What's the biggest beer I can my with my MLT

I have a 48 qt MLT and I want to start moving up to 10 gallon batches. What's the largest grain bill I can fit in there with a batch sparge?

I have a 10 gallon MLT and I max out at right about 25# of grain or about 1.060 for a 10 gallon batch. You should be able to get 30# or so in yours and hit around 1.068 or so.

Midway down on the Green Bay Racker's Site is a calculator called "Can I Mash It?" You can input your grainbill and it will tell you what size mlt you'll need.

Green Bay Rackers--Mash Calculators

If you get decent efficiency, you should be able to make 11 gallons of 1.070 at least that's what I've been able to get out of a 48qt.

AARGH!!!

Am I the only one here that thinks, "Go down to Wal-Mart and get a 72 or 150 quart MT!!! Geez!" anytime someone worries about having enough MT space?

Sorry, but I'm stuck overseas serving Uncle Sam, and unfortunately the base doesn't even bother with stocking anything decent. How I wish I could get to a local Wally World or Target so easily. The only thing that saves me is that I bought a Coleman 72qt Ultra before I was tossed at the land of the rising sun.

So if you're concerned about mashing a 10 gallon 1.120 brew, then UPRGRADE, DUDE! I know, money doesn't grow on trees and my GI salary doesn't let me get a SABCO Brew Magic, but I think $35 for a 72qt cooler at Wally World is in the realm of affordability. And any way, if you're planning on doing big 10 gallon batches, you should have at least 70 quarts to start with. That's the pain - you upgrade the BK to 10 gallon batches, suddenly everything else needs to feed that monster. I don't completely envy the 20-40 gallon brewers...
-keith

Am I the only one here that thinks, "Go down to Wal-Mart and get a 72 or 150 quart MT!!! Geez!" anytime someone worries about having enough MT space?

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I'm not worried, I'm not looking to make huge beer, and I don't want to buy new gear. Thus the simplicity of my question, what will my currect equipment get me. I like to work within my means.

jacksonbrown said:

I'm not worried, I'm not looking to make huge beer, and I don't want to buy new gear. Thus the simplicity of my question, what will my currect equipment get me. I like to work within my means.

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I had the same type of question about my new gear that I am putting together. I am not necessarily wanting to make big beers, and if I do, I can always do smaller batch sizes, or augment with DME, but it is nice to know, for
an average run-off, what the capacity of the gear is.

I have a ten gallon and get 78% efficiency on mid range beers (1.040 - 1.055) and that drops to about 67% on higher gravity beers (1.070 and above).

I hit the ceiling on ten gallon batches at about 1.070 but my 4.5 gallon barley wine hit 1.112 and my 5-gallon RIS hit 1.088 with no problems.

24# is about the max in my 10 gallon and yours is 20% bigger so...

jacksonbrown said:

I'm not worried, I'm not looking to make huge beer, and I don't want to buy new gear. Thus the simplicity of my question, what will my currect equipment get me. I like to work within my means.

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Yeah, sorry, I didn't mean that half as harsh as it sounds looking at what I wrote now. I was just lamenting the fact that stores here don't carry stuff that's as easily adapted to homebrewing. Ah well, I blame the alcohol!
-keith

I recall one our members making a 10 gallon Russian Imperial Stout with 48 pounds of grain at 1.25 quarts/pound grain. This is 18.84 gallons of mash before adding 1 1/2" to 2" (adding 2" will bring the volume to 20.44 gallons or 1.248" before the keg sides start to curve towards the top of the keg). No way would this batch fit into a 15.5 gallon keg unless making a half volume batch of 5 gallons which sucks for the about the same labor you can make 10. Better to build a system correct and once for all your your volume needs, boil pot size included. I figured on making 15.5 kegs taller to the volume of 22 gallons preventing being limited under 10 gallons during big bill batches. Smaller biers no problem. Cheaper to design and build what I want once than being unhappy and stepping up in size shortly. JMO's.