Tips on Buying and Using Homebrewing Equipment
The concept of brewing beer at home aften conjures up notions of shiny copper kettles and coils hissing and steaming in the kitchen and huge vats bubbling and churning in the cellar, but these are just the product of vivid imaginations. Homebrewing in the 21st century is much more simple and streamlined than you think.
Before jumping headlong into the hobby of brewing beer in your home, you’d be wise to do a little investigative homework in order to find out what you need to buy and where you can buy it. After reading this article, you should be well on your way.
Product Sources
Assuming you don’t have a local homebrew supply shop to rely on for product and information, don’t hesitate to do business with one of the many reputable homebrew suppliers on the internet. Two of the largest and most reliable suppliers are Williams Brewing, www.williamsbrewing.com and Northern Brewer, www.northernbrewer.com, though there are dozens of others as well.
It’s recommended that beginner brewers purchase an all-inclusive start-up equipment kit, which should include all the equipment necessary to get you started on your first brew. A good no-frills start-up kit will probably start around $75. There will always be time and opportunity to add other, more helpful equipment items as you progress in the hobby.
Equipment Basics
A basic equipment kit –which is designed to produce five-gallon batches of beer (the equivalent of just over two cases of beer), should, at minimum, include the following items:
NOTE: The kinds of plastics used in homebrewing are of the same quality and standards as those plastics used in the food industry. In fact, HDPE (high-density polyethylene) is also called food-grade plastic.
- 7 gallon HDPE plastic primary fermenter with spigot and sealing lid. This is where the wort (unfermented beer) is fermented. A primary fermenter needs to have a minimum capacity of 7-gallons and an airtight lid with a hole in it to accommodate an airlock with an attached rubber stopper. These are sold with removable plastic spigots that are positioned near the bottom for ease of use.
- 5 gallon glass carboy. This large glass vessel (also called a secondary fermentation vessel) is used to age and clarify your beer after it has been fermented and before it is bottled.
- Airlock (or “bubbler”). This is a simple and efficient device that allows the carbon dioxide gases to escape from the fermenter without compromising the antiseptic environment within. When filled half-way with water, it allows gas to escape without allowing any air to get into the fermenter.
- Drilled rubber stoppers are needed for the airlock to fit both the fermenter lid opening and the carboy opening.
- Brew spoon (HDPE plastic or stainless steel). Every homebrewer needs to have a spoon that is used for brewing beer and nothing else. A brew spoon needs to be made of stainless steel or plastic, and needs to have a long handle — 18 inches or more.
- HDPE plastic racking tube (also called a racking “cane”). This long, hard plastic tube allows you to easily siphon the beer out of your glass carboy.
- HDPE bottling tube with spring valveThis foot-long hard plastic tube with a spring-loaded valve at the tip makes bottling your beer easier.
- HDPE transfer hosing (4 ft.). Flexible plastic hosing is a multifunctional piece of equipment used to transfer your beer from vessel to vessel or from vessel to bottle.
- Hydrometer (triple scale) with cylinderA hydrometer is a fragile, cylindrical glass measuring device used to calculate the amount of alcohol that has been produced in your homebrew. The dual functions of a hydrometer are to determine the density of liquids and estimate the alcohol content in beer. Triple scale refers to the three different measuring scales within the hydrometer
- Bottle brush. This is another small but important piece of equipment. You need this soft-bristle brush to properly scrub the inside of the bottles prior to filling.
- Carboy brush. Like the bottle brush, this is also an important piece of equipment, as it allows you to properly scrub the interior surface of your carboy.
- Bottle capper. This is needed to affix new bottle crowns to the filled bottles of beer. Don’t worry about the size of your bottles, with cappers, one size fits all.
Bear in mind that your bottles must be the returnable, reusable kind. Do not use bottles with threaded openings — a bottle crown will not seal properly across the threads.
