Homebrew Beer Safety Tips

Brewing your own beer is a fun and rewarding hobby. It allows you to modify the flavors and characteristics of your brew to achieve an entirely unique type of beer. It’s this level of freedom and personalization that draws so many people to the homebrew hobby. Before you jump into this hobby, though, there are some safety tips you should know. Taking the time to familiarize yourself with these tips will ensure your homebrew is delicious, safe and ready to drink.

Sanitize Your Equipment

Arguably, one of the most important safety tips for homebrewing beer is to sanitize your equipment. I know a lot of people are eager to brew their beer and don’t want to spend the extra time and energy cleaning their equipment; however, sanitation is necessary to kill off any microbes lingering on the surface.

Although you can’t see them, your equipment could have mold, mildew and/or bacteria thriving on it. Brewing beer in this dirty equipment may taint your batch, increasing the chance of illness when you drink it. This isn’t a risk you should take, so clean your equipment before and after each use. There are dozens of products designed specifically for homebrew equipment sanitation.

Exploding Bottles

Another potential safety concern is the possibility of exploding beer bottles. Beer, as you probably know, is a highly carbonated beverage. When carbonation exceeds ‘normal’ levels, the intense pressure could literally explode a capped bottle, sending glass fragments flying into the air.

There are a few things homebrewers can do to prevent exploding beer bottles, one of which is to wait until the fermentation has completed before bottling. It’s not uncommon for inexperienced homebrewers to prematurely bottle their beer. If the beer is still fermenting when it’s bottled, the carbonation pressure will gradually build up. Adding too much sugar to your homebrew may also increase the chance of an exploding beer bottle, so double-check your measurements. The presence of too much sugar encourages more fermentation, which in turn means higher carbonation levels.

Fire Safety

Anytime you use the stove to cook something — whether it’s a pot of soup or a batch of homebrew beer — there’s always a chance of a fire. To reduce the chance of a fire, never leave your beer brewing unattended. Stay in or around the kitchen so you can keep a close eye on it. If you see it boiling over, turn the heat down slightly.