Hello (noob)

[shrekfx]

Hello, Im a noob from South Dakota that knows very little about home brewing. I don't have anything to do it yet for me and my fiance are buying a house and waiting untill we get that first, closing on oct 1st (and got my brew room already picked out :) ). Live in a 1 bedroom apt and no room to do anything.. And on top of that, Im getting started by picking up 8 cases of empty (non-twist) brown bottles from someone that is giving them away and 3 more cases on Saturday.. WOOHOO.. I love free stuff, only if I can find someone with free glass carboys, wort chiller and all that good stuff, hehe.. But hello and cant wait to pick all your brains. :p

[Tankard]

Hey, welcome shrek! Good to have you here. Lots of helpful people and a lot of brewing knowledge here, so ask any and all questions you have.

I live in a one bedroom apartment and I do all grain brewing on my balcony. There are several apartment dwellers here who still brew, but it'll definitely be easier once you get your house.

I'd recommend getting the book "How to Brew" by John Palmer. You can actually read his entire 1st edition for free at http://www.howtobrew.com. It'll teach you pretty much everything you will need to know.

Again, welcome!

[Ó Cairealláin]

Welcome shrekfx!

[davebl]

Welcome!! This is a great place to ask questions... sometimes we can even answer them!

[shrekfx]

Hey, welcome shrek! Good to have you here. Lots of helpful people and a lot of brewing knowledge here, so ask any and all questions you have.

I live in a one bedroom apartment and I do all grain brewing on my balcony. There are several apartment dwellers here who still brew, but it'll definitely be easier once you get your house.

I'd recommend getting the book "How to Brew" by John Palmer. You can actually read his entire 1st edition for free at http://www.howtobrew.com. It'll teach you pretty much everything you will need to know.

Again, welcome!

Ya i think i did read most of that already.. my brain is hurting from everything i've read.. I still need to get use to all the abbreviation that is used in measuring, but i'm sure when i start to do it and get my hands on it i'll come together.

[landis]

Welcome shrekfx!

[adrock]

Welcome noob! Always glad to get another enthusiastic member around here.

[Ó Flannagáin]

Welcome shrek and you must realize you are entering a ridiculous obsession. If you aren't ready for this than turn back now.

[shrekfx]

Welcome shrek and you must realize you are entering a ridiculous obsession. If you aren't ready for this than turn back now.

I need a ridiculous obession.. im betting bored out of my mind.

[Ó Cairealláin]

Ya i think i did read most of that already.. my brain is hurting from everything i've read.. I still need to get use to all the abbreviation that is used in measuring, but i'm sure when i start to do it and get my hands on it i'll come together.

That's how I felt when I read it. I found the best thing for me was to actually watch someone brewing. If there's nobody around that you can watch, there are quite a few videos online showing how to brew. After that I found reading the book made a lot more sense.

[MrMarbleHead]

Welcome to the site Shrek! Don't listen to anyone around here, place is full of drunks and one smelly hippie! :shark:

[ohiobrewtus]

Welcome to the HBC! It looks like you're off to a good start by collecting bottles. You'll be brewing before you know it and hopefully we can help you along the way if you have any questions.

[ohiobrewtus]

Welcome to the site Shrek! Don't listen to anyone around here, place is full of drunks and one smelly hippie! :shark:

Ya, ya... you forgot to mention the one hypocrite! :D :D

[Niedermier]

Welcome to the site. Look forward to hearing your updates as you descend into the abyss that is homebrewing.

[Lerxst]

Welcome!

[Union Brewer]

Welcome shrek!

[Diver Down]

Welcome to HBC shrekfx!

[Barley-Davidson]

Welcome :shark:
Don't hesitate to post about equipment needs; I'm sure we can help you decide what to buy vs what to build yourself, along with some other (hopefully helpful) suggestions.
Cheers

[DrunkenSatyr]

Welcome Aboard!

[Ronthered]

Welcome to the club.
My wife is from South Dakota, Madison area

[blacklab]

Welcome Shrekfx!

[shrekfx]

Welcome to the club.
My wife is from South Dakota, Madison area

Wow what a small world.. im originaly from Mobridge, joined the Marine Corps, did that for 4 years in southern Cali (29 palms), spent time over in japan, thialand, philipeans, and kawuait and iraq. then moved back to SD to Sioux Falls. :)

[shrekfx]

And thanks for all the warm welcomes... So far the only thing i have going for me is the bottles. need to get everything else.. and i cant beleave how expensive a stainless stell pot is.. holy crap!!

[gplutt]

And thanks for all the warm welcomes... So far the only thing i have going for me is the bottles. need to get everything else.. and i cant beleave how expensive a stainless stell pot is.. holy crap!!


buy an aluminum pot, they are cheaper and work just as well(says the guy with two 10 gallon Polarware pots with welded valves).

[shrekfx]

buy an aluminum pot, they are cheaper and work just as well(says the guy with two 10 gallon Polarware pots with welded valves).

Now i hear to stay away from aluminum cuz it can make your beer taste really goofy.??

[cookieman]

welcome!

[Barley-Davidson]

Now i hear to stay away from aluminum cuz it can make your beer taste really goofy.??

I think almost everyone here has made non-goofy beer in an aluminum pot at one time or another. :)

[shrekfx]

So aluminum is o.k.? or just suck it up and go get a stainless steel one? Or or even a turkey frier.. I love fried turkey...

[Ó Flannagáin]

Aluminum is fine. I still use alum to heat my strike and sparge water.

[shrekfx]

Aluminum is fine. I still use alum to heat my strike and sparge water.

O.k. whats strike and sparge water? is that the boil?

