Primary fermentation, Secondary fermentors & bottling

[Frothy]

Thought I'd put this in Equipment as it is equally relevant to kit brewing and all-grain. Everybody has different opinions of how to ferment/ condition their beer
- how does everyone go about it?

Matt

[prodigal2]

At the moment I bottle condition, as this is convienient to my life as when its done its done, though I want to condition in a secondary and then bottle.
My only problem is that I'm self employed and when work calls I have to go running, and may be away for a few months. So planning a fermentation beyond 2 weeks is impossible at the moment

[Seveneer]

It depends how patient I'm feeling. Sometimes I can leave a bitter in primary for 2 weeks then keg it. Sometimes I primary for 10 days then put it in a glass secondary for a couple of weeks. Other times I keg it early and secondary in the keg while I drink it

My best results are from longer in primary, maybe 2 and a half weeks, then into a keg for 4 weeks.

But, I have to stop the beer fairies getting to it otherwise it's all gone by the time it's ready

/Phil.

[Seveneer]

Oh, and I bottle a gallon or two here and there. The bottled beers come out beautifully because they're easier for me to forget about than kegs.

I have 6 bottles of my IPA left that I brewed sometime back in the summer. They were in the keg at 2 weeks after brew day then I bottled them just before Christmas and they're just fabulous.

/Phil.

[crow_flies]

2 weeks in primary and then 3 to 4 in keg (if I can avoid drinking it after 1st week that is!!)

/CF

[tubby_shaw]

A week to 10 days in primary.
A week or so with finings in secondary
2 to 3 weeks in keg.

[danielski]

So far I've done:
5 days primary / 5 days secondary / 1 month bottle
7 days primary / 5 days secondary / 1 month keg

and my current has had 10 days in the primary so far, so I might try leaving it in there a bit longer then going straight to keg this time, fine it in there and see what difference it makes.

[Hoppkins]

Usually do 5-6 days in Primary and 3+ weeks secondary in keg.

[Frothy]

1week primary
4weeks secondary (corny with blow off tube)
pressurise & drink

I read somewhere this is similar to real ale
(without the carbonation of course)
Matt

[Jim]

Generally I leave for 10-14 days in the primary then straight into the barrel.

[BlightyBrewer]

I've been trying out leaving in the primary for 7-10 days, then straight into the keg to naturally carbonate.

[tim]

Primary until sg around 1015 (about 3 days); carboy for 10-28 days, then corny or bottle (or both depending on volumes). If corny, carbonate and start drinking ... sometimes I wait a bit
T

[Frothy]

wow that's a quick ferment tim - how do you get it to go so well?

Frothy

[tim]

Dunno - I use a method (more or less) handed down from my father-in-law (could post if anyone interested) that's an adapted Wheeler. So far as ferment goes, I usually aerate with an aquarium pump for c. 20 mins before pitching yeast and try to keep the temperature at 20c. It's usually somewhere around 1015 after about 60-70 hours, when I drop it into a 5 gall. carboy where it bubbles away happy for another 3-4 days. I nearly always use gervin ale yeast, it's usually dropped to around 1006 - 1008 when it goes in corny or bottle - I don't know when it hits that point, judge it by eye when it's looking respectably clear .. low OG beers after about 10 days, higher OG around the 14-21 day mark. Corny's are force carbonated and more or less ready to drink. Bottles I prime and leave 2-3 months
Not just me that likes it
T

[monk]

For the last few months I've been leaving the ale in primary (glass carboy) for 14-21 days, then bottling and waiting a few weeks.

It seems to work great for me. It's the clearest ale I've made and tastes the best to boot.

The only times I've strayed from this lately, is when I added fruit to the secondary for an Apricot ale, and when I dryhopped a Strong Bitter.

It's interesting to see the many different ways homebrewers condition their beer and how each seems to find a way that suits them best.

Cheers,

Monk[/i]