NB 10 Gallon rubbermaid vs Midwest Supplies

I am looking at getting a 10 gallon rubbermaid MLT setup and see that both Northern Brewer and Midwest supplies offers similar products. Just wondering if anyone has any feedback on either.

NB's is more expensive and does not include a false bottom. I am concerned about the false bottom that Midwest Supplies includes with their setup as the price point seems pretty low. I believe NB's total setup w/ a false bottom is around $159 and Midwest is selling theirs for $119.00.

I dont mind spending a bit more for a better product

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

you set on round or would you want to go coleman xtreme and braid setup with basic batch sparging, much cheaper

joeunc said:

you set on round or would you want to go coleman xtreme and braid setup with basic batch sparging, much cheaper

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+1, Unless your hell bent on fly sparging, the shallow rectangular coolers (like the Coleman extreme) give you much more bang for the buck. Install a simple bulkhead and braid and your all set up for batch sparging.

I got a cooler from Home Depot for ~$35 or so when it was on sale, and a stainless false bottom from NB for $50. I forget how much the shank and valve from bargainfittings was, but I believe the sum of all the parts was around $100-$120.

nebben said:

I got a cooler from Home Depot for ~$35 or so when it was on sale, and a stainless false bottom from NB for $50. I forget how much the shank and valve from bargainfittings was, but I believe the sum of all the parts was around $100-$120.

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Yeah I have been looking in to building my own and unfortunately I have only been able to find the 5 gallon at my local home depots, so I would have to pay shipping on the 10gl ( i live 30 minutes from NB and Midwest supplies). Also I have read that it can be tricky to find some of the SS parts. The Midwest supplies version comes with a SS false bottom, I'm just not sure what the quality of it is.

To the others, I would rather not limit myself to batch sparging. I will be starting out with batch but would like to have the flexibilty to go to fly sparging if necessary. Also, doesnt a round cooler with a deeper grain bed typically get better efficiency?

knelson said:

Also, doesnt a round cooler with a deeper grain bed typically get better efficiency?

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Bed depth is really not a concern when batch sparging. Also, manifold design is not as big a deal when batch sparging. If your fly sparging you will want a deep grain bed and the false bottom. If your batch sparging then neither of those are very important. This makes batch sparging equipment potentially less expensive.