75qt Cooler for $30 -- good deal?

[poley]

(edited -- got confused between 75 can and 75 quart. i'm pretty sure it's 58qt, 75 can)

Hi all,

I found a 58qt coleman on sale for $30 tonight at Wal-Mart. It had the spigot on one end with a depression inside leading to the spigot hole.

1. Is this a decent style cooler to make a mash/lauter tun from?
2. Is this a good price?

Thanks!

 

[Suthrncomfrt1884]

Coolers all vary. Can you get us a link to the walmart site so we can look at it? It really depends on how insulated it is. That's why so many people go with the 10 gallon round coolers. My old one only drops 1 degree over an hour mash. Home Depot usually sells them for $35-40.

 

[kornbread]

If you're doing 5 gal. batches, Then it may be a little large for a MLT. (in my opinion.) It will probably have too much headspace above the grain which would make it hard to maintain temps.

I have a 48qt cooler and it works great with most of the batches that I make. However, with smaller grain bills, I have to add some Styrofoam insulation over the grain to help keep the heat in the grain.

 

[sudsandswine]

I got a 70 QT Coleman Xtreme cooler at Walmart for $30 (marked down from $40) when I made my MLT. They advertise "cooling" through 5 days, and it seems to hold heat well too. There may be something to say for the extra air headspace dropping the temp a little, but I don't think it's too big of a concern. Once that air warms up, it stays there. I lost maybe 2 degrees over a 60 minute mashing period, and that was with a cold cooler sitting in a 40* garage.

 

[shortyjacobs]

I use a 60 qt Ice Cube from Walmart, also cost me $29.99, (with drain hole, etc.). Holds temps to 1 degree, works very well for 5 gal and 10 gal batches with a cPVC manifold.