Hi! New AG brewer looking to get a setup for 500 ish

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Hank_McGee

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Hi,
I have done a lot of extract brewing but i finally think its time to get into all grain brewing.. I am looking to get a setup and have been looking at northernbrewer, etc. what caught my eye is something like this, http://www.midwestsupplies.com/8-gallon-all-grain-commercial-quality-kettle-kit.html it looks top line and ive heard only good things from people who are willing to drop the money and upgrade from a cooler.. anyone have any suggestions on ALL equipment i need for all grain batches and where to get it from? im also curious about standing burners, are they worth it in the gas (i have an electric stove so heating takes forever hence the want of a non cooler all grain system =P).. anyways I am looking to buy the complete setup for all grain brewing and would love some help from experienced, thanks everyone.
:tank:
 
Congrats on wanting to go all grain! You will love it once you get your system/process hammered down.

Maybe I am reading your post wrong but you do NOT want to do a cooler MLT? You want to do SS but you are on an electric stove? Words of warning lol you will burn the hades out of the top of your electric stove. Wife still tosses a look at me now and then from just heating up strike water on the electric stove. You will 100% want a turkey fryer or some gas burner to heat your boil kettle. I tried once w/o a fryer and it almost collapsed the top of my stove due to the weight/extended heat time. I will NEVER do that again lol. If your stove is able to handle it more power to you :) !

I see you have done extract but was it 5gallon extract? I am basing the below on a basic 5g system.

Simple things you need (will want) for all grain...

MLT SS or Cooler. I personally love my el cheapo 10g MLT. Built if for about 55-60 bucks.

5-8 gallon kettle for heating strike water.

8 gallon boil kettle I would suggest 10g simply for boil over mess reasons

Mash paddle or VERY sturdy spoon :)

Wort cooler: (can be built at home in about 20 mins for the cost of copper tubing at your home supply store)

Those are the main things that jumped out at me when I 1st went All Grain! Good luck with your brewing!
 
I think you would be ok with that kit, but use the top kettle with a false bottom for boiling the wort and draining it. Use the bottom one with the temp guage as a strike water tank, and then make your own mash tun out of a 70 quart coleman xtreme cooler, that can be done for under $100 easy.

However, you may want to buy Stainless Steel ones, one with a guage and spigot, and one with just s spigot, and maybe a false button, and then do your own mash tun like i said. And I agree with the above, maybe even get a 12 - 15 gallon SS one, incase you decide to move up to 10 gallon batches.
 
Hank_McGee said:
Hi,
I have done a lot of extract brewing but i finally think its time to get into all grain brewing.. I am looking to get a setup and have been looking at northernbrewer, etc. what caught my eye is something like this, http://www.midwestsupplies.com/8-gallon-all-grain-commercial-quality-kettle-kit.html it looks top line and ive heard only good things from people who are willing to drop the money and upgrade from a cooler.. anyone have any suggestions on ALL equipment i need for all grain batches and where to get it from? im also curious about standing burners, are they worth it in the gas (i have an electric stove so heating takes forever hence the want of a non cooler all grain system =P).. anyways I am looking to buy the complete setup for all grain brewing and would love some help from experienced, thanks everyone.
:tank:
Click to expand...

The equipment that you linked to are two 8 gallon stainless steel pots with a few fittings, a false bottom, and tubing for $359.99.

In my opinion, that is a poor buy. An 8 gallon pot isn't doesn't leave you with a lot of volume if you're going to be doing standard 5-gallon batches. You'll be very close to full capacity while boiling and are going to have problems with boil overs unless you watch it like a hawk, and turn the heat source on/off.

You can spend $500 in so many better ways. I use a cooler as a mash tun and I love my beer. It has won several ribbons. I don't have experience mashing in a kettle but I'm aware that it takes a lot more work on the part of the brewer. Mashing in a cooler is simple, easy, and effective.

Here's what I recommend for you to do:

- Purchase a quality brew kettle. If you're going with 5-gallon batches then you should be considering a minimum of a 10-gallon pot. The kettle should at least come with a ball valve. I highly recommend a temperature gauge if you're going to use your kettle to heat strike/sparge water.

I have a 10-gallon Megapot with a ball valve and brewmometer. I love it. It is high quality and will last me forever so long as I take proper care of it. This is likely the most expensive item you'll buy so take some time and do some research.

- Purchase a 10-gallon Rubbermaid cooler. Install a bazooka screen assembly with a ball valve and you're done. Easy, quick, and affordable.

- Purchase an immersion chiller. There are many out there. You can even build it. I purchased a 25 foot stainless chiller when I was poor from Morebeer.com. It works well enough for my purposes although I am considering upgrading it.

That's really all you need for all grain right there. I highly recommend that you purchase a propane burner so you can brew outside and away from the wife and kitchen.

There are many accessories that you can purchase on top of that but those three items - brew kettle, Mash Tun, and chiller are what you need to go all grain. Everything else is just accessories.
 
Darwin18 said:
The equipment that you linked to are two 8 gallon stainless steel pots with a few fittings, a false bottom, and tubing for $359.99.

In my opinion, that is a poor buy. An 8 gallon pot isn't doesn't leave you with a lot of volume if you're going to be doing standard 5-gallon batches. You'll be very close to full capacity while boiling and are going to have problems with boil overs unless you watch it like a hawk, and turn the heat source on/off. .
Click to expand...

I can boil 6 gallons in my 30 quart just fine, so a 32 quart(8 gallon) should be fine. But yes you need to watch it. I do agree, bigger is better, but you can get away with an 8 gallon.

- Purchase an immersion chiller. There are many out there. You can even build it. I purchased a 25 foot stainless chiller when I was poor from Morebeer.com. It works well enough for my purposes although I am considering upgrading it.
Click to expand...

Personally, I went to lowes, got 20' of 3/8 ID 1/2 OD copper tubing for only $13 and made my own wort chiller pretty easy, and it does a good job.
 
Agree with you 100% Jflongo but if he's going to drop $360.00 on a set up, he should at least get a 10-gallon pot out of it. I brewed all grain for a long time with my old 8-gallon pot and it worked great. I bought an 8-gallon pot because it was cheap though!
 
I was going to comment that getting into all grain isn't that expensive, and that 500 was a LOT of money until I noticed you say you didn't want to use a cooler for your MLT.

you can probably still make a cheap setup with stainless. About $100 for a kettle, $30 for fittings, and another $20 or so to make up some kind of insulation if you are the handy type. You have a stainless mlt for about $150.

Heck, there are stainless steel kettles with thermometers and drains on them on Ebay fairly cheap. $120 for a 32 quart kettle. I'm on my phone otherwise I would post a link. Insulate that and you have a mlt, or you can look at temperature control instead.

Me? I prefer simple and inexpensive when possible.

I just got a cooler and all the fittings for a mlt and built my own for about $60. I already had a kettle for extract brews and another stock pot I can use for a hlt, so the cost of going to all grain can be quite minimal if desired.
 
Thank you all for the great advice, i think i infact will go with a simple cooler, sounds like a smarter way to spend money.. and I am DEFINITELY going to look into a portable burner cause the electric stove i use takes at least an hour to reach even close to boiling point for 3 gallons of water =/ and thats even blasting 2 burners at maximum capacity.. so, does anyone have any recommendations on what kind of burner works well? like a blichmann or bayou? just what has worked well with your experiences, etc. and great advice im going to use the money i planned on dropping on a very nice kettle with mometer n spigot and yes this is for mainly 5 gal batches for now ;)
 
I'm sure the Blichman burners are very nice, but at $159.00 it's a luxury item IMO. I use a Bayou Classic model that I purchased for $50 off of Amazon. IMO if you're going to drop serious money into a brewing component - spend it on the kettle or invest in temperature control/yeast starters.
 
Hank_McGee said:
Thank you all for the great advice, i think i infact will go with a simple cooler, sounds like a smarter way to spend money.. and I am DEFINITELY going to look into a portable burner cause the electric stove i use takes at least an hour to reach even close to boiling point for 3 gallons of water =/ and thats even blasting 2 burners at maximum capacity.. so, does anyone have any recommendations on what kind of burner works well? like a blichmann or bayou? just what has worked well with your experiences, etc. and great advice im going to use the money i planned on dropping on a very nice kettle with mometer n spigot and yes this is for mainly 5 gal batches for now ;)
Click to expand...

