Keeping Ag Simple

[Kingy]

KISS:

Mash in Bag , raise bag, boil wort add hops, siphon out and
NO CHILL
Fermenting fridge then chill down then into Keg
Force carb
ENJOY!
simple. :chug:

 

[Tony M]

Going from gravity feed to pump was the best thing I ever did. A washing machine pump from the verge rubbish, a few bucks of HDPE reticulation fittings and three ten dollar 1/2" ball valves. No more climbing a stepladder to look for dead mice in the HLT. No more falling asleep waiting for various fluids to trickle from one tank to another. No more running off into a grant a litre at a time to get clear runnings - just recirculate for a minute. and the most exciting part is seeing how quick I can pump out the mash liquor without getting a stuck sparge. Heady days!

 

[newguy]

Brewing is all about finding a balance between the effort you're willing to expend and the quality of the beer you want to drink. If you're happy with the beer you have and don't mind the effort it takes to brew it, perfect. But if you aren't happy with either the time/effort it takes or with the quality of the resulting beer, go crazy. Build or buy whatever you require to make yourself happier and to achieve the effort/quality balance you seek.

That said, I'm a proud HERMS owner.

 

[schooey]

I dunno, I kinda figured flicking the switch on my March pump, setting the temp on the PID for my herms & HLT and opening a few ball valves was a lot simpler and safer than lifting boiling things all over the place at great height. But I'm a pretty simple soul

 

[darrell.wallace]

Just completed my 3rd AG today and i have a plate chiller and that is my only foray into any type of technology. All of my system is gravity fed and i have really enjoyed the way that things have gone.

my first took a long time and lots of fiddling around, the 2nd was better but by today i think i know my system and look forward to the next.

that said, i would like to take another step in the future and work towards pumps etc.

Whatever people find works for them i guess.

 

[neonmeate]

even the simplest setups you guys are describing are way too complicated for me. i still have the same setup as when i first started AG - no pump, no mill, no disconnects and hot liquor tanks and manifolds and gaskets and calipers and drills and filters and shit.

26L pot for heating water and wort via the stove
19L rubbermaid
immersion chiller (i tried going one step less equipment with nochilling but i must be one of the few people on this site who can taste DMS)

any more than that i couldnt be bothered with. and i make good beer. that said i couldnt DIY myself out of a paper bag, get totally bewildered by IKEA instructions, get confused putting oil in the car, and got a D for industrial arts in year 8, so i stick to my strengths.

 

[SpillsMostOfIt]

My standard brewing style is NoMashTun, NoChill, NoFilter, NoPump, NoRack. In general, I am quite happy with my beer. I firmly believe that if you know how to brew, the equipment is of lesser importance. My brewing skills preclude me from asserting this point too forcefully.

I'm slowly accumulating complicating equipments to see how/if they make a good/bad difference to my beer, but so very often when I do, I subsequently find a procedure that does similar.

So much to learn. Look out liver.

Edit: Also NoCrush. Get LHBS to do it and save time/money.

 

[bindi]

KISS:

Mash in Bag , raise bag, boil wort add hops, siphon out and
NO CHILL
Fermenting fridge then chill down then into Keg
Force carb
ENJOY!
simple. :chug:

Ok Ok, Brewing in a bag is simple [I am told, have read one post only on the subject by mistake ] it was not around when I did my first AG, that's well before PP wrote about it [I love the guy BUT, how much can you read?] .
Keep it coming I am loving this thread.

 

[johnno]

I have a RIMS system. 2 pumps 5 brewing fidges. Also have a basic gravity fed system

I like to use the gravity fed system. No chill. For the time being anyway.

 

[Gerard_M]

Filter...now these are wank. If the clarity of your beer upsets you that much, turn the lights out when you're drinking in bed, or buy a Stein or Pewter Mug.

No where near as big a wank as using Poly-Clar!

Cheers
Gerard

 

[aspro]

No where near as big a wank as using Poly-Clar!

Cheers
Gerard

Looks like Im a big wanker then. :lol:

Aspro

 

[mika]

Yeah, but we already knew that Aspro

 

[browndog]

I think the great thing is that our brewerys are as unique as us brewers ourselves are, from Neonmeate's kit to Zizzles brewbot and everything in between, they all make good beer and we are happy using them. For me, I'll take a march pump any day over lifting 60C water over my head and into the HLT.


cheers

Browndog

 

[aspro]

Well ,as they say if you want something done right then do it yourself!



Using poly-clar that is.

Aspro

 

[bindi]

I think the great thing is that our brewerys are as unique as us brewers ourselves are, from Neonmeate's kit to Zizzles brewbot and everything in between, they all make good beer and we are happy using them. For me, I'll take a march pump any day over lifting 60C water over my head and into the HLT.


cheers

Browndog

Before you got the pump you lifted 60c water overhead ? Nothing hot gets lifted here.

 

[warrenlw63]

No more climbing a stepladder to look for dead mice in the HLT.

:blink: Yummy.

Warren -

 

[Cortez The Killer]

I'm a pretty simple brewer here

Marga mill crush
HLT is a 25L Aluminium Pot
44L Esky mashtun
Converted keg kettle

A little bit of lifting and bucketing of water - but nothing very heavy at all

Cheers

 

[Darren]

I bought a pump as it was cheaper than the physio appointments I needed after I did my back lifting 60 litres into the fridge.

cheers

Darren

 

[Lukes]

I dunno, I kinda figured flicking the switch on my March pump, setting the temp on the PID for my herms & HLT and opening a few ball valves was a lot simpler and safer than lifting boiling things all over the place at great height. But I'm a pretty simple soul

I agree,
keep it simple and safe.
and shinny :lol:

- Luke

 

[bonj]

Okay, I couldn't resist posting this again

I have changed it. I bought a pump because I'm a weakling and I would rather push a button/flip a switch than lift a mashtun, but apart from that, it's still pretty much the same.

I will be upgrading a few things this year:
New brewstand, to make things even easier for me. (I know, but the VW wheels are tedious to move around when it's raining)
Bigger mashtun. 20L is a little small for batch sparging. Can be done, but a bigger tun would make life easier, and allow bigger beers.