Homebrew Digest Tuesday, 20 August 1996 Number 2152
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FORUM ON BEER, HOMEBREWING, AND RELATED ISSUES
Shawn Steele, Digest Janitor
Thanks to Rob Gardner for making the digest happen!
Contents:
Overnight mash (Kevin Kane)
A summer wine question... ((foghorn1))
White Film (John L Taylor)
Botulism (Mark Marsula)
RE: Dishwasher Sanitation (Moore;HBD2146) ((Michael A. Genito))
Re: Source for Durst / et al (tgaskell at syr.lmco.com)
water crystals/gypsum ("Kris A. Kauper")
Cocoa powder/amylase/ring around neck/protein in festbier ((George De Piro))
Mashing in ((George De Piro))
Kvass, cork vs. cap (Carl Hattenburg)
Pubcrawling in Maine (Bob Waterfall)
Rubbermaid coolers in Chicago ("Jeremy E. Mirsky")
European grain suppliers ("Braam Greyling")
Re: Starch Balling (Don Trotter)
COPS vs. Homebrewers! Watch Out! ("ESCHOVIL.US.ORACLE.COM")
Pilot Plant, Summer Lightning (th22 at cornell.edu)
Sugars, roast vs. toast (Dave Greenlee)
Re: Dough-in (Jeff Renner)
Re: Sugars, roast vs. toast (korz at pubs.ih.lucent.com)
Specific Gravity (korz at pubs.ih.lucent.com)
Fridge Question ((LaBorde, Ronald))
RIMS Heater Element ((LaBorde, Ronald))
RE Brass Ball Valves ("Palmer.John")
Re: Water to grain or ... (Jeff Frane)
Aeration made easy ("Ed J. Basgall")
yeast starter problem? ((Jeff Sturman))
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Kevin Kane <kkane at uidaho.edu>
Date: Mon, 19 Aug 1996 20:12:05 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Overnight mash
A friend and I tried an overnight mash for a stout the other day, and so
far things seem to be fine (mash was sweet after 10 hours, no off
flavors). We're going to try again with a more delicately flavored beer,
but has anyone tried this before, and what were the results? I'm
concerned about astringent flavors and components that would contribute to
a greater-than-normal amount of haze. Thanks in advance...
Kevin M. Kane, Ph.D.
Department of Chemistry
University of Idaho, Moscow ID
Return to table of contents
From: foghorn1 at nbnet.nb.ca (foghorn1)
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 01:16:14 -0300
Subject: A summer wine question...
Sorry about this, but I am by nature a brewer, not a wine maker. I am going
to have a bumper crop of apples this year (after much hard work via my other
hobby) as well as quite a few rasberries and blackberries. Anyyone got any
good and (I stress this) SIMPLE recipies for making wines from these fruits?
I'm planning on trying a brew with a clotch of rasberries as well, but I'm
not sure if I want to try my first true lager with them, so the fruit flavor
will come through more than with a high temp ale. Also, the apples are
rather tart, so would this make a difference? I know I should just brew it,
but can I use apples in a brew, or is there something that I don't know
about them?
Thanks.
- --
************************************
*Supreme excelence consists of *
*breaking the enemy's resistance *
*without fighting. *
* -Sun Tzu, "The Art of War"*
************************************
Craig E. Stewart
foghorn1 at mailserv.nbnet.nb.ca
Return to table of contents
From: John L Taylor <JLTaylor at ix.netcom.com>
Date: Mon, 19 Aug 1996 23:49:56 -0500
Subject: White Film
This maybe my first INFECTED batch.
It is an American Brown Ale and after a week in the secondary, a white
film has formed on the surface (with lines in it). Is it Toast?
How well, I will taste it tonight and maybe dump it :(
Return to table of contents
From: Mark Marsula <mmarsula at cisco.com>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 05:32:01 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Botulism
> Both the botulism toxin and bacteria will be well and truly destroyed by the
> typical 1 hr boil.
