Can I put a secondary fermenter in room temperature without creating any off flavors?

Question

I would like to have more brewing capacity, but I am limited by the amount of temperature controlled storage that I have. Do you only need temp control in the primary fermentation process? I'm thinking that I store the bottle beer at room temperature, so what is the difference in storing the beer in the secondary at room temperature. Please let me know.

Answer 1

It's more important during primary since there the yeast is much more active - there's more opportunity to create esters that you don't want.

Answer 2

I have found that temperature fluctuations produce off flavors much more than the actual temperature level. As long as it's "close" to the temperature recommended for your yeast you should be fine.

Answer 3

While using the correct temperature for the yeast is important, you can still have a good finished product if it isn't controlled. The only time I do anything is cool it down if it gets too hot. My apartment is pretty much always around 70 degrees F and my primary, secondary, and bottle storage is all at room temp.

I might have some slight off flavors from it, but nothing really noticeable.