HELP! My landlord is a home-brew hater

CornyKegs 728
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Hey everyone, thanks a bunch for the help. I just got home and am waiting to hear back from my landlord. A few people asked for my side of communication in this, so I'll attach my e-mails. The first one was apologizing for the Propane tank in the basement. The second one was just trying to proceed respectfully about possibly putting on carboy covers as an idea for keeping the carboys out of sight. Everyone here has been giving me so much good advice, and I just want to be patient before I bombard my landlord's inbox. Lastly, I really appreciate the input from you all who have been in the landlord's position. It's really helped my sympathize and realize how important overall safety precautions are.

Thanks again everyone

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The e-mails do make you out as a nice guy. Hope your landlord isn't to stressed out, by other stuff, to read them as intended.
 
Why don't you just build a 'false' cover that looks like a box or something...something that completely covers all you homebrew setup. Then just put flower pots on top and call it a garden. BOOM! "Out of sight, out of mind."

Other idea is you could offer her some of your beer and get her on your side.
 
How about asking the landlord if you can keep a chest freezer in the basement? Put the carboys in there and the other tenants won't be bothered with it. You can usually find used freezers on craigslist. If they ask about the extra electricity, look up how much one uses and pay them the extra$.
 
JUST HEARD BACK, and here's the solution! Moved to the closet, with a huge rubber-bottom carpet. Blankets on hand to keep everything insulated. I can close the closet doors to keep it all out of sight. P.S. the Double IPA is in secondary now, and I just washed the glass carboy after harvesting some yeast. Oh, and 1 gallon jugs of cider and Graff.

In conclusion, empathy goes a long way!

Thanks y'all... and peace out!
Happy Homebrewing

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on a serious note: I had a landlord call me at work and almost called the cops because he saw my wort chiller in the sink. accused me of making meth. I told him he could help me brew a batch of beer and see for himself. that stopped him from calling the law.
 
Coiled up copper does arouse suspicion.

This thread and the guy that got evicted have me praising The Lord I own my home. Gonna brew in the driveway, blasting The Clash, in my skivvies. Just to celebrate.
 
No, but I could, and I would only have to answer to my wife and daughters. My son would be down with it.
 
In my last apartment the landlord saw that I had a single fermentation bucket in the corner of an unfinished basement and flipped out, and got extremely paranoid, thought I was involved in illegal activities and just blew things way out of proportion.

Eventually they sold the building and threw me out anyway with about ~1 month notice, guess they got what they wanted in the end.
 
You know, in most places, a landlord cannot keep you from doing legal things in the home you've rented. Shared basement, most probably, but in your own home, no. This turned out okay, but I'd think there were some legitimate legal eagles among HBT members that could help.

This sort of thing comes up often with military families (Combat scuba guys storing tanks in penned off basement areas, for instance), and always, in the end, the military guys win out because the resident was not doing anything illegal.

And homebrewing is legal in all 50 states...
 
Smoking is legal. Owning a dog is legal. But landlords are permitted to forbid those things on their properties. So just because something is legal doesn't necessarily mean you can engage in it on rented property with impunity.
 
Billy-Klubb said:
I told him he could help me brew a batch of beer and see for himself. that stopped him from calling the law.
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Further proof that "the best defense is a good offense". Being proactive and upfront in whatever activity seems suspicious has a way of easing tensions and disarming the otherwise wary observer.
 
Well, there are such things as tenant/landlord laws. They have to give 24 hours notice when showing or entering the property. 30 days for evictions & the like, here in Ohio anyway. That said, keeping on good terms with the landlord is always a good thing. I'm glad I don't have to deal with that anymore.
 
unionrdr said:
Well, there are such things as tenant/landlord laws. They have to give 24 hours notice when showing or entering the property. 30 days for evictions & the like, here in Ohio anyway. That said, keeping on good terms with the landlord is always a good thing. I'm glad I don't have to deal with that anymore.
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The landlord does not have to give notice upon entering a common space; I do suppose this could be different in some states, but I know it is not required in a number of states. That is the case here. There was never a threat of eviction. The landlord identified a safety issue and dealt with it accordingly. At the same time, concerns surrounding the activities the tenant engages in within the common areas came to question. The tenant explained quite well and with a seemingly good attitude (in e-mails), and all has worked out in the end. I'm glad it did work out. Not everyone is in a position to own their own place.

