Tips for Fermentation Temperature Control

Fermentation is the heart of the beer brewing process. Without consistency in fermentation, a beer’s final gravity and flavor will be unpredictable from batch to batch. This means consistent temperature control. Too much heat can kill your yeast, and not enough will make it go dormant. Fortunately, our tips for fermentation temperature control will help you strike a perfect balance.

Understanding Temperature Fluctuations

For those new to the fermentation business, the first step in maintaining fermentation temperature control is understanding what happens to temperature during fermentation. Naturally, when you pitch the yeast, you want to keep your wort warm to kick-start fermentation.

But fermentation is a heat-producing process. The wort may heat up by at least twenty degrees Fahrenheit without any intervention. Because of this, temperature control can’t be a passive process. It is active, keeping the wort cool enough to prevent the yeast from dying instead of fermenting.

Monitoring Temperature

Every yeast strain and wort will produce different heat levels, so it’s essential to keep your finger to the pulse of how hot your wort is at any given time. Make it a point to check the temperature of the wort hourly and keep a record of it. That way, if the temperature goes awry, you can hopefully take evasive action before it’s too late.

Invest in Jacketed Brewing Vessels

Stainless steel is already more insulated than other materials used for brewing. But it’s still possible to improve your brewing equipment’s temperature control capabilities by choosing jacketed vessels. These vessels are built with an extra layer of insulation, preventing environmental temperatures from impacting the temperature of your wort.

Automated Temperature Control

You don’t have to do all the work of keeping your fermentation temperatures at the right levels. These days, many commercial brewing systems come with automated temperature control functions such as the one in our stainless-steel brewing equipment. These systems allow you to see your brew’s temperature throughout the process and adjust it with the push of a button.