sotlordrahl
New Member
Hello All,
I've been brewing for about 4-5 months now. I'm mainly brewing 5 gallon batches. I've had one really off batch, one slightly off batch and the rest have been pretty good. I've got a very basic setup consisting of turkey burner and 8 gal aluminum pot. I live in Florida so I use basic ice baths to get the wort down to pitching temperature. I have a 7cuft chest freezer I bought off craigslist and hooked it up to a johnson temp controller. I'm using 7.5 gal bucket as primary ferm and 6 gal better bottle as secondary. I've got some cider going in 3 gal better bottles as well for the holidays.
My question is as I begin to look at equipment upgrades, I'm confused which upgrades should come first.
What is the most practical method for quickly cooling wort in a warm temperature location? I'm assuming running tap water through a chill plate prob won't cut it.
How important is stainless steel pots, etc?
When should I start looking at kegging?
How long should I brew extract before I start looking at all grain?
I'm mainly worried about spending money on pieces that I won't need moving forward or buying equipment I don't need. For example; If I'm going to buy some stainless steels pots, what size would be sufficient now and moving forward? I'd hate to spend $150-200 on a pot and outgrow it in a year.
Thanks for the input
I've been brewing for about 4-5 months now. I'm mainly brewing 5 gallon batches. I've had one really off batch, one slightly off batch and the rest have been pretty good. I've got a very basic setup consisting of turkey burner and 8 gal aluminum pot. I live in Florida so I use basic ice baths to get the wort down to pitching temperature. I have a 7cuft chest freezer I bought off craigslist and hooked it up to a johnson temp controller. I'm using 7.5 gal bucket as primary ferm and 6 gal better bottle as secondary. I've got some cider going in 3 gal better bottles as well for the holidays.
My question is as I begin to look at equipment upgrades, I'm confused which upgrades should come first.
What is the most practical method for quickly cooling wort in a warm temperature location? I'm assuming running tap water through a chill plate prob won't cut it.
How important is stainless steel pots, etc?
When should I start looking at kegging?
How long should I brew extract before I start looking at all grain?
I'm mainly worried about spending money on pieces that I won't need moving forward or buying equipment I don't need. For example; If I'm going to buy some stainless steels pots, what size would be sufficient now and moving forward? I'd hate to spend $150-200 on a pot and outgrow it in a year.
Thanks for the input