit for an hour while you listen to 80s (in my case) and drink a beer.
Make sure you know where you want to add your hops in the boil.
Make sure you clean your equipment as soon as possible or else the process becomes more difficult.
Click to expand...
I do BIAB with a HERMs recirc. So temps are held constant.
You do have to adjust for strike temp.
 
Good luck, have fun, brew in the house the first time.....
The last item is very important if you want to add kit like a larger pot, burner, and/or other items that will move you adventure down the road.

My wife hated the smell of me brewing in the kitchen....
 
Texas Ale Works said:
Good luck, have fun, brew in the house the first time.....
The last item is very important if you want to add kit like a larger pot, burner, and/or other items that will move you adventure down the road.

My wife hated the smell of me brewing in the kitchen....
Click to expand...
My wife hates the smell and I do it in the basement, lol. I think it smells amazing
 
A half of a Campden tablet (sodium metabisulfite) in 5 gallons instantly eliminates chloramine and chlorine from water.
 
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