NorCalAngler
Well-Known Member
I have twelve extract/partial mash batches under my belt and I'm trying to plan the next steps to eventually go all grain. I have the following:
5 gallon kettle
25ft copper wort chiller
2x 6.5 gallon primary buckets
1x 5 gallon better bottle secondary
1x bottling bucket
I currently do partial boils on my gas cooktop. It has a 15,000 BTU center burner, which does a pretty good job getting water to boiling temp so I can only imagine what the outdoor 30k+ BTU burners kick out.
I ferment in a water filled rope bucket on the first floor of my house. During the first few days of fermentation I toss in frozen water bottles to keep the temp down. I was thinking about the following purchases in order of priority:
- 30-32qt kettle for full boils - $135
- outdoor burner - $50
- converted cooler for all-grain - $80
- fermentation temperature control - $100 to $150 with temp controller
I don't have a lot of disposable income right now so the kettle is going to hurt a bit. I found a stainless 30qt Polarware with ball valve and thermometer for $135 shipped.
Does this sound about right? Am I missing something? I'm still reluctant to take the next steps because I'm making pretty good beer on my cooktop. There are advantages to how simple my current process is with partial mashes. I can brew indoors while watching TV, the natural gas is cheaper and doesn't run out, I don't have a ton of equipment to deal with and of course it's cheaper in the short run because I don't have to buy all this equipment.
5 gallon kettle
25ft copper wort chiller
2x 6.5 gallon primary buckets
1x 5 gallon better bottle secondary
1x bottling bucket
I currently do partial boils on my gas cooktop. It has a 15,000 BTU center burner, which does a pretty good job getting water to boiling temp so I can only imagine what the outdoor 30k+ BTU burners kick out.
I ferment in a water filled rope bucket on the first floor of my house. During the first few days of fermentation I toss in frozen water bottles to keep the temp down. I was thinking about the following purchases in order of priority:
- 30-32qt kettle for full boils - $135
- outdoor burner - $50
- converted cooler for all-grain - $80
- fermentation temperature control - $100 to $150 with temp controller
I don't have a lot of disposable income right now so the kettle is going to hurt a bit. I found a stainless 30qt Polarware with ball valve and thermometer for $135 shipped.
Does this sound about right? Am I missing something? I'm still reluctant to take the next steps because I'm making pretty good beer on my cooktop. There are advantages to how simple my current process is with partial mashes. I can brew indoors while watching TV, the natural gas is cheaper and doesn't run out, I don't have a ton of equipment to deal with and of course it's cheaper in the short run because I don't have to buy all this equipment.