Its A Sign!

[mobrien]

So its been a while since I brewed - 3-4 months, and I've been flat out working on the new house. Just this week I decided I'd had enough, and I need to get some brewing stuff happening again. I've started designing my stand for my AG setup, and I picked up my new Dixell thermostat from dreamboat to run my keg fridge. I even managed to go and pick up a new 4 ring burner for the boiler - so I'm about ready to go.



So I was feeling pretty pleased with myself - I'm finally getting back towards brewing.

Then I get online this morning at 6:30 while my coffee brewed, and did my normal troll through the courier mail weekend shopper - and what do I see? A 300L all Fridge for $35.

"Nah - surely not" - so I ring the guy as soon as 7:00am clicks around, and sure enough a relatively new all fridge, with a buggered thermostat.

I drive out and have a look, and its all good - he's even bypassed the thermostat so it runs "on" all the time! And to think I'd just built a plug and play thermostat!

A quick clean out and its looking good. I checked his wiring, and he's even done it correctly.



Sometimes it all just works out! I'll just need to get another thermo in the next bulk buy Dreamboat

Now I just need to get a stainless steel tap for my HLT (got some leads in another thread) and I'll be brewin'

Happy days

:beer:

M

 

[Jye]

Nice find :beerbang:

My fermenter fridge looks exactly the same and I picked it up for $20 from ebay, only thing wrong was a slightly damaged seal.

Now you have to start doing double brew days to fill it

 

[mobrien]

Double brew days exactly!

So who else has had good ebay/tradingpost/local paper bargains

M

 

[Linz]

Still chuffed about my font(not including taps)

$45

 

[OCC]

sorry boys i can better that lookin for a fermenting fridge two 3 weeks ago through e-bay then a bloke walks into the office and asks me do i know anyone that needs a 210 l fridge for free,thankyou very much 2hrs later it was loaded onto the back of the truck coming home to a nice plug in thermo, perfect.

 

[timmy]

I picked up a 3 stage reverse osmosis unit for $10.

Also my refractometer and march pump turned up in the last 2 weeks.

But alas my old bottle of r12 is empty so I'll need to retrofit my keg fridge.

 

[Thunderlips]

troll through the courier mail weekend shopper - and what do I see? A 300L all Fridge for $35.

[post="101400"][/post]​

Looks exactly the same as my keg fridge. A Fisher & Paykel right?
I also got mine on Ebay. From memory I think I paid $50 for it.
Unfortunatly it's a tad too thin for two fermenters but I scored a freebie of my sister that is wide enough, needs new seals though.
That's a pair of nice looking Rhodesians. They look a little camera shy

 

[mobrien]

Looks exactly the same as my keg fridge. A Fisher & Paykel right?
I also got mine on Ebay. From memory I think I paid $50 for it.
Unfortunatly it's a tad too thin for two fermenters but I scored a freebie of my sister that is wide enough, needs new seals though.

Yeah, F & P - Won't fit two fermentors side by side, but one on top of the other (two shelves of course!) looks like it will work.

That's a pair of nice looking Rhodesians. They look a little camera shy

[post="101437"][/post]​

Oh yes - very camera shy! "What, have you got the camera Dad? Taking photos of the fridge? You're supposed to take photos of us - we'll just lie here!"

I've even got the sequence to show it... ah, what the heck, I'll post em' here.

 

[PhilS]

A friendly pair of brewing apprentices

 

[dreamboat]

Very friendly, I can vouch vouch for their good characters



dreamboat

 

[mobrien]

Yeah - they will be good brewing buddies - but they are yet to see a brew happen - hopefully this weekend!

Because it all just keeps falling into place!! Its obviously supposed to happen!

I went to the local tradelink to look at taps, rather than going into Brissy - figured local was a good start. They were really helpful, and when they found out it was for beer, I had three guys helping me! In the end they found a 1/2" 3 piece full bore stainless steel tap they did for $25!

So then I take my boiler to the local stainless fabrication shop, not having access to stainless welding at work any more. A slow day there - they were sorting out the sheetmetal into types and sizes. Got two guys serving me there, and they are going to weld a fitting for the tap to screw onto the boiler, as well as fabricate a guard for the elements inside so I can use it for my fruit preserving - the cost?

"Bring some cold beer in at 1pm on Friday and it will be done!"

Woo!

M

 

[mobrien]

Well it all happened Eveything did fall into place

I picked up the modified boiler on Friday at lunch time, and did a swap for a box of beers - they were stoked, I was stoked.



So to try it out, I did a double batch with Al, and we made a "Hefty Weizen" - based on a recipe I had in beersmith:
5.5kg wheat malt (3.9)
3.5 pilsner (3.9)
51g 2.5% Hallertauer in the mash
25g 2.5% Hallertauer at 60min boil
20g 2.5% Hallertauer 0 min aroma

No brew stand for the setup yet, but we made do:



Right to Left - Dixel temperature controller, 60L HLT, 36L Mash tun, 50L boiler on the floor.

This setup worked well, and with two of us it wasn't a drama to gravity fill each subsiquent container sitting on the floor, then lift it up onto the cupboard.

I think I may need a bigger mash tun - we couldn't fit the mash out water in there! So we did a quick "ad lib" and did a very slow sparge and hoped we got somewhere near the 10 min "sit" time So the mash tun might go back to being a portakeg, and I may have to get the 57L job

The new 4 ring 52mj "Rambo" burner from gameco worked a treat - I didn't do an accurate time, but around 30mins to get the 40L to boil. Lots of radient heat, and it got the stainless grate red hot!



Only had a small very minor boil over - christened the new burner!



All in all a great brew day - 5 hours start to finish. Just need to get the water on a bit earlier next time. Was aiming for 1.044 - we got 1.043 so its pretty good!

The Dixell then moved back to the brew fridge, and the fermenters moved in!



So it ended up a big day of firsts - My first double batch; the first brew with the new HLT and mash tun; the first brew with the Dixell temp controller; the first brew with my new refractometer (how did I cope before?!) and first brew in the new shed!

First of many!

Matt

 

[Stuster]

Sounds like a great day. I think only one gravity point out is fabulous for a new setup. And doing double batches in 5 hours will save so much time.

 

[Ross]

Well done Mobrien :beer: - & a wheat to boot - you'll be drinking the rewards in just over a week if you're a kegger - if not - I guess a little patience will be required :chug: ...

Cheers Ross...

 

[mobrien]

LOL - yeah, am very happy with the results.

And yes, I keg - never want to wash a bottle again! Well - not often anyway!

Al and I were laughing at the recipe last night - it says "Keg and age for 4 weeks".

Al scribbled out the "weeks" and changed it to "hours"



Now I just need a 60L fermenter!

Matt