First time brewer

[johnnyk]

Hi,

After thinking about doing this for a long long time and seeing one of my mates start doing his own I thought why not try it.

I got all the stuff needed and got coopers aussie lager for my first one.

I had a small airlock on to start with but it didn't last long as it kept getting blown off with the wort coming out! Don't know if I was doing something wrong or not but there was a lot of activity. I had another lid so just changed it and cracked it open a bit. It soon quietened down and I thought something was wrong but it seems to be ok and smells bloody nice I have to say although I've not tasted it yet.

One thing I never done to start with was take a hydrometer reading at the start but it's now saying about 1010, that's if i'm reading it right!

I’ve got a heat belt on the bin and it's been brewing for 4 days now and I will leave it until the weekend I think before I think about bottling it.

I know a cracked lid works but what airlocks can anyone recommend or should the small one work fine and it's just me who isn't doing it right?

I've read up a lot, got help from my mate and forums like this are great as well.

I will hopefully post more after I bottle and then once I start drinking it!

Cheers,

[maxashton]

Welcome aboard, Johnny.

First of all, what's the temperature in your house? You only need a brew belt if you're talking below 15 degrees, really. Too high a fermentation temperature can cause off flavours in your brew, and a nasty hangover to boot.

Don't worry bout the airlock, you're not doing anything wrong. You've just got an excitable brew, that's all. If you're adding a lot of heat into the equation, you're going to get that kind of activity.

If you're having trouble with the standard airlock, i think Hop and Grape sell a big airlock, but i'd check the temperature of your brew. Bear in mind 20 degrees is ideal temp.

SG 1010 is pretty much fermented out, now. If it's been in the fermenter at least a week, you can think about kegging/bottling now.

[Jim]

Sounds like a healthy fermentation to me!

As Max says, your brew may be a bit warm. You should try to keep it under 20C for best results.

Re airlocks, many people (me included) don't bother with an airlock for primary fermentation - they just crack the lid open a bit, like you did.

[johnnyk]

Thanks for the reply.

The bin is in my garage and can get quite cold which is why I got the heat belt for it. I think it's about 22 degrees just now but i'll remember the next time if there's too much activity.

Cheers,

[martyn142]

Hi all - I have finished my first brew and left the bin lid closed (no crack). It seems to have fermented out OK - down to about 1010. Will I have done any damage?

[anomalous_result]

Probably not to the beer. The reason you leave a gap is because as it ferments it produces CO2 which can build up a pressure in the fermenting vessel. If you were checking it daily by lifting the lid off then this will have let the gas out anyway.

Unless you were using an airlock, in which case no worries.

[Effigy]

I've also read that trapping the air in for the initial fermentation can cause off flavours in the brew.

Dunno if its true - I don't want to find out either!

[johnnyk]

My reading is now between 1008 and 1006 at 20C. I will bottle in the next few days once I get time!

I was going to put sugar in each bottle to try that way first. I bought carbonation drops but my bottles are 1litre and the drops are 375ml so i'd need 2 2/3 of drops

How much brewing sugar per litre would I need if I done it that way?

I have read about it being 8g per litre is that about 2 teaspoons?

Cheers again for the help........

[ChrisG]

John?

That you? Chris here... glad you got on this site.....its the best!

[ChrisG]

My reading is now between 1008 and 1006 at 20C. I will bottle in the next few days once I get time!

I was going to put sugar in each bottle to try that way first. I bought carbonation drops but my bottles are 1litre and the drops are 375ml so i'd need 2 2/3 of drops

How much brewing sugar per litre would I need if I done it that way?

I have read about it being 8g per litre is that about 2 teaspoons?

Cheers again for the help........

For the 1ltr bottles I would use a level teaspoon of sugar.

Cheers m8! talk to you later

[johnnyk]

John?

That you? Chris here... glad you got on this site.....its the best!

Hullo m8, glad I came on after you recommended it, just reading back at other posts you get plenty of help....

cheers

[johnnyk]

My reading is now between 1008 and 1006 at 20C. I will bottle in the next few days once I get time!

I was going to put sugar in each bottle to try that way first. I bought carbonation drops but my bottles are 1litre and the drops are 375ml so i'd need 2 2/3 of drops

How much brewing sugar per litre would I need if I done it that way?

I have read about it being 8g per litre is that about 2 teaspoons?

Cheers again for the help........

For the 1ltr bottles I would use a level teaspoon of sugar.

Cheers m8! talk to you later

Excellent m8 cheers, I'll be bottling in the next few nights......

[johnnyk]

That's my first lot bottled

The reading was at 1004 for the last few days.

The last few bottles were very cloudy obviously as I got near the bottom on the bin. Will these be ok to drink and will they clear?

The rest looked (and tasted ) great and I can't wait to start drinking them......

[sparky Paul]

The last few bottles were very cloudy obviously as I got near the bottom on the bin. Will these be ok to drink and will they clear?

They'll be fine - as soon as the carbonation has built up, you'll see the bottles clearing down. You'll see what I mean, the bottle develops a clear bit at the top which gradually expands down to the bottom over a few days. It quite magical...

It's also a good indication that the secondary fermentation is complete.

[johnnyk]

The last few bottles were very cloudy obviously as I got near the bottom on the bin. Will these be ok to drink and will they clear?

They'll be fine - as soon as the carbonation has built up, you'll see the bottles clearing down. You'll see what I mean, the bottle develops a clear bit at the top which gradually expands down to the bottom over a few days. It quite magical...

It's also a good indication that the secondary fermentation is complete.

Cheers m8, really looking forward to trying them and making more quite soon.......