I will be brewing my first AG beer (nut brown) next weekend, and I need some advice with the volumes. I have a recipy which calls for 11.75 lbs of grain (total). Mash volume is 14.69 qt. I doubt that my 5 gal cooler is big enough for it. Upgrading to a 10 gal cooler is not an option for now. I know that some people (including Papazian) are talking about 1 qt to 1 lb ratio, and this recipy requires more water. So what if I reduce these 14.69 qt to 3 or even 2.5 gal? What will it change? Also, based on your experience, what is the maximum grain weight a 5 gal cooler can take?