Equipment Upgrade

Hi everyone...Long time no post for me - life I guess. Still brewing and considering an equipment upgrade from partial mash / glass carboys to all grain stainless steel.

Is there a threat floating around regarding recommended setups / techniques? Major concerns of mine are transferring via pump to each subsequent vessel then finally to keg in the end.

I'm having trouble finding existing threads in either the DIY section or equipment section.

Obviously before I shell out the cash I'd like to have an understanding of what I should expect - workflow etc...

many thanks in advance!

One approach may be to split your planned upgrade into two parts. You could focus on switching to all grain first and continue using your glass carboys, and once you've got that down, start looking into your fermenter upgrade.

Good luck!

You can carbonate in carboys and then transfer to a serving keg without pumps, just use Co2 to push the beer out.
But if you don't have temperature controlled fermentation or a kegging set up, I'd do that before any other upgrades.

Are you looking to go to a 3 vessel system? Coolers or direct fire? Your explanation seemed kind of vague.

And I would second the idea to split your upgrades up, you'll have changes to work out and it'll be easier to work them out one step at a time.

To me these are 2 separate things. The hot side (all grain vs extract) and the cold side (carboys vs stainless fermentor).

I wouldn't be in a huge hurry to replace the carboys. The only downside is the safety aspect which is why I ferment in 5 liter demijohns rather than carboys. But that aside carboys tick all the boxes - easy to clean/sanitise, good seal, not oxygen permeable etc.

On the hot side theminimum you need is a 10 gallon pot (for 5gallon batches) and a BIAB bag, possibly a larger gas burner if your current one isn't big enough. If you start with that you can always add extra gear later.

at this point i've been using the carboys since 2007, and much like my transition from bottling to kegging, I want to move away from carboys to something easier to clean and a little easier to work with (my opinion). I do like the suggestion to make it a two part move....but I want to upgrade to equipment for all grain that i could take the next step without completely replacing everything. I've also considered BIAB.

but thanks ya'll - i was looking at it as a huge load of money to drop on everything all at once...which would be great if i were to pick up one of the high end automated systems, but I don't have that kinda money. I think really what i need to do is upgrade my kettle for full BIAB boils - a conical vessel - and temperature control.

One part of me wants to get a cheap 2nd hand fridge and the other half wants to pick up some of the climate controlled vessels by Ss Brewing.

Decisions decisions.

Thanks for the suggestions guys!

As far as the fermentation side I highly recommend the fastferment conical fermenter. It has most of the advantages of a SS fermenter at a fraction of the cost. Trub removal for single vessel fermentation and easy yeast harvesting.

Dextersmom said:

Hi everyone...Long time no post for me - life I guess. Still brewing and considering an equipment upgrade from partial mash / glass carboys to all grain stainless steel.

Is there a threat floating around regarding recommended setups / techniques? Major concerns of mine are transferring via pump to each subsequent vessel then finally to keg in the end.

I'm having trouble finding existing threads in either the DIY section or equipment section.

Obviously before I shell out the cash I'd like to have an understanding of what I should expect - workflow etc...

many thanks in advance!

Click to expand...

You dont really hae to shell out a lot of cash.. there are inexpensive Dc food grade pumps good for boiling temps that pump up to 5GPM.. Ive been using the 3gpm versions of these for years..

http://www.ebay.com/itm/301933987454?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

I have the fast ferment and 3 stainless conicals.. I used the fast ferment once and havent used it again.. While its a step up from a carboy for sure it also doesnt quite work as well as a stainless conical IMO either. the yeast sticks to the sidewalls and theres no side valve. and the top seal gets a lot of complaints. its also not easy to control temps on.

augiedoggy said:

I have the fast ferment and 3 stainless conicals.. I used the fast ferment once and havent used it again.. While its a step up from a carboy for sure it also doesnt quite work as well as a stainless conical IMO either. the yeast sticks to the sidewalls and theres no side valve. and the top seal gets a lot of complaints. its also not easy to control temps on.

Click to expand...

This is great info. A few weeks back I almost pulled the trigger on the ff. Something about the plastic turned me off to it.
I'm gonna wait until my move then pick up stainless steel... Not sure if piece at a time or one large purchase. But I've got around 7 years invested in the hobby so I don't believe it'll be a wasted purchase.

I don't think any one thread will come close to giving you all the options available. I agree that you have 2 different things going on. A switch to all grain which could be a simple as buying an all grain BIAB bag, using your existing pots. And upgrading your fermentation.

There are almost infinite variations on equipment for all grain from small BIAB to multi-barrel All electric rigs. You will have to research and see what fits your needs best. I feel this will require that you look at many threads, read books, look at youtube videos etc.

Good luck on your expansion.

I recently acquired a Speidel 60 liter plastic fermenter. Love it. Holds pressure. Easy to clean. Modified with a thermowell and ss ball valve and dip tube for transfers.

Light enough for me to lift with 12 gallons of beer in it.

Very easy to clean!

That's some heavy lifting