Burners can vary by a ton. Depends on how much you want to spend, personally I didn't have much. I just bought a Bayou Classic SP10, it can boil 5 gallons of water pretty fast.

Also, as far as the cooler goes, think about your batch sizes. If you think you will be doing 5 gallon for a LONG time, then just get a Igloor 5 gallon water cooler from you local store, lowes, home depot, etc. There are TONS of videos on how to convert them, it's pretty easy. If you are thinking 10 gallon isn't too far away, then get a Coleman Xtreme 52 or 70 quart cooler and convert that.

Also, if you think 10 gallon batches aren't too far away, then get a 15 gallon kettle, if not, then definitely 10 gallon if you can.
 
Darwin18 said:
The equipment that you linked to are two 8 gallon stainless steel pots with a few fittings, a false bottom, and tubing for $359.99.

In my opinion, that is a poor buy. An 8 gallon pot isn't doesn't leave you with a lot of volume if you're going to be doing standard 5-gallon batches. You'll be very close to full capacity while boiling and are going to have problems with boil overs unless you watch it like a hawk, and turn the heat source on/off.

You can spend $500 in so many better ways. I use a cooler as a mash tun and I love my beer. It has won several ribbons. I don't have experience mashing in a kettle but I'm aware that it takes a lot more work on the part of the brewer. Mashing in a cooler is simple, easy, and effective.

Here's what I recommend for you to do:

- Purchase a quality brew kettle. If you're going with 5-gallon batches then you should be considering a minimum of a 10-gallon pot. The kettle should at least come with a ball valve. I highly recommend a temperature gauge if you're going to use your kettle to heat strike/sparge water.

I have a 10-gallon Megapot with a ball valve and brewmometer. I love it. It is high quality and will last me forever so long as I take proper care of it. This is likely the most expensive item you'll buy so take some time and do some research.

- Purchase a 10-gallon Rubbermaid cooler. Install a bazooka screen assembly with a ball valve and you're done. Easy, quick, and affordable.

- Purchase an immersion chiller. There are many out there. You can even build it. I purchased a 25 foot stainless chiller when I was poor from Morebeer.com. It works well enough for my purposes although I am considering upgrading it.

That's really all you need for all grain right there. I highly recommend that you purchase a propane burner so you can brew outside and away from the wife and kitchen.

There are many accessories that you can purchase on top of that but those three items - brew kettle, Mash Tun, and chiller are what you need to go all grain. Everything else is just accessories.
Click to expand...

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/boilermakertm-10-gallon-kettle.html
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/hot-liquor-tank.html
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/propane-stainless-steel-single-burner-patio-stove-1114.html
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/stainless-steel-immersion-wort-chiller.html
So i did a little research and this is what i came up with, the kettle looks fantastic and has excellent all round reviews. So I am quite sure about the kettle but i am wondering if everything else looks like a good buy and if that cooler needs anything else added to it, such as a sparge arm or anything like that? or will i be good to go with some tubing? and also wondering what accessories have made things go a lot easier for you? i have found i love accessories like carboy dryers, finally got some of those after one of my carboys tipped and shattered on my hand, so i love getting accessories before i learn the hard way haha.
 
I love my burner. It may not be made of SS like the midwest one, but it's the same damn burner and it's half the price and you'll be in diapers again before it rusts away. This one:
http://www.amazon.com/Bayou-Classic-SQ14-Single-Outdoor/dp/B0009JXYQ4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1360870842&sr=8-1&keywords=bayou+classic+burner

I use it to boil 9 gallons in quick time. I also use it to boil down 40-50 gallons of maple sap for syrup, and it has fried up several batches of chicken for me. So versatile.

BTW, it has not been mentioned I don't think, but you can save on the mash tun and buy a BIAB voile bag for $5.:)

Just sayin...
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Well i did a little research on the BIAB sounds like an excellent idea not to mention space and money saver, and knowing that your bayou burner holds out well i will get one of those =).
 
