Boab

[poppa joe]

BOAB....(Brewing On A Budget).
How many others out there have to brew on a BUDGET....
AND What are your ways of doing it as cheaply as possible. :excl:
Please tell us what your secrets are.......
So we can do it too....
Cheers
PJ :beerbang:

 

[fixa]

The big secret is.....................
Don't tell the missus how much you actually spend...

 

[Batz]

BOAB....(Brewing On A Budget).

Ha ha ha ha :lol: :lol: :lol:


The only reason I work at all is my brewing,you can eat all sorts of stuff,gotta drink good beer but


Batz h34r:

 

[poppa joe]

Can't....FIXA..
Retired ...... Gotta Get MY Bikkies of SHMBO....(She doesn't budget for beer)
Cheers
PJ
Little Johnny Howard doesn't leave me with much...

 

[Screwtop]

I brew on a Budget, a rather big budget!

To brew on the cheap: use cans of goop.

But: Life's too short to drink shitty beer.

 

[haro]

I brew on a Budget, a rather big budget!

To brew on the cheap: use cans of goop.

But: Life's too short to drink shitty beer.

What the hell is goop????

 

[browndog]

I'm with Fixa here, tell the Missus nothing, when a delivery from Craftbrewer is impending, use camoflauge, subterfuge and distraction to avoid scrutiny. When caught out with something new, immediately say "I've had this for ages"
Works for me!

cheers

Browndog

 

[DJR]

Cans of goop ain't cheap compared with making it AG style

2.5kg of malted grain - equivalent of 1.7kg can of extract @ 80 % efficiency - at $2 a kg bulk = $5
Hops - 10g of high alpha hops (about 13%) to get to 20IBU - at $5 per 100g, 0.50
Sugar - same as goop, 1kg of cane sugar - $0.80 or so, $5 for rolls-royce Dextrose
Water, gas etc $2
Yeast - use some recultured yeasts - free, or the alternative dry yeast $4

Total $8.30 for 23L (add $8 for Dextrose and dry yeast)

Why would you buy goop at that price, it would be better than the can of goop and you know what's gone into it.

Low cost brewing i reckon

1) farm yeasts + make starters
2) buy grain in bulk
3) buy hops in bulk
4) use high alpha clean hops for bittering so you can use less hops
5) use cane sugar instead of dextrose (little difference)
6) keep your equipment SIMPLE and CHEAP, no need to upgrade if the stuff you have gets the job done.

 

[poppa joe]

DJR....
Reference No.6 in your post is what i was basically thinking of...
Should of phrased it better ...Basic brewing equipment....For BOAB....
Cheers
PJ

 

[blackbock]

DJR....
Reference No.6 in your post is what i was basically thinking of...
Should of phrased it better ...Basic brewing equipment....For BOAB....
Cheers
PJ

PJ why not find someone else who already has the equipment you don't and organise a brew day?
Can't get any cheaper than that, plus you have a helper.

 

[Mr Bond]

AG is a great medium for bartering I've found

 

[poppa joe]

Good idea Blackbock...
Ah...... by the way BB...I am only a stones throw away from Bomo...
Cheers
PJ :beerbang:

 

[SpillsMostOfIt]

My best purchase pales in comparison to some of the careful shopping I've read of PJ's, but my boiler came from a junk shop in Smith St. Seventy-five litre aluminium saucepan with a lid for $50. It had another lid wedged inside it, but nothing an experienced Dremel operator couldn't fix. Once I did, I haven't looked back!

This happened from a heads-up from velophile. I reckon second-hand and bric a brac shops could be very useful for this sort of thing.

 

[poppa joe]

SPILLS>>>>>
Everything i look at ....I THINK.....Where can i use THAT...in brewing...
Vinnies has been a good friend....(They sell heaps of brewing stuff...They just don't know where to use it.)
Markets...$25.00 For large SS clothes boiler Electric (Kettle or Mash tun or BIAB...Maybe?)
Garage Sale (Tooo much to list) One Coopers Kit ..NEW..with all trimmings Including Stout can.$10.00
Recyclers...(Still tooooo much too list).
Cheers
PJ

P.S. I cant remember where i posted the cost of my BIAB equipment....ANYONE>???????????
So i can post it here ....Maybe help some others....

 

[SpillsMostOfIt]

As a rule of thumb, though...

If you're wanting to buy something cheap, wait for a day or so after I have bought one - the price invariably comes down.

I was talking to my father a few days after my first successful BIAB and telling him about the big boiler and immersion heater. His response "Sounds like the Fowlers Vacola unit we have under the house."

The real moral of this story is to always check with relatives, friends, neighbours, etc.

People often have stuff.

 

[3GumsBrewing]

Hi Guys,

Lucky I came across this BOAB thread! I really need to start looking at cutting my costs down now that the first assistant brewer is due to arrive in 2 months.

Whilst these questions mentioned a specific recipe I reckon the answers would be a help to all new AGers and BIABers. This would be a great Wiki topic.

I have a SNPA recipe (below) that I got off the northern brewer forum that I think is the ducks nuts and I plan on making it my house beer. I am however concerned at the cost of the ingredients, buying them for one batch at a time is killing me, hence the questions below (sorry if they are a bit noobish) :

1.. Where in Sydney can I buy cracked grain in bulk at the best price, I am thinking of going out and getting 25kgs of Pale Malt(2-row), 5kgs of Crystal 60L?
2.. What about hops pellets, can I get 500gms /1kg of Cascade, Perle, Amarillo etc at a time?
3.. I have tried the same recipe with Wyeast 1056 and US-56 and to tell you the truth I prefer the US-56, the 1056 dries it out a little bit more than I prefer, can you get US-56 in bulk lots?
4.. Will a HBS crack that amount of grain for me or will I have to buy it whole and do it myself?
5.. Storage, the quantities above will make about 5 batches, what is the best way to store cracked grain, does it require certain temps?

6.. Something that my wife asked me last night, what if I get sick of the SNPA clone half way through the ingredients? Given that I have Pale Malt and Crystal 60L, what other styles can I make with these ingredients. American Amber, IPA etc.

Cheers
DK

SNPA
% Amount Name Origin Potential SRM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
87.5 5.40kg Pale Malt(2-row) America 1.036 2
12.5 0.8kg Crystal 60L America 1.034 60

Hops

Amount Name Form Alpha IBU Boil Time
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
57gm Cascade Pellet 5.45 0.0 0 min. (at flameout no dry hopping)
28gm Cascade Pellet 5.45 6.8 10 min.
11gm Perle Pellet 13.00 17.9 60 min.
14gm Perle Pellet 9.00 11.9 30 min.

Yeast
-----
Wyeast 1056 American Ale

 

[3GumsBrewing]

*bump for the afternoon crowd*

DJR, whats your secret!

 

[browndog]

One word Davekate "Craftbrewer"

 

[petesbrew]

Just a general question regarding buying grain in bulk,

How and where do you store the grain between brews?

 

[Stuster]

Petesbrew, I got a 200L plastic drum from Flemington markets for $15. It had held olives, but a good soak in napisan for a few days did the trick. (just filled it a quarter full, lay it on its side and turned it every day or so). Dried it out. Some sodium met at the bottom covered with cardboard to absorb moisture. Seems to keep out those bl*^%dy pantry moths and holds a fair whack of grain.