Can a cooler be too big for MLT use?

I was on craiglist looking around and found this:

150qt Cooler

I emailed, and was told it has a spout, was only used a couple of times last summer for a party cooler at the house, and is not a cheap styrofoam fake (I've seen ones that size at the Jersey shore so I wanted to check)

Currently I use a 5 gallon igloo but really want to upgrade because I like making bigger beers and was looking for a 10gal but then I stumbled on this bad boy. First thought was 37.5 Gallons!!!! :rockin:

But later I started to think about how large this thing is and wondered if it was too large? I have everything for a 5 gallon brew session now, but am slowly trying to upgrade to 10 gallon. I'm finishing college this December so fundage is limited until then.

I am driving there on Sunday to check on how it looks. So please any and all comments are appreciated

I would assume it could be too large for smaller 5gallon and maybe 10gallon batches due to how spread out the grain bed would be and lower levels of water. Just my thoughts. But a portable keg cooler this will make.

I beleive it depends on if you are fly/batch sparging, but either way I would be worried with making a regular (1050 gravity) beer in that guy that it would barely cover the bottom, but you could always keep your 5 gallon for those. I have a 52 quart coleman xtreme and my biggest beer was an IPA at 1068, at 1.25 qt/lb I think it filled my cooler up halfway. Another thing to think about is all that extra space, it will make it harder to maintain temp. If you want a bigger cooler with 10 gallon possibilities you can check kmart for the 52qt I got, or walmart has a 70qt here: http://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-70-Quart-Xtreme-Cooler/4807332

Thanks guys. I apologize I didn't think to add that I batch sparge. Yeah if I was making some massive batches this cooler would be great, but brettwasbtd you nailed exactly what I was thinking! The larger area of empty air will make the temps harder to control. Yeah for my larger 5 gallon batches I would prob be using 10-12 gallons. That would only fill at most 1/4 of this bad boy.

Thanks for the link for that 70qt. I may head to the local walmart this weekend. I am just looking for something with a spout already. I know its a simple job with a drill but I would rather be lazy about it

Seems since I do not have the ability to boil a 10gal batch right now this does not seem viable.

Usually, it is recommended that you have a minimum of a 4 inch grain bed depth. I would be worried this would be too big to accomodate a 5 gallon batch. You might try to find a rough estimate of the volume that a pound of grain takes up. Then calculate how many pounds of grain it would take to make a 4 inch depth based on the dimensions of the cooler. That would give you an idea of how small of a batch the cooler can accomodate.

blackdragon82 said:

Thanks for the link for that 70qt. I may head to the local walmart this weekend. I am just looking for something with a spout already. I know its a simple job with a drill but I would rather be lazy about it

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Check that they carry that in store! I went to about 3 different walmarts and NONE had that cooler, so if you want it, I'd have it shipped to the store. I found my 52 qt for $25 at Kmart!

brettwastd I did and 4 stores within an hour of me have it. So that may be my new possibility. I wish I could get something of this size and brew batches large enough to use 150qt to its potential but now it just seems like dreaming. Until I get the supplies to brew the larger batches it is kind of pointless.

A 52qt for $25? Yes please

Ya, and i got it in Delaware - No Tax!

If you got the 150qt you could make 1 bbl batches! A little nano brewery action there!

Oh yeah forgot Delaware My GF lives in West Chester so not too far of a drive

I would love to be a nano brewery status, BUT I only have a little 10gal pot.

Luckily I got a damn nice internship making more then I ever have before. I am thinking of buying a keggle in the next couple weeks. I want to take this one step at a time. Basically get a something new each paycheck.

Ya, I was/am spending too much on this hobby I am limiting myself to one new item a month. Also, If you can't get the keggle for under $100, look into aluminum pots. I got a 15 gallon pot for $88 shipped from instawares. Think is great and fits on burner nicely

I was thinking about this one

$139 1 weld

I can get the ball valve and other stuff at the local store, shouldn't be too much

Before you go out spending money on a 52qt Coleman extreme, I thought I would plug the 48qt Igloo Ice Cube which you can easily find at Target and other sundry places (I have seen them at HD and Lowes lately) for around $20 or less. Many people here on HBT, including myself, have been using this cooler for a long time and find it works quite well.

Although, I'm sure the Coleman works well also.

Wow you guys are great!! I almost wish I did this a couple months ago. Would have been nice when I made my barleywine. I sadly only have a 3 gal batch because of the cooler limitations. Keep them coming!!

Now I just have to remember to post on here before I get a keggle haha

One thing about the Ice Cube 48qt is that some do not come preinstalled with a drain plug/spout. There's a place where one obviously goes, but no hole and no spout. But if you are installing a valve and braid anyway, it doesn't make a huge difference if you have to drill a hole first. It takes maybe 1 minute...

I was in K-Mart last week and they had a sale on all coolers. Not sure if this is still in effect or not??

I was looking at the cubes too. Went with the xteme because A) didnt have the hole drilled (I don't own and spade bits) and B) From what I can recall, the hole location was slightly higher than the bottom of the cooler. The extreme has a channel to the hole - I only leave a few ounces in the bottom of the tun after sparging. Not knocking the cube, just have to justify my choose (to myself at least).

Yeah that is true. I can drill the hole in 10 seconds but I just feel like being lazy. Cheaper cooler would be better and more compact as well. Since I will be needing to buy the copper for the lines. If all works out I will be selling my 5gal igloo to a cousin who wants to start brewing.

Copper = too much money! haha - I went the CPVC route, its great and cost like $2.50. Cheaper than a braid too!

My current one is CPVC. I was thinking of going copper. That will prob boil down to the price when I get to lowes and what is in my budget

I think I got my braid for something like $7...


Also I will recommend that instead of the 3/8" fittings as on your cooler as used in the wiki, etc, get 1/2" fittings. This will allow you to better integrate a pump, ported kettle, etc. into your system later on as most of that stuff is 1/2".

I now have a pump and 1/2" fittings on my HLT and BK but stuck manually sparging, etc. because I've still got 3/8" fittings on MLT.

FYI, just looked back at my own threads - I paid $35 not $25

I've been finding a couple of good possibilities between $20-35. Making sure I get it in Delaware so no tax