[Steve Urquell]

O.k. whats strike and sparge water? is that the boil?

In all-grain brewing strike is the water you mix the grain with and sparge is the water you rinse the sugars off the grain with.
IMHO, a turkey friar is the best way to start.Right now my Sutherlands has them on sale for $25 with a 30qt. alum pot.You don't have to buy a pot and you can boil a full 5 gal. batch.Works great for me.

[shrekfx]

So would an aluminum pot work for the first few batches to get me going though? Cracking down $50+ on a pot right away would be rough. But then. i know midwest has a deal for that basic kit + a recipe kit + a steal pot + bottles but lol i dont need bottles. cuz if i counted correctly, i have about 288 bottles that someone game me.. I love freecycle.com :)

[Tankard]

Aluminum will work fine, but personally I would hold out for a stainless steel pot. I hated dealing with that oxide layer in the aluminum pot I had. It would scrape off everytime I used my wort chiller.

[Ó Flannagáin]

Aluminum will work fine, but personally I would hold out for a stainless steel pot. I hated dealing with that oxide layer in the aluminum pot I had. It would scrape off everytime I used my wort chiller.
Weird, that never happened on mine. I got the masterbuilt turkey fryer combo.

[shrekfx]

Aluminum will work fine, but personally I would hold out for a stainless steel pot. I hated dealing with that oxide layer in the aluminum pot I had. It would scrape off everytime I used my wort chiller.

o.k., well i wont be using a wort chiller for awhile, going to slowly buy the other stuff i need untill i get going to do all grain and stuff.

[Steve Urquell]

Weird, that never happened on mine. .

Mine either.Still using it after about 30+ batches w/ no probs.I don't go crazy cleaning it though.Just a washcloth and oxyclean and rinse w/o letting the oxy sit it in for over a couple minutes.

[Ó Cairealláin]

I've been using an aluminum kettle for extract brews with no problem.

[shrekfx]

sweet.. then with that said. i might start off with that for now unless i can find one really cheap/free :)

[sanders5x]

sweet.. then with that said. i might start off with that for now unless i can find one really cheap/free :)

Find some 15 gallon kegs. Those are ideal.

Edit: And welcome to the most engrossing hobby you will ever know.

I'm from Fargo, so if your in the neighborhood give me a holler!

[Union Brewer]

Wow what a small world.. im originaly from Mobridge, joined the Marine Corps, did that for 4 years in southern Cali (29 palms), spent time over in japan, thialand, philipeans, and kawuait and iraq. then moved back to SD to Sioux Falls. :)

Thank you for your service bro. I was Army myself, but a lot of my friends are Jarheads, so I won't hold that against you.

[shrekfx]

Find some 15 gallon kegs. Those are ideal.

Edit: And welcome to the most engrossing hobby you will ever know.

I'm from Fargo, so if your in the neighborhood give me a holler!

what do you mean by getting 15 gallon kegs?

[gplutt]

what do you mean by getting 15 gallon kegs?

15 gallon sanke kegs with the tops cut off are ideal as for boiling wort, heating up water, etc.

[MrMarbleHead]

what do you mean by getting 15 gallon kegs?

You can convert used kegs into kettles Like this-
http://www.homebrewchatter.com/board/picture.php?albumid=4&pictureid=22http://www.homebrewchatter.com/board/picture.php?albumid=4&pictureid=326


There are a lot of places out there to buy equipment that aren't homebrew supply stores. Wares Direct (http://www.waresdirect.com/category/Restaurant-Supplies/Professional-Cookware7/Stainless-Steel-Pots45) & Divine Mercantile (http://www.divine-mercantile.com/Stockpots-Steamers_c_24.html) are two places that I know people have used with good service, and their prices aren't horrible. If you have a restaurant supply store near you sometimes they have used equipment also.

But if you can find a used keg for cheap then you can cut the top open and use that with a turkey fryer.

[shrekfx]

Thats deffently interesting.. I dont quite have the metal skills to do something like that though. But a very neat idea.

[Tankard]

You don't really need metal shop skills to make a keggle. You just need an angle grinder/plasma cutter (or know someone who does) to open the top. Then you just need a step bit for a power drill to cut the opening for the ball valve.

[blacklab]

So aluminum is o.k.? or just suck it up and go get a stainless steel one? Or or even a turkey frier.. I love fried turkey...

Aluminum is totally fine. You can get a 10 gallon aluminum(wish I'd have bought a 15) pot at your local restaurant supply for $60 or so.

A lot of people start out with the turkey fryer b/c you get a burner and a pot together, but the pot is often on the smaller side, 8 gallons I believe. You can barely do a full boil for a 5 gallon batch in an 8 gallon, but seriously, just barely. You wanna go bigger.

[shrekfx]

O.k. cool.. im really going to try and not get aluminum just cuz i know it can make your beer taste really goofy and stuff.. But I probly will just start with a 3 gal to do a partial boil.. Im getting really excited. a friend in my apt has a son that brews and he does the kits. had a scottish ale and a lawnmower tonight.. both very nice tastings.

[Redweasel]

Trust me aluminum is fine. It's all I've ever used.

[shrekfx]

O.k. well i'll probly end up getting what is cheaper for me at the time i find something :)

[MrMarbleHead]

If you can find it, look for the turkey fryer combo's, that way you get the burner and the kettle in one shot, and a lot of times for the same price as just a kettle. If you are planning on holding out a bit, around Thanksgiving time a lot of the stainless turkey fryer combo's come out and you may be able to find a deal on one of those. Especially after T-day, when everyone is trying to off load them cheap.

[shrekfx]

Thats one of the problems, LOL i dont want to wait.. hehehe :) but you're right, i might have to take a look at that.