brewing 10 gallons solo

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BeerPressure

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Well since my friend didnt drop off the spices I let him borrow, I cant brew my pumpkin spice today.

Although, I do have supplies for a 10 gallon batch of smoked porter that I've been meaning to do. Problem is i am all alone

How do you guys brew big batches solo? I always need somebody to help me lift up the huge pot of mash water to pour into my tun.
 
I think most of the folks who brew 10 gallons pump all of the liquid around between their MLT, HLT and BK
 
I dont have a pump and I've always just had an extra set of hands with me. Never had problems that way.

Im also not going to go out and get a pump for ONE TIME.
 
Suck it up and lift with yer back!

Seriously, I own a pump, but I drain from my MLT straight into my kettle (on the ground). My burner sits maybe 14 inches off the ground, and I just dead-lift my 25 gallon kettle up there. Mind you, I've had to do this solo with 14 gallons of hot wort in the pot before. So it goes.

Edit: 14 inches is manageable compared to the height of many burners/rigs.
 
Suck it up and lift with yer back!

Seriously, I own a pump, but I drain from my MLT straight into my kettle (on the ground). My burner sits maybe 14 inches off the ground, and I just dead-lift my 25 gallon kettle up there. Mind you, I've had to do this solo with 14 gallons of hot wort in the pot before. So it goes.

Edit: 14 inches is manageable compared to the height of many burners/rigs.
I usually drain my cooler right into a keggle. My ownly problem is the mash water and the hot pot. I will just put it off for another day i guess.
 
You can always transfer hot liquid with a pitcher or smaller pot, one scoop at a time.

That's how I always did it. Scoop until it's a manageable weight, then pour. I used a big saucepan so it was about .75 gallon at a time moving the water.

I weigh 135 pounds and I've brewed a lot of 10 gallon batches. I've only had a pump less than 2 years- but I love it so much I now have two pumps! Still, you can easily do 10 gallons by using a pot/saucepan to move water. It only takes a few minutes longer.
 
I have brewed 35 gallon batches alone without a pump. Run off into a 5 galon pail and dump it wherever it needs to be.
Just move 3 gallons or whatever you are comfortable lifting each time. No big deal.
 
I do 10g batches solo all the time. The only heavy lifting is mash and sparge water. I have a ball valve on my bk, so I open the valve and let it flow into my fermenters. Until rwcently, I did double batch sparges so it was never too much water to just man up and lift. Even with a single batch sparge, its not unmanageable. Im a 260 pound construction worker, so im used to heavy lifting.
 
I do 10g batches solo all the time. The only heavy lifting is mash and sparge water. I have a ball valve on my bk, so I open the valve and let it flow into my fermenters. Until rwcently, I did double batch sparges so it was never too much water to just man up and lift. Even with a single batch sparge, its not unmanageable. Im a 260 pound construction worker, so im used to heavy lifting.

Good heavens- you are literally TWICE my size! I think it'd be cool to have a photo of us together!
 
I do 10g batches solo all the time. The only heavy lifting is mash and sparge water. I have a ball valve on my bk, so I open the valve and let it flow into my fermenters. Until rwcently, I did double batch sparges so it was never too much water to just man up and lift. Even with a single batch sparge, its not unmanageable. Im a 260 pound construction worker, so im used to heavy lifting.

I'm 160 and have no issues. I heat water on my stove to save propane, dump in my cooler on the floor, lift the cooler on to the counter, then drain off each runnings into a pot and take outside and dump in my keg. I then siphon that into fermenters once done (I really need to get a ball valve, hah). Hell even when I do 5gal batches I carry 6.5gal of wort from inside to outside and sit on my burner. 10 gallons isn't even heavy. I'm not a big guy and my job use to involve throwing around many 1/2 barrel kegs and into cars and trucks. Been doing both for 2 years.
 
Yooper said:
Good heavens- you are literally TWICE my size! I think it'd be cool to have a photo of us together!

New sig, thanks. As long as youre in the dominatrix outfit, i'd drive to wherever it is you are for that picture.

When I did the oxide layer in my new 20g BK, lifting the pot full was a task. Not so much the weight, but the awkwardness of the pot. Its short and wide so carrying it was a bit of a hassle. I normally use my 7.5 g turkey fryer pot for heating mash water on my stove to save LP, so carrying it to my driveway makes my wife gasp. Other than the initial strike water, I-m not lifting more than about 5g so its not so bad. Sometimes you just gotta tell your nads " lets go boys, in a month or two this is gonna be beer, lets do it". Thats usually all the motivation they need.
 
New sig, thanks. As long as youre in the dominatrix outfit, i'd drive to wherever it is you are for that picture.

Hahaha- that's really funny right there!

Sometimes you just gotta tell your nads " lets go boys, in a month or two this is gonna be beer, lets do it". Thats usually all the motivation they need.

sorry, but my nads just don't have it in them. :D
 
I just use a 1gallon pitcher and a 5g bucket to fill up the boil pot with the mash water.

I transfer the heated water to the mashtun with the 1gallon plastic pitcher. After a few scoops, i usually pick up the pot and pour the rest into the mashtun.

I drain the mash into a 5g bucket(s).

The sparge water i transfer with the 1gallon pitcher, a few scoops than pick up and pour the rest.

Once the wort is cooled, i use the same pitcher to transfer to the carboys. than pour once its only a couple gallons into the carboy with a large funnel
 
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