Help choosing kettle, HLT, mash tun etc

[guitarguy6]

Hello folks, I am an extract brewer looking to go all grain and want to upgrade my equipment. So far I've done 2 small all grain batches using my stove and small brew pot and it's just not cutting it. A friend of mine is splitting the cost with me and we have around $1000 to spend. I'm in Canada and so far this is what I've picked out for parts:

Kettle: http://www.ontariobeerkegs.com/10_G...ess_Steel_Tall_Kettle_p/10gal-tall-kettle.htm

HLT: http://www.ontariobeerkegs.com/15_Gallon_Brew_Kettle_OntarioBeerKegs_p/15-gallon-2weld.htm

Mash Tun: http://www.ontariobeerkegs.com/10_Gallon_Igloo_Cooler_Cooler_Only_p/10-gal-igloo.htm (I have the parts to DIY)

Some of the recipes I've been looking at have different temps during the mash and was wondering if there's a better way to adjust the temp other than decoction or adding hot water to the mash. Is there something like the brew kettle that will retain heat like the cooler mash tun but will allow me to raise the temp with my burner?

We're also debating between using propane burners and induction. Are there any cons to using the induction burners? We were looking at buying something like this http://www.webstaurantstore.com/ava...r-208-240v-3500-watt/177IC3500 208*240.html

Finally can any Canadians recommend me some homebrew websites to order bulk grain and hops from. I've searched and have found 2row domestic for $50 per 25KG and hops at around $16-25 per LB. Locally my homebrew store charges $70 for 25KG of 2row domestic and hops are sold by the ounce only at $2-3 per ounce.

Is there any difference between the Beersmith software on a mobile device and the desktop versions? Any lacking features? I downloaded the PC trial and love it, just debating which version to buy.

Thanks in advance for any advice. ;D

 

[byrone]

I started with a cooler mlt but now have a 15 gal mlt from brewershardware.com. You may be able to find a similar cooler for cheaper. The kettles look pretty good and can't beat those prices. I use propane and have no complaints except for the price of it.

As far as buying in bulk in Canada, the best I've seen is ontariobeerkegs.com but shipping a 50lbs sack of grain is very expensive. I'm lucky by living in the Niagara Region(Ontario) so I cross into Buffalo and buy my base malt in bulk. Also there's more selection.

I have the desktop SW of Beersmith. I only have the free mobile version of Beersmith on my phone but for me it works because I save my recipes on my desktop and the mobile app can access them(via beersmith cloud).

Hope this helped.

Also if your interested in a completed cooler mlt with blichmann auto-sparge let me know.

 

[Riot]

I just got one of those 15 gallons from OBK and it is awesome. My immediate thoughts are you can get the cooler cheaper than 90 bucks if you look around, and if you get to 15 gallon kettles you would be able to do 10 gallon batches if you ever decide to. Is there a brew club near you? Bulk buys are the way to get cheap malt, on the last one I paid about $25 for Canadian 2 row and $35-50 for most other things.

 

[Brettomomyces]

Some of the recipes I've been looking at have different temps during the mash and was wondering if there's a better way to adjust the temp other than decoction or adding hot water to the mash. Is there something like the brew kettle that will retain heat like the cooler mash tun but will allow me to raise the temp with my burner?

There's a couple different ways to do this. Like you said, adding boiling water or decocting is a simple way that doesn't require any extra equipment. There are some brewing calculators that will figure out the exact amount of boiling water to add to raise your mash.

You could also look into a metal MLT with a false bottom and then you could direct fire it while recirculating, but this also requires you have a pump.

Or you could look at a RIMS tube, that would allow you to raise your mash temp and not require a different MLT, but instead an expensive rims tube, a pump and some electrical DIY.

Or there's HERMS systems, which recirculate the mash liquor through a coil that sits inside the HLT and the mash temp is raised through heat exchange. a HERMS coil will set you back around $100 at least and you would need a pump for this one too.

BUT...at the end of the day most people don't even step mash at all, and this is all extras that won't make or break your brewing.

 

[guitarguy6]

Thanks for the info! I think we definitely want to go with some sort of electric element for the HLT and Kettle but I'm having a hard time tracking down exactly what we need. I found this but it seems pricey http://www.homebrewstuff.com/15-boiling-brew-heater-controller.html Any other similar devices you would recommend?

For now I'll stick to a cooler for the mash tun and upgrade it later if needed. Are there any metal MTL you would recommend?

 

[Brettomomyces]

You could check out this for a pretty bare bones/cheap DIY setup.

http://stilldragon.com/index.php/accessories/diy-controller-kit.html

www.theelectricbrewery.com is a GREAT source of information for doing an electric build, but it may cause you to break out the credit card at the end of the day... The forum has a lot of info and following Kal's build explains a ton about how an ideal electric setup would run.

Blichmann MLTs are awesome, of course...BUT you could always go the keggle route though, especially because you're going electric. With a keggle you can do bottom draining; instead of cutting the top off, you cut the bottom off and the triclover post becomes a drain with a much larger opening. You just need a false bottom. So, keggle with a good false bottom and a couple of ball valves will only run you 150-200 if you can cut it yourself. www.brewhardware.com sells a bottom drain assembly with a shank and a TC fitting for like $24 I think.

 

[guitarguy6]

Thanks for the info. I think we'll stick to the cooler mash tun for now and convert to HERMS down the road. Do you guys bother with a mash out before sparging?