How big a beer can be mashed in

a 5 gallon converted cooler MLT? How many pounds of grain can this rig handle? I wanted to go with a 10 gallon cooler but could not find one.

Regards
Al

A good rule of thumb I've heard is 1.5 quarts of water per pound of grain. So with the 5 gallon cooler you'd get a theoretical maximum of 13 pounds but there's the volume of the grains to take into account so you're going to have a smaller volume.

Are you going to be doing full boils or are you planning something more of a partial mash schedule? You could also cut the batch size down to 3.5 gallon boil and rack to a 3 gallon better bottle.

I think I've maxed out at about 12lbs.

Seek and ye shall find. This link has been referenced several times. Scroll down to the "Can I mash it" section. Enter grain weight and mash ratio and click "Calculate".

Mash Calculator

My advice: go for the 10 gal round cooler or a larger rectangular. If you ever want to make a big ABV brew or 10 gallon batches, you'll want something bigger. My IIPA filled up my 10 gallon almost all the way to the top.

Mash thick, at 1 qt. per lb. and you should be able to get about 14 lbs. of grain in there. Before I moved to a 10 gallon cooler, I could squeeze just over 14 lbs in there.

somewhere between 12-14# will fit in a 5g cooler depending on mash thickness/consistency. it'll work for most 5g batches to sg of about 1.060 if that's not enough find a square igloo cube in 48qt or 72qt. or watch garage sales i found my 10g igloo round for 15 bones this spring

a 5 gallon converted cooler MLT? How many pounds of grain can this rig handle? I wanted to go with a 10 gallon cooler but could not find one.

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I thought the rule was that as soon as you buy a 5 gallon you randomly see a 10 gallon at wal-mart or Home depot the next week.