Hello! After a couple of years of making cider spread across 4 rooms around the house (kitchen, laundry, spare bath, and garage), I am finally embarking on building out a dedicated space for cider making. I’m adding another garage stall which is below grade on the back wall so if i build a room in the back of the garage it should be well insulated with stable temps. This is a build~from~scratch, so I’ve got a lot of options. I know that for some of the layout features I will want to wait until I’m actually in the space to figure out the best and most efficient flow, but I need to be sure that things like plumbing, electrical, hvac, etc are well-planned before I get shovels in the dirt. The room will be about 6ft x 14ft, with a door entry at one end of the 14ft wall.
Here‘s my wish list thus far. I‘d love it if folks could weigh in with lessons learned in your own brew/ciderpressing rooms and share things that you are really glad you did, as well as features you wish you had included. And please include photos if you have them!
Cider lab wish list;
Floor drain
Deep sink
Range hood
Stainless steel soiled/dirty dish table
Coated concrete floors
Water filtration
Temp control
Ventilation/exterior venting
Tap fridge
Full sized fridge
‘Dog shower’ for rinsing grinder and press and general hosing down of gear
I’m still a very novice cider maker, but really enjoying it, hence my willingness to invest in a space for the long haul. But I obviously don’t want to screw it up by not really knowing what I don’t know yet!
Also, up to now I’ve only done carbonation naturally by priming with a sugar just prior to bottling, but I’d like to be able to do some forced carbonation in kegs as well. I have no idea what kind of equipment or space I need to plan for that yet as I’m just starting to research, so any advice would be most appreciated.
Thanks much in advance. Look forward to hearing ideas and seeing photos of what y’all have done!
Stretch
Here‘s my wish list thus far. I‘d love it if folks could weigh in with lessons learned in your own brew/ciderpressing rooms and share things that you are really glad you did, as well as features you wish you had included. And please include photos if you have them!
Cider lab wish list;
Floor drain
Deep sink
Range hood
Stainless steel soiled/dirty dish table
Coated concrete floors
Water filtration
Temp control
Ventilation/exterior venting
Tap fridge
Full sized fridge
‘Dog shower’ for rinsing grinder and press and general hosing down of gear
I’m still a very novice cider maker, but really enjoying it, hence my willingness to invest in a space for the long haul. But I obviously don’t want to screw it up by not really knowing what I don’t know yet!
Also, up to now I’ve only done carbonation naturally by priming with a sugar just prior to bottling, but I’d like to be able to do some forced carbonation in kegs as well. I have no idea what kind of equipment or space I need to plan for that yet as I’m just starting to research, so any advice would be most appreciated.
Thanks much in advance. Look forward to hearing ideas and seeing photos of what y’all have done!
Stretch