Botulinum bacteria will not be destroyed by boiling! Botulinum spores
become active in low-acid, oxygen-free conditions and produce a toxin that
causes botulism poisoning which can be fatal. Pressure cookers are used
in home canning to reach a tempurature of 240F for that reason. A high pH
(2 - 3.5) will also prevent botulinum spores from becoming active.
Return to table of contents
From: genitom at nyslgti.gen.ny.us (Michael A. Genito)
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 07:53:27 -0400
Subject: RE: Dishwasher Sanitation (Moore;HBD2146)
In HBD2146 Richard Moore asks if dishwasher sanitation is ok. Richard, I've
been sanitizing in the dishwasher for 6 years now w/o any problem
whatsoever. In fact, my bottle sanitation process is: shortly after emptying
a bottle of brew, rinse all the yeast out with tap water, and place the
bottle in the dishwasher. When the dishwasher is full of bottles, it is time
to brew another batch. Place a capful of bleach into the dishwasher, and
turn it on short cycle/air dry (no heat). When ready to bottle, open the
dishwasher and bottle. You can clean the bottles even a week or two in
advance, as long as you don't open the dishwasher prior to bottling. I've
even filled bottles while still wet and warm from a cycle, and have *never*
experienced infection problems. BTW, I no longer bother to sanitize my
bottle caps (stopped about two years ago). They remain in a ziplock back
until ready for use, and again, never have a problem.
Michael A. Genito, City Comptroller
City of Rye, 1051 Boston Post Road, Rye, NY 10580 USA
TEL:(914)967-7302/FAX:(914)967-4604
Return to table of contents
From: tgaskell at syr.lmco.com
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 96 08:58:43 EDT
Subject: Re: Source for Durst / et al
Greetings,
Russ Brodeur sez:
> Does anyone out there have any info on sources of Durst and/or Weyermanns
> malts (German)?? TIA!!
Russ, please post your results.
=======
Spencer writes:
> At a recent local beer fest, the organizers got local homebrewers to
> pour the beers. We got in free, and they got knowledgeable pourers.
LISTEN UP ORGANIZERS:
Perhaps this can be the beginnings of a wonderful relationship. It sounds
to me as if this is a classic win-win situation. Although the view may
not be quite the same. 8^)
=======
Congratulations Jethro!
Cheers,
Tom Gaskell tgaskell at syr.lmco.com Hog Heaven Homebrewing Clayville, NY, USA
Return to table of contents
From: "Kris A. Kauper" <kkauper at draper.com>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 09:02:28 -0400
Subject: water crystals/gypsum
I have what I think is a simple question. I recently got the ingredients for
a pale ale at a local brew supply store. The ingredients called for gypsum
amd the clerk gave me a bottle of what I assumed was gypsum, but I did not
look closely at the time. When I got home I noticed the bottle only said
"water crystals" on it. It is a fine white powder. Is this gypsum?
Thanks.
Kris Kauper
C.S. Draper Laboratory
Cambridge, MA
kkauper at draper.com
617-258-1590
Return to table of contents
From: George_De_Piro at berlex.com (George De Piro)
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 08:16:19 -0700
Subject: Cocoa powder/amylase/ring around neck/protein in festbier
Howdy All!
A question/comment about using cocoa powder: Papazian said to use
cocoa powder instead of baker's chocolate if you are concerned with
oil slicks. Having done the oil slick thing, I was concerned, so I
used the powder (8 ounces; 227 g).
Fermentation is cranking, but the krausen is VERY low. What's the
deal? Is it because of the cocoa or is it because I didn't do a
protein rest (Grain bill: 14 lb pale malt, 4 lb Munich, 2 lb roast
barley, 2 lb crystal, 1 lb chocolate malt, 1 lb flaked oats). I
didn't think I'd need a protein rest to break down large proteins
because the bulk of the grain bill is (supposedly) well modified
English pale malt.
