Temerature

[Peter Dear]

Hey, i'm very new to home brewing, and have my first one on now.
i'm struggling to keep the temperature above about 15c. i understand that 18-30c is recommended.
any tips/hints?

thanks
pete

[Peter Dear]

from what i can see at the mo, the sediment level is just above the tap level.
where would the sediment come from, i used a basic starter kit, which means i tipped everything out of a can into the fermenter?

[James P]

The yeast creates sediment, as the beer ferments (which is the yeast reproducing, eating the sugar in the can, dying and dropping to the bottom). If you are worried about the sediment, syphon to another fermenter if you have one prior to bottling.

The other option is to bottle it and when you go to drink it, decant it slowly as to not pour the sediment into your jug / glass. Welcome to home brew! :)

[Peter Dear]

when syphoning, would i pass it through a filter?

[Peter Dear]

also, with the finings? do i stir them in?

[Ally Mcg]

Finings I'm not too sure about. From memory just add them.

Syphoning - don't bother with a filter - everything yr seeing is what should happen. Dinnae fret.

A good place on here that will answer all yr questions is the Library resource. Its like the wikipedia of homebrewing. Use it - i know i do.

Happy home brewing

[James P]

I wouldn't use a filter, when fermentation is complete add finings and stand in a cool place. It usually takes a couple (2 or 3) days to settle and for the beer to become bright. When the beer is clear it is time to transfer your beer to the bottle.

[Reviled]

I dont even bother with finings anymore, still have bright beers after about a week or so in the keg...

[Pilgrim]

Don't bother with a filter. I tried it for a few brews and found it wasn't worth the effort. To filter out yeast you need to get down to around 1 micron or less and then you run the risk of filtering out things that you really want to keep, like flavour. You also run the risk of aerating your beer if you have any leaks in the tubing, or worse spraying your hard earned efforts all over the floor. Just let it settle. If you're kegging, then the first glass or two may be cloudy but it will soon clear up after that. If bottling then pour the bottle carefully into a jug, stopping as soon as you see the sediment starting to run to the mouth of the bottle. Of course if your pouring just for you then don't worry about a little cloud in the beer, it's good for you.

[Peter Dear]

will the sediment not just mix back in during bottling if i don't syphon into a bottling fermenter?

[Tony]

Yup, a little. As James said, welcome to home brew. You should use a bottle filler when you fill your bottles (get one from your home brew shop), don't stir the fermenter too much prior to bottling. You will always get a little bit of sediment in your bottle, don't worry about it.

[Peter Dear]

hey
have been very patient and waited, fined it and am now bottling my first brew!
am using carbo drops, do i need to shake bottle to dissolve the drops or will they dissolve of their own accord?

[Peter Dear]

and what temperature should i be storing them at and for how long before drinking?