Brewing Equipment
Let’s take a look at the basic equipment that you’ll need in the brewing process. Fortunately, much of this equipment is relatively inexpensive and it can be re-used, meaning that you can spread the cost of producing your beer over a fair period.
So what items will you be needing?
- A brewbin: This is used for fermentation of the beer – for the purposes of our description of the process, we recommend that this should have a minimum capacity of 5 gallons.
- A bucket: A simple bucket but a large one – ideally also having a capacity of 5 gallons. This is particularly useful when you get to siphoning.
- Something to stir with!: A spatula with a nice long handle is ideal for this task. Don’t forget that a 5 gallon bucket or brewbin is likely to be pretty deep, so you’ll want a spatula that is big enough to handle the job.
- Sterilising liquid: This can also often be found in powder form. It’s vital that you sterilise throughout the process and not just for hygiene reasons. Failure to sterilise will leave you with something that simply won’t be drinkable.
- A syphoning kit: This is a pretty simple piece of equipment that usually consists of some tubing (made of plastic) and a filter lid. It’s purpose is to release pressure from the brewbin, without letting anything else enter the brewbin at the same time.
- Some bottles: Not just any old bottles either. You’ll need some strong bottles, made of glass. They will have to be strong enough to withstand the secondary fermentation that takes place after bottling, when a significant amount of pressure will build up. Ideally, get some bottles that have screw-top lids. Failing that, you could use some strong bottles, together with a bottle capper..
So, is that it? Is that all that you’ll need? The answer is that it could be, but depending upon circumstances there are some additional items that could come in handy:
- A heater: Fermentation will require you to keep your brew in a room where the temperature is around 20-22 degrees Celsius. If you don’t have a room where this temperature will be achieved naturally then you’re going to need a heater to get it right
- A thermometer: Not sure how warm it is? This might help!
- A hydrometer: This can help you to measure the gravity of your brew. Very handy for predicting the likely alcohol volume and also for letting you know when fermentation has finished.
The Beer Brewing Guide in full: