Questions about All Grain.

I just received a nice amount of extra cash...Much more than I was expecting. So I now have the means to go all grain.

How ever due to a lot of rain through out the year (on the coast) boiling out side is not an option. So I need to come up with a way to do it inside (in more than one brew pot) on the kitchen stove.

That presents some challenges...

Anyone doing this? Any suggestions are welcome.

BierMuncher seems to be comfy with brewing in his basement so you might want to see if he chimes in.

I don't have a basement.

It all depends on what your stove is capable of. I do AG in my apt kitchen, but my stove can get 6.5 gallons of wort to boil.

I brew in the garage under the open door.

PseudoChef said:

It all depends on what your stove is capable of. I do AG in my apt kitchen, but my stove can get 6.5 gallons of wort to boil.

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Does the burner support the weight? At 10 Lbs per gallon...that would be 65 Lbs. Or do you need to support the weight by other means?

Don't have a garage.

I do the same as PseudoChef. If your stove is up to it you can do it in the kitchen.

Go electric.

http://jimsbeerkit.co.uk/mashing.htm

It looks to me like he is boiling in a plastic bucket, am I seeing that right? Must be some good plastic.

Maybe I just had to many beers.......

you could by a canopy and attach some tarps that would keep you dry

Section1 said:

It looks to me like he is boiling in a plastic bucket, am I seeing that right? Must be some good plastic.

Maybe I just had to many beers.......

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Lots of brewers do it in the UK.

We can't get turkey fryers over here.

Nick -- I am in a similar boat in the winter -- too cold to brew outside. So I just use two pots on the stove and split my boil. It isn't as bad as it sounds.

If possible, I would suggest getting two 5 gallon aluminum pots. They conduct heat much better than SS, and when boiling on a stove top, that might make all the difference in the world. Don't go too small or you will regret it!

Your best bet might be to look for cheap turkey fryer kits. I saw them at SuperStore on clearance here recently for $30. That's cheaper than the 30 qt pot they come with (plus you will have a couple burners for boiling outdoors in the summer). You could also try a restaurant supply store (or even Canadian Tire) for inexpensive aluminum pots.

I did split boils for a long time in my kitchen. A couple of things to keep in mind-

Your first runnings are very high in sugars. Very high sg's affect hops utilization, so what I did was run off half in one brew kettle, then the other. Then did half the sparge runnings in one kettle then the other. This made the boils just about equal, and then I split the hops half and half. Also, with two kettles, your boil off rate will be doubled. So, you might want to boil 3.5 gallons in each kettle to start, for example, to end up with 2.5 gallons in each when it's over.

It's easier to cool two 2.5 gallon pots, too. I had a double sink, so I used an ice bath in both sinks and used my wort chiller in one, then the other. Cooling was fast!

I have a really nice gas stove. Before you try this, I suggest have two big kettles with 3.5 gallons of water in them and try to boil them. If one takes alot longer than the other, you might have to adjust your hopping or boiling time. Mine was no problem at all.

I had pretty darn good efficiency doing it this way since I was boiling over 7 gallons to start. This worked until I bought a bigger pot but I still boil on my stove. I do all my brewing inside. I made up a goofy "brew sculpture". My hot water on the stove, the MLT on a stool, the kettle on the floor, etc. It works for me.

Mr Nick said:

Does the burner support the weight? At 10 Lbs per gallon...that would be 65 Lbs. Or do you need to support the weight by other means?

Don't have a garage.

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Water weighs 8 lbs per gallon so 6.5 gal. x 8 = 52 lbs.

Go buy one of those pavilions/canopies you see at walmart. You'll likely use it again. Besides, it can't rain all day, every day, otherwise you'd be evacuating! You can probably sneak a quick brew in when you get good weather, and besides, a little rain never hurt anyone, as long as it's not a torrential downpour

There have been some very helpful replies to this thread...I trust those who were helpful know who you are...I am grateful.

orfy said:

Lots of brewers do it in the UK.

We can't get turkey fryers over here.

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God Bless America, Land that I Love! Stand By Her, And Beside Her, Blah blah blahhhh blah blah blahhhhh blah blah blahhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Orfy, you totally need to come over here just to buy things to bring back. Come here just for a day and come home with a couple grain mills, a turkey fryer, and whatever else they don't sell there.

Fly into Chicago. I'll come pick you up!

You could augment the heat from your stove with that of one or more heatsticks. They are easy to make, but you must know that there are precautions to be taken, not the least of which is the use of a GFCI receptacle. If you are going to brew in your kitchen that is most likely not a problem, since modern kitchen circuits, by code, are GFCI-protected. For more information on building heatsticks, just Google them.

ScubaSteve said:

Go buy one of those pavilions/canopies you see at walmart. You'll likely use it again. Besides, it can't rain all day, every day, otherwise you'd be evacuating! You can probably sneak a quick brew in when you get good weather, and besides, a little rain never hurt anyone, as long as it's not a torrential downpour

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By far the best piece of advice on this tread IMHO. I've seen them as low as $87 US. Just be sure to tie the thing down. I learned that lesson the hard way.

Sorry I'm just not a fan of electric brewing. Or trying to do it in the kitchen unless you happen to be single or your spouse likes beer and brewing as much or more than you.

Don't worry about the weight on a good propane burner. I start my boil with 12 gal. and a keggle total weight is well over 110 lbs.

If you are still concerned test it with cold water first!