Small scale BIAB.

[BadKarma]

I'm a small scale brewer. I've brewed 5 gallon batches for years. But now, I've switched to 2.5 gallons and smaller. It seems to me that the full size bags are a bit of overkill. Does anyone know of a smaller bag that would be a bit more manageable for my operation?

Thanks folks, I don't know what I'd do without this forum and this community.

Karma

 

[GoeHaarden]

I bet @wilserbrewer can fix you up...

 

[Leezer]

+1 to wilserbrewer bags. I also brew 2.5 gal batches and smaller. Used to use paint strainer bags, but I’m much happier with the wilserbrewer bag custom made to fit my kettle.

 

[InspectorJon]

When I first started BIAB I also used the paint strainer bags. They were cheap and worked. Wilser bags have a great reputation if you want to buy better quality. Staying in the home made spirit of home brewing I made a nice bag using these instructions. Pretty easy if you are familiar with a sewing machine or know someone that is. I have been using the one I made for a few years now. I bought some sheer curtains at a second hand store for a couple dollars and some fabric ribbon like this. I used the polyester ribbon on all the seams.

 

[AlexKay]

Wilser bag for 6” OD asparagus steamer. Banana and iPad for scale:

Perfect for those 1 liter batches (which need 5/8 gallon mashes.)

 

[AlexKay]

(Asparagus steamer because a tall thin pot is what you need to minimize boil-off, and boil-off is the enemy of very small batches. Along with mash temperature stability.)

 

[BadKarma]

Thanks yall. Message sent.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

boil-off is the enemy of very small batches.

Very small batches are typically long gone before the enemy can detect them.

mash temperature stability.

This is a "solved problem" in the 1 gal batch range.

 

[BadKarma]

I use a 4 gallon for 2.5gal batches and 3 gal pot for 1.5 gal. And I don't boil unsupervised.

I also have my old 5gal and 8gal, as backup.

 

[Kickass]

I’m a “The Brew Bag” guy. They’ll customize to your kettle.

https://www.brewinabag.com/products/the-brew-bag-for-kettles

 

[user 301693]

I use these bags for 2.5 gal BIAB batches with a 4 or 5 gallon kettle on a stovetop. The bags are a little big, but they work fine to mash 4 or 5 pounds of grain and 3.5 gal of water in my 5 gallon kettle:

Monkkino 22 x 26 Brew Bags

They also make a 16" x 18" bag that I used in the 4 gal kettle.

Hope it helps

 

[CascadesBrewer]

Does anyone know of a smaller bag that would be a bit more manageable for my operation?

I recently picked up a bag from Wilser custom fit for my 5-gallon kettle. It is very nice!

Before that I mostly used a cheap bag I got from my local homebrew shop. It might have been made more for fruit as the mesh was fairly coarse, but it worked okay. I have used my full size bag in my 5-gallon kettle. Lots of extra material, but it has worked okay as well.