--------------------
Keith asks for opinions about adding amylase to the mash. I'd say
it's pointless (just my opinion). He specifically mentions wheat malt
being a possible beneficiary of this. Actually, wheat has plenty of
enzymatic potential. You can brew 100% wheat beer if you use rice
hulls to set up a filter bed.
I've even made 100% Munich malt beer, and it converted just fine
without any fancy stuff!
---------------------
Jeff asks if "Ring around the neck" is always a sign of infection.
No, it can be a sign that the beer was conditioned by krausening.
Otherwise, it probably is the signature of some microbial invader.
---------------------
Karel has made a festbier and says that there is a lot of protein in
suspension. Are you sure it's protein? Is it still fermenting? IS
it yeast, or starch, or infection...
If it is protein, it could be because you omitted a protein rest. I'm
not sure how well modified your Pils malt was. Some pros I've talked
with claim that ALL modern malts are so well modified that you don't
need a protein rest, but traditionally German Pils malt requires one.
Have Fun!
George De Piro (Nyack, NY)
Return to table of contents
From: George_De_Piro at berlex.com (George De Piro)
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 08:43:52 -0700
Subject: Mashing in
Hello again!
Just wanted to throw in my $0.02 about mashing in. I always add grain
to the water because it's a heck of a lot easier for me to stir it
that way!
I don't have any problems with "starch balling" because I add the
grain slowly (2-3 lb. per minute) while stirring constantly.
Also, I've been to some breweries where they mashed in this same way
(Brooklyn Brewery, for one, and maybe Deschutes. Now that I think
about it, Deschutes may have been dumping water and grain in
simultaneously, I can't remember. Anybody out there know?).
Al is correct that the grain is sometimes wet down while being
transferred to the mash tun (where the bulk of the mash water is
waiting), but I've never been to a brewery where the water is added to
the grain (that doesn't mean that they don't exist, I don't claim to
have been everywhere!)
Have Fun!
George De Piro (Nyack, NY)
Return to table of contents
From: Carl Hattenburg <CHattenburg at Perstorp-us.com>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 09:32:59 -0400
Subject: Kvass, cork vs. cap
A Ukrainian co-worker has talked me into brewing (?) up a batch of
Kvass, and he assures me the recipe on Cats Meow is authentic:
"Ingredients (for 10 bottles): 1 pound Dry Black Bread; 24 cups Boiling
Water; 1 1/2 pounds Sugar; 2 ounces Fresh Compressed Yeast; 1/2 cup
Sultanas (yellow seedless raisins). Procedure: Put the bread into a
large container and then add the boiling water. When the mixture is
lukewarm squeeze the liquid from the bread very thoroughly, making sure
that the bread itself does not come through because this clouds the
drink. Add the sugar and yeast, mix, cover and leave for ten hours. Pour
the drink into clean bottles, and three sultanas to each, put the corks
and tie them down---then refrigerate immediately. Comments: This recipe
is from an old wine and spirits book I have at home. Kvass is very
refreshing on a hot summer's day and is quickly made from black bread
and yeast. It is quite like weak beer and is fermented and slightly
alcoholic, but must be stored in the refrigerator using corks, not
screw-in stoppers or else it will go on fermenting and blow. This, to
me, looks very similar to the Sumerian recipe which Anchor Brewery of
San Francisco recreated a couple of years ago."
This line bothers me: "but must be stored in the refrigerator using
corks, not screw-in stoppers or else it will go on fermenting and blow"
- - can anyone explain the difference between using a cork and a cap? I
plan on using normal brewers yeast instead of "Fresh Compressed Yeast",
which I can't find (it is supposed to be the consistency of a butter
stick). I'll assume "Sugar" means regular table sugar - any comments
appreciated, private email welcome! Thanks in advance!
- - Carl H.
