What home brewing equipment do I need?

If you are wondering where to start with home brewing and what equipment is needed, the list below should give you a good starting point.

A fermenter - is where it all happens! The fermenter should be either made out of glass or plastic and come with a lid. It will hold about 6.5 gallons of liquid.

A Hydrometer - used for checking the gravitiy of your brew in order to work out the alcohol content

A Thermometer - enables you to keep a close eye on the temperature of your home brew during the fermentation period which is very important if you want a decent tasting beer.

Airlock - that fits into the fermenter to stop the build up of carbon dioxide and potential explosions!

Bottling tube - to syphon your home brew into bottles or any other containers.

Brewing pot or kettle - for brewing up your ingredeints before transfer to the fermenter.

Strainer/sediment reducer - for removing sediment when transferring your beer.

Plastic spoon - for stirring your brew

Bottles and bottle caps - where your brew will be stored prior to drinking for secondary fermentation

Sanitising and cleaning chemicals - we all know how important cleanliness is in the process of home brewing!

And the final part of your home brewing kit is the beer or lager you intend to brew consisting of a beer/lager kit, brewers yeast, brewing sugar etc.

Most of the above should come if you purchase a home beer kit which is one of the easiest ways to get started home brewing beer.

How long does home brew beer take to ferment?

This isn't an easy question to answer as every brew will take a different amount of time depending on the ingredients used, temperature ranges involved and type of beer to be brewed. There are also two types of fermentation, primary (in the plastic fermenter) and secondary (in your brew bottles).

Primary fermentation

If you allow at least 7 days and up to about 10 days for your brew to ferment you won't go far wrong with your primary fermentation. Remember though, if the air lock is still bubbling, your beer has not finished fermenting.

A more accurate way to determine whether primary fermentation has finished is to use a hydrometer to check the gravity hasn't changed. Once the gravity remains constant throughout the fermentation process, you can start secondary fermentation.

Secondary fermentation

The secondary fermentation time (time in the bottles) usually takes at least 14 days but the longer you can leave your brew in the bottle the better. Remember to keep your bottles nice and cool (a cellar is as good a place as any).

All in all, the total time your home brew beer should take to ferment, including primary and secondary fermentation, is at least 21 days.