The landlord, in my opinion, was not wrong and is definitely not a home-brew hater. She/he was amicable to hear the tenant's explanation and make some sort of arrangements to keep all happy. If he weren't a good tenant then that landlord would have likely made this all difficult. It pays to be a good tenant and not jump straight to litigation when these things arise.
 
Things were a lil different when I was renting in this state. While paying the rent, the property was mine to a large extent. I don't have the printouts anymore, but that was the gist of it. I never said anything about eviction, etc. Good call on the propane tank. But some things being legal should & were discussed. I always stood my ground with some of the slum lords I was forced to deal with back then. Saved my money & looked for deals to buy my first house. Of course, things were cheaper back then, but we earned less as well. Just gave my experiences in the event push came to shove. But be nice...until it's time not to be nice. That's all.:mug:
 
kombat said:
Smoking is legal. Owning a dog is legal. But landlords are permitted to forbid those things on their properties. So just because something is legal doesn't necessarily mean you can engage in it on rented property with impunity.
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Both things you can put in a lease as "not allowed." I seriously doubt "home-brewing not allowed" would be in his lease.
 
Hello said:
The landlord does not have to give notice upon entering a common space; I do suppose this could be different in some states, but I know it is not required in a number of states. That is the case here. There was never a threat of eviction. The landlord identified a safety issue and dealt with it accordingly. At the same time, concerns surrounding the activities the tenant engages in within the common areas came to question. The tenant explained quite well and with a seemingly good attitude (in e-mails), and all has worked out in the end. I'm glad it did work out. Not everyone is in a position to own their own place.

The landlord, in my opinion, was not wrong and is definitely not a home-brew hater. She/he was amicable to hear the tenant's explanation and make some sort of arrangements to keep all happy. If he weren't a good tenant then that landlord would have likely made this all difficult. It pays to be a good tenant and not jump straight to litigation when these things arise.
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My comment was aimed at the OP's efforts in his house, hiding his homebrew in his closet. That is what I think is overkill.
 
Our hobby looks suspicious as hell. Copper piping, big propane tanks and burners, large pots, strange chemicals, large tanks and containers, lots of bottled water, fridges and freezers rigged up with hoses and CO2 bottles... to the layman it probably looks really suspicious.
 
Especially nosey neighbors in an HOA neighborhood. Neighbor stood outside once when I had the door open & on her cell phone. " Yeah, it looks like a meth lab or something"! How would a yuppy know what a meth lab looks like?! Showed my little brewery to the cops & explained everything. I also told them if they ever run into one with some coiled up copper tubing, it's a wort chiller, not a distilling coil. I then went on to explain how that works. No more problems after I told them I don't sell it or barter with it.:mug:
 
unionrdr said:
Especially nosey neighbors in an HOA neighborhood. Neighbor stood outside once when I had the door open & on her cell phone. " Yeah, it looks like a meth lab or something"! How would a yuppy know what a meth lab looks like?!
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Tell that nosey _____ to educate herself, and watch the documentary called "Breaking Bad." Ignorant wanker.

I would also shake someone's hand if they were ostentatious enough to make a big enough batch of meth that warranted a 15 gallon pot in the drive way.
 
Just FYI - My previous post that was deleted was not in reference to any person here, especially not uniondr, but it was a line from the movie "Roadhouse" that I assumed he was also referencing when he said, "But be nice... until it's time not to be nice." which was another line by the same character, Dalton.

No problem, it really didn't add anything to the thread anyway.
 
Nah, it's cool man, I gotcha. Just a comment that gives a little advice from someone who's been there more than a couple of times. Thanks for the laugh evan, I needed that right now. My back's killin' me from a PM brew day.
 
Hello said:
The landlord, in my opinion, was not wrong and is definitely not a home-brew hater.
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You're right, very well put. I was definitely venting and anxious when i first titled this thread. Glad it all worked out in the end though, and maybe folks in similar situations can read through this forum, be proactive and communicative, and keep homebrewing going in apartments!!
 

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