Unsupervised fermentation. I have a problem.

[BenTen]

Alright here is the scenario. I have 3 beers fermenting and my apartment ambient temp is going to be pretty damn hot this weekend(78 degrees). I have them sitting in tubs with water and towels wrapped around the carboys, and I throw frozen bottles of water in there in the morning and at night to keep them just perfect at 68.

Beer #1: dry hopping and plan on transferring to a keg on friday, its good to go.
Beer #2: Big beer, been fermenting for 11 days and still going strong!
Beer #3: Brewed on Saturday the 21st, going strong.

All is well with one exception, I am going camping this weekend. I will be gone from Friday night to Sunday night. WTF do I do?!? I am desparate.

[spiderwrangler]

You consider 78 to be damn hot? Where do you live? For beers 2 and 3, if they a done or near done with their fermentation, raising up in temps some likely won't be a huge issue. If you think they are still only part way and want to keep them cool, you could go with the evaporative cooling method. Put them in a shallower tub so the towel wrapped around them is exposed, but still able to wick moisture up from the bottom. Put a fan on them if you really think you need the extra chilling.

[spiderwrangler]

Or just carbonate the first beer before you leave, give me your keys and I'll check on them and do QC on beer #1!

[BenTen]

I live in Denver. Yes, 78 seems way too high for me. I do have them in a shallow tub(about 6 inches high), with a fan blowing on them. I was planning to throw #1 into the fridge and start to carbonate, so thats a non-issue. What do you think about going extra cold with lots of ice, and then putting a bunch of blankets to insulate in hopes of coming back to them being 70-72 perhaps. I only worry that the ice will melt too fast, and it will actually heat them up instead of cool them down. The two beers that are still going strong are on Cali Ale yeast, and I am realizing this stuff goes strong and long.

[spiderwrangler]

I only worry that the ice will melt too fast, and it will actually heat them up instead of cool them down.

Melting ice will still cool them down, it just wouldn't last as long. I would advise against loading up on ice, you might run the risk of dropping the temp low enough that your yeast goes dormant and drops out entirely. I'd say just let it ride, as long as they are wicking with the fan going, it will keep it below ambient temp.

[mtyquinn]

I would just prep them as normal before you leave and let things ride. Much of your fermentation will be complete before you leave so your not talking about a disaster or anything.

[BenTen]

I would just prep them as normal before you leave and let things ride. Much of your fermentation will be complete before you leave so your not talking about a disaster or anything.

So, noob question i guess. Am I able to assume that as long as they are not actively fermenting, the temperature is not a big deal? I am applying this ? to dry hopping and bottle conditioning as well. Any input is appreciated.

BTW, thank you all for your comments! You guys are great!

[anday6]

Yes, once the initial fermentation is complete, it's actually a good idea to raise the temp at the end to finish things up. If left to rise too quickly, the dry hop character may change.

If I were you, I would bring things down a little cooler, top up with as much water (mass) as possible. Get/keep a wet towel over it and get a fan on everything. That should keep the temp down and pretty close to what you want. But again, you would probably even be fine to just let it go for the weekend.