my first purchase

I am sure someone has posted before but I am just making sure of my list... I am about to make a descent purchase and I want to make sure I am not missing anything.... this is my first purchase really, so assume i have nothing at all...... I am planning on only kegging so as to save time. I will be boiling outside and I will be buying a fridge for lagering or storing, not sure just yet..... if there are any ideas to make brewing better/easier let me know... i couldnt find a good kit that was all kegging that was an okay price really so i decided to build the list myself.

5 Gallon Reconditioned Ball Lock Keg
O-Ring Set
Dual-gauge regulator
5lb Co2 tank
Polar Ware Economy Stainless Steel Brewing Pot, 5 Gallon
12" Laboratory Thermometer
Hydrometer
Hydrometer Test Jar
18" Stirring Spoon- plastic
9" Anti-Splash Funnel with Strainer
Airlock brush
Star San- 8 oz
PBW cleanser
5 Gallon glass carboy
Airlock 3 piece type X2
Rubber Stopper- Size 7- Drilled X2
Plastic Liquid Dispenser Tap
Ball Lock Gas Disconnect, 1/4" Barbed
Ball Lock Liquid Fitting 1/4" Barbed
3/8" Curved racking tube (30" length)
Carboy Brush
Stainless Steel Immersion Wort Chiller w/Garden Hose Fittings
Fermtech Wine Thief
6.5 gallon primary bucket w/ lid, spigot and stopper
propane burner

Just wanted to be sure you saw these kits. Prices tend to be better with kits.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/starter-kits/ultimate-starter-kit.html

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/master-brewers-kit-with-kegging-setup.html

You'd need to add a few things from your list (eg kettle), but you'd be almost done. Do you have siphon tubing on your list? I'd add auto siphon.

In my opinion you should go ahead and do full boils, therefor you would a larger pot. I would go as large as you can afford. You will probably outgrow that 5 gal. and end up buying a larger one anyway.

I was actually going to suggest the same thing. I'm stuck with my 5 gallon for now and wish I had gone larger at the outset.

If you are fermenting in the bucket you really won't need the funnel. ( although it might come in handy anyway)
And you will need gas and beer tubing for the kegs.

+1 Auto siphon

Glass measuring cup, quart size, heat resistant glass (I use for yeast starters/priming...)

Digital scale that measures down to .05 (i.e. measuring hops .25) My scale only measures .3 or .2 but not .25

Timer

Reading material while you're waiting for your brew to ferment and planning your next batch ; )
How to Brew; John Palmer
Brewing Classic Styles; Jamil Zainasheff & John Palmer
Designing Great Beers; Ray Daniels

Just in case you want to save a little by buying used equipment you should check this search engine out for craislist. Just type in your zip code and put beer brewing in the search window (Select All For Sale/ Wanted) and it will pull every listing within the mileage range you want.
http://www.searchtempest.com/
I just got a whole brewing setup for $100.. It only takes a little patients and you can save big.
Hope this helps
Keith

PS The John Palmer book is a free download. Just use Google to find it. Works like a charm! Also if you are willing to search for stuff on Craigslist be forewarned it sells quick. I usually refresh the search a couple times a day to stay on top of things.

Time-Travelers said:

Reading material while you're waiting for your brew to ferment and planning your next batch ; )
How to Brew; John Palmer
Brewing Classic Styles; Jamil Zainasheff & John Palmer
Designing Great Beers; Ray Daniels

Click to expand...

I agree.
How to Brew, and Brewing Classic Styles are two great books that you'll get a lot of useful info from.
Designing Great Beers will be the next book I puchase.

+2 on the auto-siphon. You didn't say if you were buying a complete equipment kit but this is a little more cost effective. I bought the starter kit from Midwest for $90 because it gave you 2 buckets plus a carboy. And since then I have purchased a couple more buckets because they are cheap and IMO, easier to use, clean, and maintain.
+1 on a larger brew kettle. A small kettle is a PITA and you need to watch it all of the time. I started last August with a 26 qt. and even though I got by, it wasn't ideal. I just received a 60 qt. for xmas and I love it. Sams Club for less than $50 delivered.
Get a larger container of Star San. And plain Oxy clean from the dollar store you will use a lot of both. Also a spray bottle.

Thank you for all the suggestions... its been a few busy weeks and looks like im just about ready to send in my order.... as far as the brew pot how many gallons should i go with .. i see wolverinebrewer went with a 60qt is that too much to start with or pretty much i should leave the room to 'grow into', also i should definitely go stainless right?(thats what i read).... I think Ill take mhochman's advise on midwest i didnt see that kit at first but looks like a good deal and i sent them a quick email last night and they are willing to do alterations to the kit.. ohh and kit comes with auto siphon.... so now going to go for:

Midwest master brewer kit w/ keg setup (changed to a 2 keg system and minus thermostat)
?? qt brew pot
carboy dryer
carboy handles
stainless immersion chiller
propane burner
and prob going to setup a freezer/fridge like that in new BYO issue (i have use of a kegerator and fullsize fridge for the meantime)

as for the cleaners im pretty sure i could get hooked up on them from my old 'boss' so that will be easy.... also as for craigslist, i used to shop on there religiously but now my work/sleep sched is horrible for getting any of the deals... sleeping til 4pm and working until 3am is not good haha..... THANK you again for all your help and hopefully by this weekend ill be sending in my order

60 qts would give you plenty of room to grow, particularly if you ever intend to get into 10 gallon batches. However, you're likely to make a ton of other purchases between then and now, and a good 28-32qt pot should do you just fine.

One more suggestion, especially if you go closer to a 28qt pot (keep in mind, many turkey fryer kits come with aluminum pots in this size already!), pick up a container of fermcap-s. I haven't tried mine yet, but I keep reading this is a near miracle worker in terms of avoiding boil-over. Boiling 6+ gallons in a 7 or 8 gallon pot does not leave a ton of headspace to catch boil overs!

My kit came with a carboy dryer; not a necessity by any means, but still pretty nice to have. My gut says to go with a copper chiller if you can; I think the heat transfer is significantly better with copper than it is with stainless. Also - depending on where you are - you might be able to skip the chiller until the weather starts to warm up. I'm in CT - on my last brew, immediately after the boil, I set the kettle into a snowbank and stirred the wort - I hit 70 degrees in 5 or 6 minutes! This may not be an option for you, but if it is, you can save yourself at least that up-front cost.

+3 on the auto-siphon. Also, ss measuring spoons and a fermtech bottling wand. Even though you are kegging, sooner of later you'll want to bottle some, and these are cheap. Better to have it and not need it; than to need it and not have it. Good luck, Mate, you're making beer.

Not sure it will help too much but you won't need a hydrometer test jar if you get a wine thief. The wine thief itself works great after you pull your sample as a tester. Everything else looks great. Good luck.

Thank you again everyone for the suggestions... i made my complete (well almost) order on sat afternoon.... i ended up going with a 32qt SS pot (Bayou Classic 9195 32-Quart Stainless-Steel Outdoor Turkey Fryer Kit with Burner) since i needed the burner too..... i also ended up buying the fermcap stuff since it was so cheap... hopefully ill be brewing soon... just have to order some spoons (i have a giftcard for cooking.com so figured id buy em there). since everyone was so helpful I also threw in a 1 yr premium membership for this site..

Again I thank you all for your help and cant wait to start brewing, for real!