(w) 301.680.7276; (fx) 301.236.0134; (h) 301.942.3756
(e) CHattenburg at Perstorp-us.com (e) CHatten at Erols.com
Perstorp Analytical, Inc.
Quality Control at the speed of light.....
Return to table of contents
From: Bob Waterfall <waterr at albany.net>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 09:36:04 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Pubcrawling in Maine
Keith Royster says:
>someone has created a searchable index of micros, brewpubs,
>and beer bars on the web... at http://www.pubcrawler.com.
I haven't tried that one yet, but a couple of weeks ago I used the Real Beer
Page Brew Tour to put together an itinerary for Maine. Unfortunately, I
left the printout of 26 Maine micros and brewpubs in my briefcase at home
along with the computer generated directions for getting from Boston to Bar
Harbor. D-ooh!!
Visited two of the smallest breweries I've ever been to. Bar Harbor Brewing
was a 5 bbl setup in the basement of a house. They had a Brown Ale that won
gold at that World Beer Championship last year, yummy. The brewer is a
reformed hophead and former homebrewer who now likes to get a little
roastiness into all his brews. Even the Peach ale was fairly dark. For
those who want to throw it in and brew for a living, it is possible. He did
mention something about 70 or so hour weeks though.
The other place was Maine Coast Brewing which is a shotgun brewpub about the
size of 3 or 4 office cubicles (I kid you not). The 7 bbl? mash tun is in
the barroom with the other vessels either out back or upstairs. Sausage
sandwiches and good beer. Definitely different from the usual semi-upscale
goat-cheese pizza and so-so beer places that are popping up all over.
Which brings me to...
Eugene Sonn asks about Alagash Brewing in Portland, ME.
>Anyone in Upstate New York or
>Massachusetts seen any in stores? I believe they make Belgian Ales.
Haven't seen it around the Albany area. My Maine itinerary shows it as a
brewpub. Now that doesn't mean that they don't distribute, but I didn't see
any in the stores in Bar Harbor either. Granted that BH is a long way from
Portland, but you CAN get there from here. I wish I'd known about the
Belgian thing though. We stopped in Gritty McDuff's on the way home. The
stout was OK but we would have liked a Trappist Style Ale better.
Sorry about the non-brewing bandwidth.
Bob Waterfall <waterr at albany.net>,
Troy, NY, USA
Return to table of contents
From: "Jeremy E. Mirsky" <mirsjer at charlie.cns.iit.edu>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 08:50:31 -0500
Subject: Rubbermaid coolers in Chicago
On a non-homebrew equipment related trip to Home Depot in Chicago (North
Ave), I spotted 5 and 10 gal. Rubbermaid coolers. The 10 gal. coolers were
about $36.
Seems like a fair price. I don't recall the price of the 5 gal.
Jeremy
Return to table of contents
From: "Braam Greyling" <acg at knersus.nanoteq.co.za>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 15:54:34 +200
Subject: European grain suppliers
Hi,
I am looking for names and fax no / e-mail of malt suppliers in
Europe.
We are a small homebrewing community that need to import different
types of malt from Europe.
Can somebody PLEASE help me ? Maybe a homebrew-shop owner ?
I will never compete against any homebrew-shop owner in the U.S
because I live on another continent -- Africa.
Thanks a lot in advance.
Postings to HBD or private e-mail is 100% fine.
Thanks
Braam Greyling I.C. Design Engineer
Nanoteq (Pty) Ltd
tel. +27 (12) 665-1338 fax +27 (12) 665-1343
- ---- 24 hours in a day, 24 beers in a case ----
- ---- coincidence ????? ----
Return to table of contents
From: Don Trotter <dtrotter at imtn.tpd.dsccc.com>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 08:58:51 -0500
Subject: Re: Starch Balling
Al Korzonas writes:
>
>JC writes:
>>When doing an all grain mash; is there a reason to put the grains in first
>>and then add hot water? any problems if I put the water in first? It is
>>easier to measure the amount of hot water this way. TIA
>
>Yes. Adding grain to water increases starch balling. All commercial
>breweries add water to grain or use what is known as a Steel's Masher
>which mixes malt and water and delivers it into the mash tun.