Hank_McGee said:
Well i did a little research on the BIAB sounds like an excellent idea not to mention space and money saver, and knowing that your bayou burner holds out well i will get one of those =).
Click to expand...

BIAB is a great idea for 2 or 3 gallon batches. If you are moving up to doing 5 gallon or more, you will need a good way to move that bag around. It will weight alot ;)
 
you bring an excellent point haha, i might just have to stick with an HTL, and shipping won be too much of an issue, im also going to buy a bunch of ingredients to stock up and i think i may have a free ship over like 300 so..
 
Just to comment...

Stainless steel is a very poor heat conductor compared to copper. Yea, it looks cool, but it won't cool nearly as well as its copper counterpart.

For a given amount of time, copper will conduct nearly 30 times the amount of heat.

In other words, it will take more time to transfer the heat from the wort into the water in the chiller. Not necessarily 30 times as long, but copper is much more efficient in this case.
 
Also, keep in mind, for 5 gallon batch, the most grain you can put in is about 12 lbs, into a 5 gallon round cooler. So you will always need less than 4 gallons of water at a time. So for now, a 10 gallon HLT is probably overkill.

If you are handy, you could even go to a large grocery store chain, buy a SS 20 or 30 quart pot, drill a hole in it, add a spigot, and make that your HLT and add another burner if you wanted to.
 
I have read a 10 gal is a very reasonable size for 5 gal, you can upgrade to 7.5 gal or 10 gal batches if properly done, but also leaves it so that when i do want to make larger batches i wont have to upgrade a small size just to do so. Feels reasonable to me but of course i am the newbie here so i am open to advice before i blow 600 bucks on said equipment :)


Drinkin an irish amber fresh out of conditioning :mug:
 
Hank_McGee said:
I have read a 10 gal is a very reasonable size for 5 gal, you can upgrade to 7.5 gal or 10 gal batches if properly done, but also leaves it so that when i do want to make larger batches i wont have to upgrade a small size just to do so. Feels reasonable to me but of course i am the newbie here so i am open to advice before i blow 600 bucks on said equipment :)

Drinkin an irish amber fresh out of conditioning :mug:
Click to expand...

I went with a ten gal cooler simply because it would likely take me longer to outgrow. The cost for the fittings to make it into a mlt is the same if the cooler is five gal or ten. So it came down to 60 for a ten gal mlt or 40 for a five gal mlt.

I don't see myself doing anything larger than a five gallon batch for quite some time. The only exception would be if I were to brew for a large family function.
 
The Bayou Classic burner is the "high pressure" one that has a 10psi regulator, and puts out 55000 BTU's. That same burner with a 20psi regulator puts out 150000 BTU's, If you look long enough, you may find a 20psi regulator to use instead. I have spent many hours looking how to make smart purchases on brewing supplies, and the retailers are a bit dodgy. I am pretty sure you could contact Bayou Burners, and get the low down on their burners.
 
One ten gallon cooler (square is cheaper) and two 15 gallon kegs each with a weldless bulkhead, stainess ball valve and a burner underneath and away you go. All for under $500.

Basically DennyBrew style but in a three tier configuration and ready for 10 gallon batches. No need to stray from the cooler, at least in my case. Stir until I hit mash temp, shut cooler lid and come back in one hour.
 
I know it's very exciting to thumb through a catalog and pick out the goodies you want. We all do it to some degree. IMO, I would diy a 15.5 keg and 10 gallon beverage cooler (with copper manifold or ss braid). Those 2 are the biggies. Adding the extras on a kettle is a matter of personal choice, valve, sight tube and temp. gauge, etc... Also a LP burner and 2 plastic buckets. You now have what it takes to start for a brew day. Welcome to AG!
 
