Falling Leaves!

Northern Brewer General
1

How is everyone keeping the falling leaves out of their brew pot? I was thing about trying to cover part of the kettle with aluminum foil. Has anyone had any luck with that? I don’t have a good spot to set with with all of the trees around our place.

Thanks,
jazzman

2

I have an EZ UP Canopy that I use when it is raining, or the stupid seeds are folling out of the birch tree by the millions.

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3

Uh… brew in the garage. Or in the house. Or under a canopy or porch covering. If you have none of these, bum some space off a buddy for a few hours.

4

I brew in my garage.
The foil should work though.

5

Try a piece of screen, like chicken wire, with about 1 inch square openings.

6

Buzzbeer,
Thanks for the chicken wire idea, I have some of that I think that will keep the maple and oak leaves out. The ash trees have already lost their leaves and the hickory trees are farther out in the woods, there not a problem. I have a graage but i’m afraid to brew in it. I worked in the gas dept. of a utility company for over 35 years and I have seen CO really mess people up. I probelby have enough ventilation in the garage with the doors open. I’m just not comfortable being in a space with a 180,000 btu burner cranking. When I think about brewing in the garage I have these flashbacks of going to these houses where CO killed the people inside of them and seeing the people being carried out in body bags, not a fun site. I think I’ll use Buzzbeers idea and go with chicken wire.

Thanks for of your suggestions I appreciate it. Cheers!
jazzman

7

I use two fans to move the air in my garage. I also use a CO detector.

Are you worried about off flavors from the steam collecting and dripping back into the kettle using the Chicken wire idea?

8

Baratone Brewer,
I don’t really think that steam collecting on the chicken wire would be a problem. I think that I’m going to give it a try. Like I said, I don’t think the maple & oak leaves would go through the chicken wire. When the ash leaves were fall a few of them may have been a problem.

Baratone Brewer, PLEASE continue to use your fans and check your CO dector everytime you brew. I don’t have to much faith in them, I have seen to many of them not work properly. Before I retired and was still up on CO dectors Nighthawk make the best dector there was, I don’t know anymore. It sound like you are taking the right precautions, so keep it up.

Thanks again,
jazzman

9

I run two large burners in my garage, the two box fans (one blowing in and one blowing out) really keep the air moving and fresh. The CO detector is just in case, but done this method for years and works well. Wouldn’t even think of brewing in my garage without these precautions.

jazzman, I think that chicken wire is coated in zinc. Not sure what the effects of heating it and having the steam drippings fall into your BK are. Might be worth checking into though.