Al, can you explain what "Starch Balling" is, and refer us to some
text? I've been adding my grain to my water, and everything seems to
be working fine.
Don Trotter
- ----- End Included Message -----
Return to table of contents
From: "ESCHOVIL.US.ORACLE.COM" <ESCHOVIL at us.oracle.com>
Date: 20 Aug 96 07:03:00 -0700
Subject: COPS vs. Homebrewers! Watch Out!
I could hardly believe what I was seeing when I was flipping channels last
night. I think it was a sign, but my channel up button stopped working right
during an episode of COPS (Either that or my finger stopped working! :)
Anyway, I decided to sit and enjoy the gratuitous violence, when I saw a
converted keg mash tun! Imagine my surprise! Of course the ignorant police
officer called it a "still" as he took the lid off of it and looked in it!
Right beside it was a rectangular cooler/lauter tun! The police officer said
it was a cooling device and that the "suspect" would use ice or dry ice for
the cooling process! By this time I was rolling on the ground!
Then, they arrested the suspect and his wife (It was originally a domestic
violence call, and it is interesting that they ended up arresting them both!).
Of course they also found fourteen small marijuana plants and a pair of brass
knuckles (Oh no :o ) The next scene was the "shove the suspect in the car as
he shouts expletives" scene. Then the cop's voice came on and said that they
were confiscating the "still", the marijuana, and the brass knuckles. It
showed them loading the mash tun into the back of a white Ford Bronco (I am
not making this up!), and to top it all off, the camera panned in on a copy
of Papizian's _New Complete Joy of Hombrewing_!!!!!!! I couldn't believe my
eyes!
Of course the next scene was the "cop driving in his car talking about the
arrest" scene. The officer says, "sure this guy was probably not hurting
anyone in the short term, but the bad thing is that this stuff he was making
could at the least make someone go blind. At the worst, someone could have
died!" I was flabbergasted!
Of course by this time, my glass was empty, and I had to go get another
homebrew!
Eric Schoville
- ---I am not making this up---
Return to table of contents
From: th22 at cornell.edu
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 10:30:33 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Pilot Plant, Summer Lightning
Hi all,
I've stumbled onto an incredible brewing opportunity. A couple of the
Food Science grad students at the New York Ag Experiment Station want to
start brewing beer. They're working on Brettanomyces in wines, and they
thought it would be fun to make some pLambics with them. They have a
fairly extensive strain collection, but most of the isolates aren't
characterized yet.
The BIG fun won't be playing with the Brett strains, but--now prepare
your drool buckets--playing with the Food Science pilot plant! Ha! It's
stuff like this that makes being a grad in a go-no-place kinda field like
Plant Pathology worthwhile!! The pilot plant has all the industrial
accouterments including: steam-jacketed kettles (from 10 to 500 gallons),
polishing filters, various apparati for chilling juices, a bottling line,
carbonation equipment, etc., and we get to play with it all!! (insert
picture of blissed-out Homer Simpson)
The only rub is that the equipment is set up for processing fruit and
vegetable juices, making flours and pastes, etc. and not beer (well, not
yet but the department is thinking about it). There are no false bottoms
for the kettles, and (oh god, not again!) they may not have any roller
mills. We've figured out a way to get around the false-bottom problem by
using a screen from another piece of equipment used for separating the pulp
from vegetable juice, but the mills...
THE BIG QUESTION: has anyone out there in HBD-land used a hammer mill
to crush grain? Someone mentioned a few months back that Guinness uses
hammer mills to crush their grain, so it should be possible. I'd like to
know what screen size gives a good crush without producing tons of flour
and pulverizing the husks. Food Science isn't paying for our test batch,
so I'd rather not waste a lot of grain determining screen size and I don't
want to use my Corona to grind 15 gallons-worth of grain.
