Squam Lakes Brewery with Pictures

Ran the first run today with the new rig. It all worked very well
See the you tube video

[ame=http://youtu.be/UZi_FmmHpJU]Squam Brewing New setup - YouTube[/ame]

Congratulations on creating such a fantastic nano brewery. Awesome all the way around.

Can you please provide more information on your new brew sculpture? Where did you order it from? Hopefully if everything goes right i'll be in the market for one just like it at the end of this year.

Thank you for sharing all of this wonderful information !!!

Below are two pictures showing the tilting brew kettle. We find this very important to being able to clean the kettle easily. In addition the wiring conection of the power to the heating element is a headache. On a small kettle its not that bad but with a big kettle it is very easy to put strain on the wrong 220 v cord and cause damage.

Finally got the new MT ready to use. I used the old pex tube tubing from the 40 gallon MT which will now be the new HLT. The new MT is a 55 gallon Rubbermaid tub the old false bottom was just a little small. So I cut a 2 in ring from one of the covers to make up the difference. Then use dome copper wire to attach the two. Made a wheat beer yesterday and it all worked fine. Next is to make a big beer that used 175 lbs of grain. In the past we had to use the 40 gallon MT and our old 20 gallon Blichamnn MT. Will try to post some pictures.

Jonas217
I had a local welder build the brew stand for us. No great drawings or Sketchup to work from just a guy that knew his steal.

Just read through this entire thread!

Very inspiring!

I know you mentioned a fermentation room. Can you speak a little more about this room and how you control temperature? For Lagers? For Ales?

Congrats on living the dream! I, like everyone else who has read this entire thread, look forward to hearing more about your progress.

Below are some pictures of the new MT
135 lb of DRY grain
You can tip the MT almost level (if you go to far the gran falls out all at once) and shovel it out into a container for disposal. You can then tilt to level and wash with a hose for final cleaning.

Below is a picture showing the electrical connection to the kettle. the good thing is that the wiring is connected to the frame and will not strain the connection

I love it when this thread pops back up in my subscriptions... Thanks for all the great updates.

Stubbornman

I am glad you like it.

I am always impressed with this site... I never could imagine that I could share such a thing with so many people. Usually one post gets about 1000 hits in 2 days. It took me a long time to figure out that even when i don't get a question or comment that lots of people follow this build. As you know its a working brewery today and i guess lots of people are interested in it. Any ways i am a DIY guy and love sharing stuff with this interesting community of home brewers.

Subscribed! Wonderful story!
Getting ready to go nano and debating gas vs electric.

I am thinking electric might be the way to go for cost and venting issues.

If you are at the planning stages and are looking at a 1bb system then electric is the way to go.

Boar Beer said:

If you are at the planning stages and are looking at a 1bb system then electric is the way to go.

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I am really leaning that way. Especially since the warehouse is a blank space right now. I should have no problem pulling one or two 60 amp circuits. And converting kettles shouldn't be a problem. Did you silver solder or weld your couplers?

geniz said:

I am really leaning that way. Especially since the warehouse is a blank space right now. I should have no problem pulling one or two 60 amp circuits. And converting kettles shouldn't be a problem. Did you silver solder or weld your couplers?

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If your space isn't equipped with gas yet, then electric is certainly going to be cheaper to set up - adding extra electric capacity and a raised electric bill will almost always cost less than the licensing and permitting, inspections for ventilation/etc., licensed installation of the gas plumbing and connectors, plus a semi-regular delivery of gas! Not to mention that propane tanks - even big 'uns - can run out at inconvenient times! And for semi-commercial open-burner operations, many states and municipalities don't allow a live-feed natural gas line and require the use of storage tanks (expensive to buy and license/install) that are still subject to running empty. Get yourself a good generator and even the worst of Nor'easters can't stop an all-electric brewery!!!

Another question for you guys. What kind of valve did you install for the drain on the Brute MT? Did you go with a bulkhead fitting? Also how do you measure your water amounts for strike and sparge volumes? Is this why you have the other brute set up as a HLT?

Love the Brute mash tun and think it would work as a two vessel with a tankless water heater. Just trying to nail down details.

Thanks again

Boy
We used the weldless fitting from our 10 gallon Rubbermaid cooler set up. Simple and easy. The bending the red pex tube was the hardest part of the job The two photos show the set up.
As for the strike water it’s a trial and error thing. Some where there is a formula you can use to estimate the correct amount but basically you can bring in water at 180 F for ¾ your volume required then use hot or cold water to achieve your desired mash temp. By the way the heat loss during the mash is only 1-2 degrees F. Much less than if you were using a SS barrel.

Subscribed.

Awesome thread!

Thank you
It was a fun project and is still being used every day. seven 1bb conicals making 9 different commercial brews (depending upon the time of year) I would love to build a one man bottling line of some kind. I just cant figure out how to do it yet

Subscribed

great system.

Nice work on the brewery

Ques. Do you a rough estimate on your electric brew rig? Or just the brew kettle with element ?

Will be upgrading the system to a full 2bbl system with 6 2bb conicals by summers end. BK and MT from Stout will use some kind of plastic tank for a HLT.
I am looking for ideas on what type of HLT i should use.

Visited a local Brewer that is using the same type equipment. this is a picture of the brew kettle unfortunately i did not get a good picture of the mash tun (I know everyone like pictures)

Awesome thread! Next time I am over in Manchester I will have to pick up some of your beers to try. Congrats on all the sucess and I hope everything plays out for you.

Sooo awesome. You are living many of our dreams. I will get there sooner than later!

wow, this is awesome. I'm in Goffstown, and I'll definitely be looking for your beers. Are you guys in Bert's yet?

Give HBT tours yet? haha.

I've gotten some at Bert's in Hooksett. That was almost 2 years ago, though.

Nice setup

GrantH Basically its easy to get to this level. You just have to work your ass of for 4 years and get lucky

Golfduke just hit the web site and send a note for a tour
http://www.squambrewing.com/

Yes Berts usually has our beer. But i must say we just cant keep up with demand yet. We will be in much better shape when the new tackle arrives.

I'm going to 10 gallons now with hopes of 1bbl in 2 years. From there...we shall see.

that is a great start and good luck

Keep those updates coming Boar. One of my favorite HBT threads.

Great news- congrats on the expansion. You're an inspiration to us all!

stubbornman said:

Keep those updates coming Boar. One of my favorite HBT threads.

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I agree!

Also, I forgot to add: Congrats on the upgrade, guys!

Sorry if it has been asked or said before, but what kind of ID is your tubing?

Abracadabra brewers I will now show you how to make a 96 gallon conical out of a 42 gallon conical.
And if that’s not enough I will do it 6 more times.

Ok the brewery is expanding The following pictures show the existing Blichmann conicals (7 total) at 42 gallons which is what is required for a 1bbl brew. The upgrade for the conical will be to add a new piece to the existing Blichmann and make them into a 2bbl size of 96 gallons

Brewshaunt said:

Sorry if it has been asked or said before, but what kind of ID is your tubing?

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Sorry i missed this. Its 1/2 tubing

hahaha holy crap that looks funny. But it's also amazing!

keep up the good work!