going smaller

[hopsnhawks]

realized it has been one calendar year since I last brewed so going to get back to it this weekend with one change

bottling and drinking 5 gallons of mediocre homebrew has lost its luster so am planning on decreasing the amount to 3 gallons and see how that works out, have a couple questions:

do I need to worry about the ~2 gallons of headspace in my 5 gallon carboy? the positive pressure should still keep things moving up and out correct?

I have been using a yeast starter with good results but since I am knocking 40% of the volume out could I go back to just opening the liquid Wyeast packet on brew day and not worry about a sluggish start?

any other major suggestions for scaling down?

much obliged

 

[ncbrewer]

I wouldn't worry a bit about fermenting 3 gallons in a 5 gallon carboy. I normally have 4.5 - 5 gallons in a 7.9 gallon bucket - this is to prevent blow-off.

Other suggestions - If you bottle, you could go with 2.5 gallon batches. That would fit into one standard 24 bottle case. If this doesn't apply to you, ignore it.

 

[Sadu]

Good call. I brew small for the same reason and only do full batches once I'm happy with the recipe. No problem fermenting ales with lots of headspace since they are in and out in a couple of weeks. For lagers which get bulk aged though it would be preferable to have less headspace.

 

[LBF]

When I've experimented with small batches, I've done 2.5 gallon batches, not so much for the fact that it would make one case, but more for ease of scaling up to a full batch if it turned out particularly well.

Of course, I've thrown caution to the wind a bit more recently. I brewed a double batch (11 gallons) of an untested brew, which as it fortunately turned out was probably my best beer to date.

 

[mattd2]

Is there a particular (or common) reason for you saying your beer is mediocre? (And is it all your batches?)
A lot of homebrew I have tasted is as good a quality as commercial offerings (or really really really bad ).
As for advice have you thought about dry yeast? This will take one variabe (pitching rate) out of the equation.
Sorry if I it sounds like I'm going off on a tangent but I would rather see you make 5 gallons of good beer than 2.5 gallons of mediocre beer

 

[LBF]

On the topic of improving your beers, what are you using for equipment and water? I haven't got into testing and modifying my water yet, but it's well water with a couple thousand dollar filtration system, so I'm not really worried at this point.

What are you doing for recipes too? Are you aging anything to see how it changes over time? I save a bottle for 6 months, 1 year, and 1-1/2 years to see if they change over time. Some have showed surprising changes, I had a mediocre coffee Irish stout turn into something surprising good at the one year mark. Do you try to make changes to a mediocre brew to improve it?

 

[sbartelski]

I ferment 2.5-3 gallons in 5 gallon cornys all the time. No issue. Of course I keg in 2.5 or 3 gallons kegs to minimize head space in storage

Stefan

 

[C-Rider]

I do 2 gallon batches in 2 gallon buckets from H. Depot....produce 3 six pack per brew. I have a 7 cu ft freezer to control temps and can put like 5 buckets at a time into it.

 

[hopsnhawks]

thanks for the feedback, won't worry about the headspace and will nix the yeast starter for an easy brewday

some of my brews are extra tasty (usually the heavier stouts/porters) and others are fine but not as good as the store bought IPAs I love so much

not at a point where I feel I have control over fermentation temperature so until I invest in some type of cooling unit I plan on small batching it

 

[Sadu]

not at a point where I feel I have control over fermentation temperature so until I invest in some type of cooling unit I plan on small batching it

OK, this should be high on the to do list if you aren't happy with the quality of your beer. No point tinkering with the recipes or water until you have this sorted.
A swamp cooler is the cheap answer to this problem. You will need to babysit it for the first 5 days of fermentation but if you are fermenting too hot this will make all the difference IMO.