The second question: Has anyone out there tasted Dunce's Summer
Lightning? My wife and I had some in Salisbury and we really liked it. As
I recall, it had a really interesting honey-ish flavor that was
complemented by a citrusy hop aftertaste. I'm thinking of using a pretty
standard Pale Ale malt bill but substituting 1 LB honey malt for some of
the British two-row and maybe chucking in a little biscuit for good
measure. Any suggestions?
Thanks,
Tom Herlache
th22 at cornell.edu
Return to table of contents
From: Dave Greenlee <daveg at mail.airmail.net>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 09:50:30 -0500
Subject: Sugars, roast vs. toast
Al wrote:
> Milk sugar (lactose) is not fermentable and will not make your beer
> thinner. It will make it sweeter and thicker. Not only cane, but beet
> and corn sugar will give your beer a cidery flavour if overused.
Al is, of course, correct. I got carried away.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Incidentally, Al, on the toast vs. roast issue, what is the difference in
_flavor_ between toasty and roasty? How do those tastes compare to
biscuity and caramel? I'm not quite sure. Can you chew the malts and
tell the difference?
Nazdrowie,
Dave Greenlee
Return to table of contents
From: Jeff Renner <nerenner at umich.edu>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 96 11:00:28 -0400
Subject: Re: Dough-in
Al K wrote:
> JC writes:
> >When doing an all grain mash; is there a reason to put
> the grains in first
> >and then add hot water? any problems if I put the water
> in first? It is
> >easier to measure the amount of hot water this way. TIA
> Yes. Adding grain to water increases starch balling.
> All commercial breweries add water to grain or use what
> is known as a Steel's Masher which mixes malt and water
> and delivers it into the mash tun.
Another very important reason to add water to grains is that keeps the
temperature always lower than the target, thus preserving enzymes from
possible thermal damage.
Jeff Renner in Ann Arbor, Michigan c/o nerenner at umich.edu
Return to table of contents
From: korz at pubs.ih.lucent.com
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 96 10:14:30 CDT
Subject: Re: Sugars, roast vs. toast
Dave writes:
>Incidentally, Al, on the toast vs. roast issue, what is the difference in
>_flavor_ between toasty and roasty? How do those tastes compare to
>biscuity and caramel? I'm not quite sure. Can you chew the malts and
>tell the difference?
I, personally, would say that "toasty" is a white bread crust flavour
and thus synonymous with "biscuity." On the other hand, "roasty," to me,
would have a slightly burnt component, like black bread crust. This is
just semantics, however, and you know how difficult it is to put flavours
into words. The difference between "caramel" and the rest is easy.
"Caramel" is (not surprisingly) the flavour of caramelized sugar (like
a Slow-Poke candy or Kraft caramels) whereas the rest are toasted *starch*.
Yes, you can certainly tell the difference between Pale Ale malt, Munich
malt, Crystal malt and Biscuit malt. An interesting comparison is to
taste DeWolf-Cosyns Aromatic and Biscuit. Both are 25 Lovibond, but are
very different in flavour. The Aromatic is a very dark Munich-type malt.
It is kilned (starts out wet) at a very high temp for a long time and
thus comes out tasting like a dark Munich malt. The Biscuit is kilned
normally till dry and then run through the roaster till it is 25 Lovibond.
Biscuit malt comes out tasting (to me) like toasted bread/pastry.
Al.
Al Korzonas, Palos Hills, IL
korzonas at lucent.com
Copyright 1996 Al Korzonas
Return to table of contents
From: korz at pubs.ih.lucent.com
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 96 10:42:01 CDT
Subject: Specific Gravity
Klondike Ken writes:
> Plato is (mass extract/mass wort)*100. 1 lb dextrose is added to 1
>gallon H2O. 1 gallon H20 = 8.327 lbs. The total mass of the solution
>would be 1 + 8.327 = 9.327 lbs. The Plato would be (1/9.327)*100=10.72P.
