Newbie questions - Beer fridges, bottles etc

[morgenmuffel]

Ok I have been brewing beer for about 5 years now, but as i average about 2 brews a year (yes i am that lazy) I am pretty much a beginner, although I am now up to around 6 a year, which is probably laughable by the standards of some.

Anyway I recently purchased someones beer kit they had given up on,
A beer fridge
5 swappa crates (Crates containing 12 750ml bottles each I don't know if you have swappas in Oz)
Brew vessel absolutely identical to the coopers one, but without the coopers embossed logo
and a couple of cappers etc

Anyway
How exactly do i use the fridge, dumb as it sounds, I am not quite sure what to do

I know i put the filled fermenter in there, Am i supposed to have the door open a little to breathe, or closed, how good is a fridge (obviously not working) at keeping the brew at a vaguely constant temperature. if the outside temp is fluctuating a bit, the fridge is in an outside shed that is uninsulated, so gets warm during the day and cools at night, as its summer I don't need a head pad

Bottles
I am clearly going to run out of empties soon, can wine bottles be used? I don't tend to drink wine, so embarrassingly I can't remember if the hole in the tops the same as for a beer bottle, but I may find them a bit easier to source.
I have used every stubbie i can get my hands on, except the twist top ones as i can't seem to get a good seal on them, is there a different type of cap for them or are they unusable.

Caps
I also got two bags of caps these have been stored in a shed for a few years at least by the look of the bags, should i biff them, or could i just drop em in the sterilising stuff and rinse them before using them?

Yes I am a tightarse with money

Thanks

[rotten]

Get yourself a temp controller. Stc 1000 are easy enough to setup and around $20 on eBay. Then you just need a box, power cord, a terminal block, good wiring diagram and you're good to go. Theres plenty if threads around on how to do it. On phone now so can't post a link.

Depending on your ambient temp the fridge could be ok for a few brews, as long as the temp is stable and at the temp you want.

[earle]

Don't use wine bottles as theyre not made to handle the pressure of carbonation, champagne bottles will though and you can buy a larger bell for bench capers as well as larger crown seals to suit. You can also use pet bottles, coopers sell them here in oz but you can use soft drink ones just as well. if they are clear keep them out of the light to avoid skulking your beer.

[jello]

I don't recommend getting the caps wet. If you're suspect of them, get rid of them. Tight arse or not, you'll be more annoyed if a batch of beer is fouled by a dodgy seal.

If the fridge isn't working, it's still valuable for keeping a constant temperature. You may need to rotate frozen bottles of water if it's too warm. A fridge that doesn't work though is likely to get a bit damp and horrible, so be careful. Keep it dry and be OCD about your sanitation.

Cheap longneck bottles are easy enough to find if you look hard enough. Clubs, pubs, local HB store, classifieds, ebay, notice boards etc, etc.

[Oliver]

Cheap longneck bottles are easy enough to find if you look hard enough. Clubs, pubs, local HB store, classifieds, ebay, notice boards etc, etc.

More ideas here: viewtopic.php?f=8&t=10281