Hank_McGee said:
Hi,
I have done a lot of extract brewing but i finally think its time to get into all grain brewing.. I am looking to get a setup and have been looking at northernbrewer, etc. what caught my eye is something like this, http://www.midwestsupplies.com/8-gallon-all-grain-commercial-quality-kettle-kit.html it looks top line and ive heard only good things from people who are willing to drop the money and upgrade from a cooler.. anyone have any suggestions on ALL equipment i need for all grain batches and where to get it from? im also curious about standing burners, are they worth it in the gas (i have an electric stove so heating takes forever hence the want of a non cooler all grain system =P).. anyways I am looking to buy the complete setup for all grain brewing and would love some help from experienced, thanks everyone.
:tank:
Click to expand...

Those pots are the "Update International" brand as found on the kitchen websites. Beer companies poke a hole in them, call them a fancy name and double the price.
 
I don't really know what your objective is, but I will offer some thoughts.
I think that you will get more bang for your buck if you consider going BIAB. This will mean that you will need a bigger kettle, but you will also have other opportunities open to you in the future. For instance, I purchased a 20 gallon stainless Bayou Classic kettle with steemer basket for about $180 on Amazon. This would be a fair part of your expense budget, but then you have money to buy a good burner. I purchased the Blichmann Floor Burner at about $150. I do recommend that if you buy this burner, it would be good to buy the extended legs too for the additional $40. If you don't want to spend this much, buy a good Bayou Classic with the Banjo Type burner.
This setup would go a long way to getting you started on all grain. If you don't want to go that route, then I would recommend making a mash tun from a cooler. (They hold temperature well and they are not that expensive). I would also recommend that you buy a kettle (if not going BIAB) of at least 10 gallons. I have purchase two kettles before settling on my 15 gallon kettle for boiling. You will be $ ahead to buy bigger now rather than buying something smaller, then replacing it later. Also, if you don't go BIAB, you might want to have two burners.

If you make some wise choices now, you will be able to get started and have some money left over for other accessories: ball valves, thermometers, wort chillers, hop backs, etc.

Good Luck! Mark
 
I am not that experienced to be any expert on either style, BIAB or mash tun. But I can say that I have had no trouble handling the grain bag for 5-6 gallon brews, which is about 8-10 pounds of grain. After lifting the bag out, you allow it to briefly drain, then rest it in a colander over a pot. After rinsing with some hot water and squeezing the bag, I pour the remaining liquid into the brew pot and boil.
Now a 10 gallon brew is a different story.
I also wish I bought the 15 gallon pot instead of 10 gallons.
 
After reading all the posts and reading all the good ideas I'll put in my 2 cents. When I started brewing extract I bought a 5 gallon aluminum pot and used that for awhile, after about a year I moved to BIAB with a 32qt Bayou Classic aluminum turkey fryer and used my 5 gallon extract pot for "sparging", after a few brews I had realized that using that fryer instead of my stove that it took the same time make 5 gallons of AG as it did extract on my stove and I got to thinking if I can make 5 gallons in 3.5ish hours how much longer will it take to make 10 gallons?

I set out to make a 3 vessel 3 tier system using 3 converted kegs, I added valves from my LHBS and made dip tubes and used a false bottom for the mash tun, I purchased sight glasses and thermometer kits from Brewhardware.com. I built my own stand so I can't say what burner will hold a keg but I spent about $300 to convert the kegs, that would leave you a few hundred to purchase burners (and maybe a mill so you can buy your grain in bulk to save a few more dollars) and you could make 10+ gallons or a big beer without ever wondering if its all gonna fit.

Good luck I hope this helps, remember everyone does whatever works for them so look at what will work for you and if you think you will keep with it go as big as you can now so you are not wasting money by buying bigger later.
 
Lot's of great advice in here for the OP. I'll chime in again, and say to take some time and read through the forums especially the all-grain and equipment sections. You'll probably figure out the type of set up you're leaning towards and then can go from there. I would also suggest making fermentation temperature control a priority especially as we're moving towards spring and summer (hopefully soon).
 
heres what i use for a BK its cheap and big lets you expand to 10 or 15 gallon in the future
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0085ZNXZ6/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

add a weldless fitting your set.
then a for an MLT just get a 10 gallon cooler. never know when you want to brew a big beer

uses your last pot for sparge water and then find a good burner

easy under 360 bucks
 
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