I just happened to be working with the definition of Plato degrees and
accidentally stumbled upon a copy of Ken's post. Actually, there is one
small difference between the definition and Ken's post.
The Plato degree is defined on sucrose. This difference is very minor,
but significant. So, by definition, 12P is 12 grams of sucrose added to
enough water to make 100 grams of solution (i.e. 88 grams of water). This
will work with pounds too, if you want: 12 pounds of sucrose, 88 pounds of
water gives you 100 pounds of 12P liquid.
Al.
Al Korzonas, Palos Hills, IL
korzonas at lucent.com
Copyright 1996 Al Korzonas
Return to table of contents
From: rlabor at lsumc.edu (LaBorde, Ronald)
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 10:55:12 -0500
Subject: Fridge Question
>From: sharrington at CCGATE.HAC.COM
>
>My fridge seems to take a long time to have the compressor kick on. The
>fridge is running and clicks every now and again, and then finally the
>compressor kicks on after one of the clicks. Does anyone have any idea what
>the problem might be? I am afraid that it might be on its last legs. Is
>there an easy fix for this problem?
You did not mention if this is a fridge you are controlling with an external
thermostat. It sounds like you have a head pressure problem. If the
compressor has recently been running, and then shut off and restarted, then
the motor does not have enough power to get started. The head pressure from
the recent running has built up to it's normal level, and if the power is
now applied the pressure is still there.
This may mean a weak motor, or more likely a long A.C. power run that is
lossy and supplying low voltage to the fridge. If you are cycling the
fridge often, then that is causing the thermal cutout to activate. When the
head pressure finally reduces enough, then the motor is able to start and
the fridge is happy.
Ron
Return to table of contents
From: rlabor at lsumc.edu (LaBorde, Ronald)
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 10:57:42 -0500
Subject: RIMS Heater Element
>From: Jim Elden <elden at accumedic.com>
>
> ...I was planning to use a standard
>4500W water-heater replacement element such as may be found at Home
>Depot. The only units I saw mount with a ~3"" square flange and >gasket
with a hole in each corner...
Awh shucks, that's what happens to me - just the item I need or want is
missing. Every size except what I want is there, just a blank re-order tag
at the bin of my item. Bummer, happens all the time.
That is what happened to you Jim. Sure, there are as many heating elements
for threaded single hole mount (1.25 inch I think) as Carter has little
liver pills. Just not at your store. Try another place.
Good luck
Ron
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From: "Palmer.John" <palmer at ssdgwy.mdc.com>
Date: 20 Aug 1996 09:22:07 U
Subject: RE Brass Ball Valves
Jim Elden wrote:
>Recently I came across some ball valves that were of mainly copper
>contruction with a stainless steel ball. I noticed that the fitting at
>on end of the valve is made of brass. I have seen some discourse on the
>subject of lead, so here goes:
>Can I use these valves in my RIMS or not?
Yes.
>Will pickling them in a low-ph solution such as vinegar help reduce the
>chances of lead leaching into the wort?
Yes. A 2:1 volume ratio of White Distilled Vinegar to Hydrogen Peroxide for 5
minutes should do the trick. Look for a buttery gold color.
>What are the approximate percentages of the metals in brass? Does this
>vary; if so, how widely?
Yes, it varies. Depending on which the 25 brass alloys it could be versus which
of the 5 it probably is, the lead content will be in the range of 5-7%. Brass
is an alloy of Copper, Zinc and Lead (for machinability).
Have Fun,
John
John J. Palmer - Metallurgist for MDA-ISS M&P
johnj at primenet.com Huntington Beach, California
Palmer House Brewery and Smithy - www.primenet.com/~johnj/
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From: Jeff Frane <jfrane at teleport.com>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 09:45:45 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Re: Water to grain or ...
