first brew

[easty]

hi
sorry if my questions are dead stupid, but i am a total newbee starting my first brew. i have 2 questions i would really like help on, first my brew has just started fermenting & the lid is starting to bulge is it best to open lid alittle every so often to let gas out or will this risk contamination. if the pressure isn't released will it build up too much and take lid off itself.

secondly as a novice will i have best results bottling, or using a barrel

i will be v greatful for any advice
many thanx paul

[OldSpeckledBadger]

It sounds like you've put the lid on tightly. Don't. I just rest the lid on top and that's enough to protect the beer.

Bottling or kegging is a personal choice. Kegging is a lot less work but bottling allows the flexibility to put the beer in the fridge in the summer. You can also get a higher level of carbonation in a bottle - essential for largers. I keg most of my beer but I've got a summer ale fermenting now which will be bottled.

[rollin danny]

Good advice Badger but I tend to snap it on about half way round and leave the other half up,then it cant get knocked off by accident.Then I just stuff a bit of kitchen roll in the airlock hole to stop any nasties getting in.

[easty]

thats great thanx for advice both, i'm sure to have plenty more daft questions in the near future.

[brysie]

hi easty

i now always put clingfilm on the top of my fv. if you make sure the rim is dry you can get a good tight seal.
then i put the top on loosely and that way i can have a peek every day without worrying and if it does build up a good head of gas,
it can escape without any worries.

[Ditch]

Cling film's good fun, Easty

Just know this; In the days before cling film and Coopers, we used to just bang a damp towel over the top of an otherwise open bucket. Never came to any harm. The invisible gasses hovering above that wort are enough to knock a goat spark out. Much of what ever covering we choose to use is more to stop anything unpleasant from falling in there ~ ye don't want unconscious flies floating in ye brew, do ye? They don't add that much body, after all.

I'd wager that more brews are lost before they ever get started - due to a cock up in the initial cleansing of the equipment used - than ever go bad once that fermentation starts and the fun starts.

[KevP]

Cling film's good fun, Easty

The invisible gasses hovering above that wort are enough to knock a goat spark out.

You just know Ditch is speaking from experience here

[John-H]

cheers for the advise as i am a first timer..but not yet started it.
ive gone for GEORDIES MILD and although it doesnt say,most other home brew kits are 4.5% ABV so i doubt this will be any different,is there any product i can get to make it a lil bit stronger??

cheers,

john

[OldSpeckledBadger]

cheers for the advise as i am a first timer..but not yet started it.
ive gone for GEORDIES MILD and although it doesnt say,most other home brew kits are 4.5% ABV so i doubt this will be any different,is there any product i can get to make it a lil bit stronger??

If you want it stronger then add more sugar but unless you know what you're doing it'll probably end up tasting pants. My advice would be to forget the alcohol content and concentrate on learning to brew something drinkable. I'd advise using either Beer Kit Enhancer or 500g spraymalt + 500g brewers sugar instead of the 1KG household sugar. Household sugar will give a stronger beer but it'll taste like pi$$.

[John-H]

cheers mate...ill just keep it to just brewing something..as you put it..'drinkable'....ive got the GEORDIE BEERKIT ENHANCER 1kg and 30g pack of YOUNGS BREW BEER FININGS. im going to put 2-3 heaped teaspoons of treacle in for colour,flavour and a hint of sweetness as someone (i think it was TRUNDY) said thats what he does but with 1 teaspoon and someone else said that it will hardly do anything.

also what could i add to give it more body,more bulk?

john

[John-H]

im just going to keep it simple,as its my first brew...i started it today....made the wort no problem (it says 4 pints boiling water and 36 cold...but i think i could of put 1 or 2 more boiling/hot pints as the temp was no higher than 15-17 degrees,even though i wrapped an inside-out sleeping bag around it) it is now 20degrees and in my boiler cupboard...i started fermentation as soon as my wort was fully desolved (aprox 2pm friday 18th april)its now 2.51am and around 5 mins ago i took the temp and hydrometer reading and the results are as follows... temp:20degrees gravity:1.004 appearence:dark with a tan brown frothy head.when i put my ear to it,i can just hear it 'fizzing' ever so slightly..im an absolute beginer but seeing as its only been fermenting about 13 hours im not worried...that much..haha

will keep ya posted...ive got a notepad,in which im using as a diary to note down gravity readings and also temp readings...ive given myself 10 days (not including start day) for fermentation.

cheers,
john

[John-H]

DAY +1: temp 24 degrees
hydrometer reading betwen 1.004 and 1.003

appearance: same as last night but quite a lot of tiny bubbles coming up and the head has risen and become very frothy,about half an inch
thick...at a glance though.

ive decided to leave the wet towel(damp as it is now) off and just rest the lid on top,as the head was touching the towel.

cheers,
john

[OldSpeckledBadger]

DAY +1: temp 24 degrees

It's quite normal for the temperature to rise during the initial stages. The fermentation process actually generates a small amount of heat.

hydrometer reading betwen 1.004 and 1.003

You probably mean 1.040 - 1.030.

[John-H]

haha yeh thats the one badge haha

[John-H]

DAY +2:-
temp:27 degrees gravity reading:1.020

appearance:no frothy head but lots of tiny bubbles,like fizzy cola.



is that normal to loose the froth during the fermenting?

cheers,
john