Need some advice for indoors brewing - any help much appreciated!

[Rev2010]

I so brewed for about 5 years, 4 of those years all grain. I lived in a house and would mash indoors, then take the filled kettle outside and boil on a Blichmann burner, cool with chiller connected to garden hose, then take back inside and transfer to fermenter. My ex wife and I divorced 2 years ago and I've been in an apartment since and haven't brewed as I didn't want to do batches less then 5 gallons. I know it can be done and I'm itching badly to return to brewing so I want to give it a try.

What is the best way to do 5 gallon batches (say boil 7 gallons) on the stovetop? I know about heat sticks, I'm guessing the gas stove plus one heat stick would be sufficient? If so, does anyone have a recommendation for one that I can buy online? (I don't want to build my own). Also, what's the deal with the Blichmann Electric boilcoil systems? I see they sell them in 120v but from what I've gleaned online 120v is just not enough for a full 7 gallon starting boil. Are they meant for pluging into 2x120v rails?

Thanks again for any help you can lend.

Rev.

 

[flars]

Do you want to stay with all grain and full volume boils? I do everything in my kitchen for extract and partial mash except the fermentation.

 

[Kent88]

When I lived in an apartment I just parked one vehicle in visitor parking or on the street for a few hours and boiled on the turkey fryer burner in my outside parking space. Got a few funny looks, but nobody complained. Not sure if that is an option for you, though.

Otherwise, if you have the space on your stove top, maybe just split up the wort into two kettles and boil them side-by-side? I've seen videos of DonO doing that, but I think part of his reason (besides too much wort for his biggest kettle) was that it increases the surface area and speeds up evaporation. He says he doesn't notice any defects associated with hot-side aeration even though he combines them during or immediately after the boil.

 

[Rev2010]

Do you want to stay with all grain and full volume boils? I do everything in my kitchen for extract and partial mash except the fermentation.

Yep, stay all grain and full volume boils. I could of course split the batch and boil in two kettles, only issue I forsee is having to cool them both after flameout. Plus then I have to clean two kettles.

I see a bunch of people using the Grainfather, just wondering how sparging goes with that all-in-one type setup.


Rev.

 

[mirthfuldragon]

Yep, stay all grain and full volume boils. I could of course split the batch and boil in two kettles, only issue I forsee is having to cool them both after flameout. Plus then I have to clean two kettles.

I see a bunch of people using the Grainfather, just wondering how sparging goes with that all-in-one type setup.

I have done 6g batches using a single pot and sequential boils, using an HDPE plastic bucket as a fermentor. The plastic is good to boiling temperatures, so you can empty a boiling pot into it without any issues, then start the second boil in the same pot.

Regarding the grainfather, you can pull up the grain basket and then sparge through it using pre-heated water. It's really a nifty design and in retrospect I should have bought one to begin with and been done with it all. By the time I get done buying and building things, it would have been the same price or a bit cheaper, honestly (but don't tell my wife . . .).

 

[Rev2010]

Regarding the grainfather, you can pull up the grain basket and then sparge through it

It's also possible to vorlauf too yes?

 

[bleme]

I do 5-gallon all-grain batches on my kitchen stove. I found a pot that was wide enough to almost cover 2 burners, then use heavy-duty aluminum foil to make a skirt around the pot and capture the heat up the sides. It just takes a long time to temperature - about 45 minutes to get to mash temp and another 45 minutes to get to boil. I figure if I supplement with a heat stick, I could shave 40 minutes off my brew day but I haven't pulled the trigger yet.

The Blichmann boilcoil does have a 120v variety. That will get you to boil (like the Grainfather), but it will also take a while.

 

[Veets]

It's also possible to vorlauf too yes?

Yes. Or continually recirculate.

 

[TurnipGreen]

I was doing all grain, full-boil 6 gallon batched in my kitchen up until this winter on a gas stove. About four years. It made the house smell fantastic! To me anyway, wifey didn’t like it much.

The boil is not near as vigorous and you have to open windows and doors to manage the boil off.

That said using a spare parking space sounds way easier. I’m glad I don’t have to clean up all the mess in the kitchen anymore.

 

[Novacor]

I do 5 gallon BIAB batches on my stovetop. I have a pot that fits over 2 burners and it let's me get 6 gallons of wort to a gentle boil. Takes about half an hour to get up to strike temp, then another half hour to bring it to a boil. It's a bit slow, but I've never brewed outside so that's just what I'm used to.

 

[yowzers]

I do BIAB in two 5 gallon pots, roughly 3 gallons in each pot. One is on my glass top stove and one on a $45 induction burner. Works great and I like moving 3 gallons at a time better than 6 gallons. Once you practice a couple times, you can do two pots in almost the same time as one large one. I stagger then 5 or 10 minutes.

 

[Rev2010]

I do BIAB in two 5 gallon pots, roughly 3 gallons in each pot. One is on my glass top stove and one on a $45 induction burner. Works great and I like moving 3 gallons at a time better than 6 gallons.

When you do that, how do you cool the beer down? Do you move both volumes into one full size pot then cool with a wort chiller? That's what I'm wondering here. I'm not too keen on the idea of yet another pot to clean (and store). But yes, splitting the batch among two pots seems the absolute easiest.

*EDIT - nevermind the above question. Just realized I could simply start one kettle 15-20 minutes later and chill both with the same chiller slightly apart.


Rev.

 

[FloppyKnockers]

eBIAB? I do full volume in the kitchen (without the stove).