In a burst of hyperbole, Al Korzonas wrote:
All commercial
>breweries add water to grain or use what is known as a Steel's Masher
>which mixes malt and water and delivers it into the mash tun.
>
Which sort of ignores the concept of foundation water. It is not at all
unusual, in either commercial or homebrew situations, to add grain to
water when the water in question is keeping the grain from clogging the
false bottom.
In fact, I would suggest that foundation water is more or less essential
to prevent stuck mashes. The *rest* of the water, of course, can be
added with or after the grain.
- --Jeff Frane
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From: "Ed J. Basgall" <edb at chem.psu.edu>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 96 12:47:15 EDT
Subject: Aeration made easy
Something I forgot to include in my re-using yeast....post (HBD# 2151).
I picked up an easy way to aerate sterile air into my worts and starters.
Don Lynch at The Front Street Brewery, Wilmington, NC showed me an article
in a brewing magazine (don't remember which).
Basically, you get a small air pump (aquarium, or I use a battery powered
bait aerater from K-Mart) attach an appropriate diameter hose ~24" long to it
and feed it through a two holed lid. I use a canning jar with two holes
the size of my tubing drilled in the lid. Let this first tube, from the pump,
extend down to the bottom of the jar and put an air stone on it. Put Si or hot
glue around the tube/lid hole to make it air tight. Run another length
~36" long from the lid to another airstone on the outside (this one goes
into your wort), the inside end of the tube should only extend ~1/2" into
the jar. Glue this one in too.
Fill the jar about 1/2 full with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2).
You can sanitize the airstone and hose that goes into the wort by soaking
it in the peroxide (I usually suck some of the peroxide up into the
stone a few times and blow it out again.)
Now put the lid on tight so the inside airstone
is in the peroxide. Put the sanitized end into your wort and turn on the
pump. Ths gives you sterile oxygenated air. If no bubbles appear then
it may be too deeply submerged (depends on pump strength).
I usually let it bubble for 5-10 minutes or until foam starts to crawl
out of the vessel.
cheers
Ed Basgall
SCUM
(State College Underground Maltsters)
State College, PA 16801
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From: brewshop at coffey.com (Jeff Sturman)
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 11:26:32 -0600
Subject: yeast starter problem?
I posted a couple weeks ago about doing a yeast starter in a carboy 3 or 4
days prior to brewing and then just racking the wort into the carboy. The
first attempt worked great; high krauesen within two days and I kegged it
three days ago; it is delicious!
The second time I tried this yeast starter technique, it failed
miserably... I couldn't figure out what killed the fermentation.
Everything went great on brew day. I got a fine extraction rate, etc, etc,
and the yeast in the carboy was sending bubbles through the airlock about
once every five minutes. I racked the wort, aerated like hell, and
nothing, nothing, nothing. I added yeast nutrient and energizer - nothing.
I reroused - nothing. I finally dumped the unfermented wort down the
toilet after 5 days of nothing; not one single bubble on the surface of the
wort; the wort had actually fell clear by the third day. NOTHING!!!
Then a freind of mine pointed out a possible flaw in the 'yeast starter in
the carboy' technique. I don't know if this is the cause, but it certainly
sounds like a good theory. The yeast starter purged the carboy of oxygen,
so when I racked the wort to the carboy it is possible that the headspace
in the carboy was severely low in oxygen content. Even after thoroughly
shaking the carboy, precious little oxygen would have been dissolved in the
wort, thus no fermentation.
But, I already had a decent 1/4" of white yeast slurry in the bottom of the
carboy when I racked, so what gives? It should have fermented to some
point, no? The first attempt at this technique resulted in one of the
fastest and cleanest fermentations I have ever had. Any ideas on this
theory? I'm back to using 1/2 gallon jugs for yeast starters because
pouring 5 gallons of wort down the toilet is sacrilegious. I'll burn a
chicken and dance naked around the tainted carboy tonight.
jeff
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