How to set up a home brewing station on a budget

You need less than the internet tells you

The thing that stops most people having a go at brewing is the gear, because you have a look online and within about 10 minutes you're reading about temperature controlled fermenters and conical this and stainless that, and you close the tab. None of that is required for a first batch and most of it isn't required for the 20 batches after it either. You can make genuinely good beer with a short list of simple things, and I'd rather you spent the money on a second kit than on gadgets.

The 5 things you actually need

• A fermenter with a lid and an airlock. A 30 litre plastic one is what most people start with and there is nothing wrong with it.
• A hydrometer and test jar. It's the cheapest way to know whether fermentation has finished instead of guessing.
• A no rinse sanitiser. This is the one place not to economise, because contamination is what ruins batches.
• Bottles and a way of sealing them. Crown seals with a capper, or PET bottles with screw caps if you'd rather skip the capper to begin with.
• A kit, plus something to ferment with it. A tin of extract and either brew enhancer or dextrose will get you a full batch.

That's the whole list. Everything else is an upgrade rather than a requirement.

What can wait

Temperature controlled fermentation is a real improvement and it's also the first thing people buy too early. A cool corner of the house, a wet towel wrapped around the fermenter in summer, or a heater belt in winter will hold you close enough while you're learning what the temperature actually does to your beer.

The same goes for anything digital. A glass thermometer and a hydrometer between them tell you almost everything a fancier setup will, and they don't have a battery in them.

Where the money actually goes wrong

Buying the lot at once is the classic, because you end up owning things you never use for a hobby you might not stick with. Skipping sanitiser is the expensive one, since a dumped batch costs more than a bottle of no rinse ever will. And starting with a complicated recipe is a quiet money waster, because you learn nothing from a batch with 6 variables in it and you're more likely to pour it away.

Reuse what you can, sensibly

Commercial beer bottles are free and they work, as long as they're crown seal rather than twist top, because a twist top won't take a crown cap properly. Wash them the day you empty them rather than a fortnight later, and you'll save yourself the worst job in brewing.

Your first batch will teach you more than this post will

It probably won't be the best beer you ever make and that's completely fine. What it will do is show you which bits you found fiddly, which is exactly the information you need before you spend anything else, and by the second or third batch you'll know whether you want to go further or stay with kits. Both of those are good answers.

Shop related products

• Coopers Original Draught 1.7kg. This is a forgiving kit for a first batch.
• Coopers Brew Enhancer 1 1kg. Use this instead of plain sugar and the beer keeps some body.
• Coopers Dextrose 1kg. This is the cheap option for fermentables and for priming.
• Coopers Original Stout 1.7kg. Go here if you would rather start dark than pale.

Did you know we also hold 30 litre fermenter systems, airlocks, hydrometers and test jars, cappers, crown seals, PET bottles and caps, heater belts and no rinse sanitiser in the shop that never make it onto the website. Give us a ring on (08) 8536 4333 to check what is on the shelf.

Where to go next

The beer supplies and the wider homebrew range have the rest, and Brewhilder will talk you through a first setup if you would rather ask than read.

Worth reading next: How to brew your first beer at home and Common homebrew problems and how to fix them.

I am still the person who buys the tool before the job and then wonders where the money went.