$17 for 5 gallon Rubbermain Victory Coolers @ Target

i'm not sure if this is the right place for this but i was just reading the latest Target store circular and saw that 5 gallon Rubbermain Victory coolers are on sale for $17 this week only (July 1 thru 7)

here is a link to the flyer online:

http://weeklyad.target.com/target/default.aspx?action=entryflash&ref=nav_weeklyad

thought this may intereste some on this board.

Got mine today. I have been debating back and forth about getting the 10 gallon, but for now I think I'll stick to 5 gallon batches and partial mashes.

Flyin' Lion said:

Got mine today. I have been debating back and forth about getting the 10 gallon, but for now I think I'll stick to 5 gallon batches and partial mashes.

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Famous last words!!!!

I thought the same thing, but they're like Ruffles potato chips!! but I went with a 50 qt Ice Cube just after I converted my 5 gal Gott. Caught the Ice Cube just as they went on sale at Wally World. Now I can do any 2.5 gal and 5 gal AG's. :rockin:

It will work great. I've done about 30 all-grain brews on mine, including beers over 1.070 starting gravity. With my copper manifold, I can put up to 14 lbs. of grain in there and consistantly hit about 80% efficiency. For stronger brew I just make less than 5 gallons. I am thinking about going to a 10 gallon cooler, but for most of what I have brewed, it has worked out fine.

so just to confirm, this will work fine for 5 gallon batches?
Daum

It's gonna be a bit small for the big brews, but for the small and average brews it'll get the job done as far as AG. For PM's your good to go.

I use my 5 gal as a HLT when doing a big brew in the Ice Cube.

You'll get a lot of use out of that size no matter what your brewing short of 10 gals.

Also, the 5 gal is perfect for the big bill AG 2.5 gal brews. "Let's get small!!!!"

yeah, so i bought one of these 5 gallon coolers from target.

then went to home depot to get the fittings (3/8 ball tap etc) and right as i get into home depot there is a display of rubbermaid 10 gallon coolers with home depot logo stamped on it on sale for $39.97 each.

so i bought the 10gallon one too.

Now you are set! In my mind, the ideal setup is to have both a 5 gal and 10 gal cooler MLT. That way, you have a proper sized-vessel to mash anything from partial mashes, small to moderate gravity 5 gal batches, all the way up to high gravity 5 gal batches. And of course, you can do some 10 gal batches if you like.

Just use the appropriate sized cooler for the batch you are brewing, and the other one serves as your HLT. You should be all good to go!

i assume that the square coolers(that are longer than taller) are no good for our use? these tend to be quite a bit cheaper.
Daum

daum said:

i assume that the square coolers(that are longer than taller) are no good for our use? these tend to be quite a bit cheaper.
Daum

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They'll work just fine for a mash tun. I don't know why people choose round over rectangle, but they seem to work just fine.

carnevoodoo said:

They'll work just fine for a mash tun. I don't know why people choose round over rectangle, but they seem to work just fine.

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Yep, the tall square ones are excellent, too.

I think people tend to like the round ones because they are easy to stir (no corners to create dead spots), and because they are tall. Being tall is a big advantage because it gives you an nice deep grainbed to recirculate through. Those longish, rectangular coolers aren't quite as nice in this respect. However, if you are batch sparging with a SS braid, it probably doesn't make much difference anyways. Just personal preference.