 

[bpgreen]

I've always brewed indoors for a variety of reasons. I've mostly done extract and partial mashes, adding most (or all) of the extract at the end. I wasn't doing full volume boils, but I probably could have done them if I had split the batch into multiple pots.

I'd usually chill by putting the pot into a sink that was filled with an ice slurry (ice and water). If I wanted to chill faster, I'd salt the ice (salt causes ice to melt, but the reaction actually lowers the temperature). I'd top off in the fermenter with ice water. I also rigged up a pump to recirculate ice water through an immersion chiller, but I didn't use that often because the ice slurry worked ok.

I recently bought a Brewers Edge Mash & Boil. It plugs into a 110 outlet and does full volume 5 gallon batches. I had lost some of my parts for the recirculation system, so for my last batch, I did it no-chill style, but I've fixed the pump and will use the immersion chiller on the next batch.

 

[Rev2010]

eBIAB? I do full volume in the kitchen (without the stove).

Using 120v? If so, what equipment are you using? I'd love to go electric, just really wish we had 240v here in the US. I know 120v works but from what I've read it's a slow process reaching temps and boils can still be somewhat tame. So far I'm thinking of going with a 10G kettle covering 2 stove top burners and if that doesn't do it fully I can use a heat stick. But boy would I love to go electric.


Rev.

 

[bpgreen]

Using 120v? If so, what equipment are you using? I'd love to go electric, just really wish we had 240v here in the US. I know 120v works but from what I've read it's a slow process reaching temps and boils can still be somewhat tame. So far I'm thinking of going with a 10G kettle covering 2 stove top burners and if that doesn't do it fully I can use a heat stick. But boy would I love to go electric.


Rev.

The Mash & Boil or the Robobrew should work. The M&B has 1600 watts and the robobrew has 1500 watts, so they can take a while to come to boiling. The robobrew is a bit more expensive, but it includes a chiller. I think there's also a version of the robobrew that includes a recirculating pump. That's not an option with the mash and boil, but a lot of people add their own.

 

[imasickboy]

FWIW, your kitchen, by code, should have 2 outlets, on separate breakers, 20A each, I believe. If you were to build an e-kettle with two 120v elements, they could be plugged into each of the outlets, and give the full power a full boil will need. No stove needed.

Alternatively, slap a 120v element in a pot, and use your stove for the extra power when needed.

 

[FloppyKnockers]

^^ This.

I have a 10 gallon kettle with two 120v elements. Each element has a power cord. Each cord is plugged into its own circuit. When I want to get up to strike temp or boil, both elements are plugged in with the lid on. It doesn't take that long to get to temp. 7-8 gallons at 40° - 166° in about 45 minutes. From 155° to boil in about a half hour. When I'm up to temp I unplug one element and leave the other one to boil which is plenty.

 

[Staticsouls]

Seriously if you wanna brew anywhere electric is the way to go. I use 2 elements and regularly boil 12 gallon boils, you should be totally fine for 5 gallons

 

[Rev2010]

Thanks so much guys that is very helpful! The two 120v option is definitely the way I'd like to go. Last question I guess would be which electric kettles out there support two 120v connections? Also, just wondering, is there any circuit breaker tripping with the heating element on if the refrigerator compressor kicks on? I'm guessing the answer is no.


Rev.

 

[Staticsouls]

I don't have anything plugged into those circuits.

 

[Rev2010]

Been searching around and came across the Robobrew v3. Really thinking I just may go that route.

 

[FloppyKnockers]

Thanks so much guys that is very helpful! The two 120v option is definitely the way I'd like to go. Last question I guess would be which electric kettles out there support two 120v connections? Also, just wondering, is there any circuit breaker tripping with the heating element on if the refrigerator compressor kicks on? I'm guessing the answer is no.


Rev.

I've got a DIY set-up. a few holes in the kettle for a valve and a couple elements, a length of cord, a couple plug ends, two single-gang boxes, and some -o-rings and you're in business.

As far as circuit load, I've never had that problem. Although my refrigerator is on a different circuit, I have used my suck-n-seal while the kettle elements were in use with no problems. I wouldn't go running the microwave or vacuum on the same circuit though.

 

[imasickboy]

The 2 separate circuits should be near your coutertops. They are meant, (codewise), to be for small kitchen appliances that draw a lot of juice, like mixers, blenders, toaster ovens, etc. There will likely be nothing else on those circuits that you have to worry about.

 

[NTexBrewer]

Most kitchens should also have a dedicated circuit for the garbage disposal and dishwasher. I bought a plug switch for the garbage disposal. On brew day I turn off the garbage disposal at the plug. I then can plug my uncontrolled element into the garbage disposal plug and use the garbage disposal switch to turn on and off the element. My second element is controlled by a BrauSupply controller. I installed a light up switch so I have a visual reminder that the element is on.

 

[SpeedYellow]

I've brewed in my kitchen for 25 years now using two pots. Advantage is that it gets up to boil fast (since you're using two burners) and the kettles are dirt cheap (I use a 5-gal plus a 4-gal). Disadvantage is 3 minutes added cleaning time, plus 15 minutes added immersion cooler time.

If I could get a pot to cover two burners, that would be great except for having to drop $100-$200 on it.

 

[catdaddy66]

I have used my front large burner to boil 7.25 gallons of wort for ten years or more. My mashtun sits on my dining room table 6 steps away. I keep the path clear, make sure to use oven mitts and carry 4-7.25 gallons back and forth.

My stove is electric and takes less than 30 minutes to heat strike/sparge water and 45-50 to boil after mashout.