New... tons of questions!

[mikes65]

OK, so I've decided to take the plunge into brewing, and I'm probably going to do my first boil tomorrow. I've gotten everything I need, including a GREAT DEAL on a Turkey Fryer w/30 Qt pot. Now my wife won't complain that I'm stinking the house up.

I've also already decided that I don't want to deal with bottling.

I'd love to do a chest freezer conversion, but my bar is already together and I really don't have the room. I found a great deal on a Bandy Keg Cooler, and even though I've heard horrible things about it, I snagged it. It's all cleaned and ready to go. The digital temp readout at the front is all over the place (from 31F -42F), but a glass of water in it with an accurate thermometer consistently reads between 35F - 37F. From what I've already read, that seems to be at the high end of what I'm going for, right?

Since I'll be able to hold 2 Corny Kegs in my cooler, within the next week or so I'll be converting my 1-faucet tower into a 2-faucet tower. I'm getting one that's insulated, and hopefully I won't have any foaming issues due to a warm tower.

First boil is probably going to be a standard IPA, but I'm debating doing a Maibock Lager. My reasoning is this:

I really don't have any other cool place to ferment/lager other than the Keg Cooler, and I really want to do it properly. Honestly, how warm can I brew a lager? My basement gets pretty cool (50's), but is that cool enough?

Also, how hard is a lager compared to an Ale? I know, temp is everything...

My Corny Kegs that I grabbed were Ball Connectors. Is there really any preference between Ball Connectors and Pin Connectors? Too late now, I know... but I guess if Pins were better I could always change easy enough.

That's probably about it for now... I'm sure I'll have TONS of questions, namely about force-carbonation when I get to that stage!

Thanks in advance!

[toneyc]

Optimum temperature is a matter of opinion. For homebrew, a lot of us like it in the 40*F range.

Lagers aren't technically any harder than ales. They show any mistakes you might make a little better and they take longer. We usually recommend ales for your first few batches because of those two reasons. Ales can be ready in 5-6 weeks, lagers usually take 2-3 times as long. A steady temperature is the key for a lager, fluctuation is bad.

Ball lock or pin lock. I *think* ball lock is more prevalent, but I could be wrong. Just choose what's available in your area and stick with it.

:)
Toney.

[BrewDog]

I second what Toney said, and welcome to the obsess.... er, hobby (and the site).

[larin1477]

Welcome to the madness...where in NW MA r ya?

[mikes65]

I'm basically in Greenfield, MA... right at the Corner of VT, NH, and MA.

Go Sox!