 

[LBF]

Fermentation temperatures can be very important, especially to something like an IPA. There's just not enough to mask mistakes. There are a few things you may be able to do though. I found that the basement stays a pretty consistent temperature in the summer, perfect for lighter ales. In the winter, it's a little warmer down there and really warm by the boiler, perfect for Belgians. So for now, I brew accordingly. Since it's cooler in the summer, I brew my bigger lighter beers then. Bigger beers (higher alcohol) will generate more heat during fermentation, so brewing something say around a 5% will be less prone to heating up to the point of off-flavors than a 9%.

 

[motosapiens]

some of my brews are extra tasty (usually the heavier stouts/porters) and others are fine but not as good as the store bought IPAs I love so much

not at a point where I feel I have control over fermentation temperature so until I invest in some type of cooling unit I plan on small batching it

i'm still learning, so take everything I say with a few grains of salt, but.....

1. historically, my dark beers and hefeweizens have been good, and paler beers less so. Since I'm learning about water the last few weeks, this makes sense, because my water is too alkaline for paler beers without some acidification of the mash and sparge. I was getting some harsh astringency from the lighter beers before I started using acidulated malt or lactic acid to lower the mash ph. I still haven't started actually using a ph meter to accurately measure mash ph, but just operating off of the water report and calculated ph using bru'nwater spreadsheet, the beers have improved significantly.

2. temperature control of ales should not be too difficult for 2/3 of the year in oregon. I am usually too busy to brew in the warmer parts of the the year, but I've been doing it for years with just a tape-on fermometer, and careful positioning of the ferment bucket (kitchen counter, kitchen floor, laundry room, garage, all have different temperatures), but with the recent $70 investment for an inkbird temp controller and a heat wrap, I can now just choose a cooler environment, set the temp, and go watch football and drink beer.

I have a portable digital thermometer that I've been moving around the house the last year or so, and getting a better feel of what the temps are where and when. Often I set it next to the fermenter to get an idea of the differential, which seems to be 5 or so degrees the fermenter runs hotter than ambient during the vigorous part of fermentation, and pretty close to ambient after the 3rd day or so. That information can be helpful when planning placement.

cheers

 

[rusty_tlc]

Hi. I am going small for many of the same reasons, not that I have a lot of experience with larger batches.

I found 2 gallon food grade buckets and lids at a store that sells bulk foods, so I brew ~1.75 gallon batches. I bottle in bombers so that yields about 8 or 9 bottles plus a few 12oz tasters. 22 ounces seems like the right size for a serving of beer to me and bottling goes fast.

BrewSmith has done a good job of scaling to that size so far.
So far is one batch of Kolsch and one batch of Porter.

I also switched to dry yeats and using a starter, mostly for economy.
Using a starter I can get three or more batches of beer out of a single packet. I vacuum seal left over between uses. I am really happy with using a starter and don't think I would go back to directly pitching the yeast. For one thing I like the idea of getting the good guys started fast so the bad guys can't compete.

 

[Lefou]

Scaled down my wort from 5gal to 3gal.
I do the boil on a NG kitchen stove that can only reasonably push a boil of 4 gallons or less. One BIG HINT about using smaller wort batches in larger carboys is this - make sure your wort has cooled to near ambient room temperature before pitching yeast and adding the airlock. The temperature difference can cause a pressure change and suck air into the fermenter through the airlock - if you're not careful.
Right now I have about 3-4gal of ale wort in a 6gal carboy. Fermentation produces CO2 overpressure through your airlock, which is just a valve. As long as your temperatures don't vary too much and too fast, you shouldn't have a big problem with space inside the fermenter. I did this to eliminate the need for a blow off setup while using a particularly vigorous Belgian yeast. Done correctly, the extra bit of headspace can allow for a big, healthy krausen to form without resorting to that blow off tube.
First couple of times I used the blow off tube and sanitizer, the "bloop bloop" noise drove my cats nuts until they got used to it. LOL

 

[Tulsahomebrewer]

I know this an old post. I am also trying to go small and get a 3 Gal fermenter. Does anybody tell me about your 3-gal fermenter based on experience? Which one should I buy? I cannot keep my 6.5 Gal fermenter inside temp controlled mini fridge, so using that is not an option. Thanks.