10 gal batch cooler size
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Axegod
Well-Known Member
If you fly/continous sparging, you will be on the low side. I tried a 10G batch in a 36 qrt and found it quite small (with a grain bill of about 22 lbs).
I am assuming 1.070 10G will run you around 28 lbs...which would leave you with
almost barely any room to do a dough in. Even if you do the dough in...mash out will be impossible.
I made my 36 qrt a HLT - and use a 48 for the mashtun - I have lots of room in this now.
quick calcuation: 28 lbs of grain with 1.2 qrts water/grain ratio gives dough in of 35 qrts.....ie) no room for the grain
I am not sure about batch sparging.
I am assuming 1.070 10G will run you around 28 lbs...which would leave you with
almost barely any room to do a dough in. Even if you do the dough in...mash out will be impossible.
I made my 36 qrt a HLT - and use a 48 for the mashtun - I have lots of room in this now.
quick calcuation: 28 lbs of grain with 1.2 qrts water/grain ratio gives dough in of 35 qrts.....ie) no room for the grain
I am not sure about batch sparging.
With a 5g cooler, I can make a 5g batch of > 1.070 beer with a mash out and fly sparging. Using simple arithmetic, this shout translate to 10g batch of > 1.070 beer in a 10g cooler.
Now for the catch. I am very close to capacity with 13 lbs grain, and I get efficiency of about 85% There wouldn't be enough room for sparge water if you batch sparge, and not enough room for the grain if your efficiency is much lower than mine.
I'd go for about 60 qt, which should be good.
-a.
Now for the catch. I am very close to capacity with 13 lbs grain, and I get efficiency of about 85% There wouldn't be enough room for sparge water if you batch sparge, and not enough room for the grain if your efficiency is much lower than mine.
I'd go for about 60 qt, which should be good.
-a.
Put it this way:
It'll take right at 10g to mash 30# with a 1:1 ratio. That's no room for sparging. Batch sparging has the edge there, but I'd recommend you get a larger cooler. The Ice Cube at 12.5g works well for me, but as it's getting old, I'm eyeing the bigger one, think it's 15g. Hopefully that would give me about 40# with room. It doesn't cost that much more to get a bigger cooler, and if you use the Ice Cube geometry you don't have to worry so much about footprint vs bed depth.
It'll take right at 10g to mash 30# with a 1:1 ratio. That's no room for sparging. Batch sparging has the edge there, but I'd recommend you get a larger cooler. The Ice Cube at 12.5g works well for me, but as it's getting old, I'm eyeing the bigger one, think it's 15g. Hopefully that would give me about 40# with room. It doesn't cost that much more to get a bigger cooler, and if you use the Ice Cube geometry you don't have to worry so much about footprint vs bed depth.
Pabst Blue Robot
Well-Known Member
FWIW, I use a 52 qt. and can comfortable hold 26 lbs of grain with a 1.25 ratio. You could hit 1.070 with that if you're efficiency was decent.
Lil' Sparky
Cowboys EAC
Sure, lots of people use converted kegs (15.5 gal), including myself, and large coolers for 5 gal batches. That's the beauty of a system w/ enough volume to do standard 5 gal batches and 10 gal batches when you want.
You do need to try and maximize the geometry to your average brew. Too narrow a mash tun will make for an overly thick grain bed and be prone to stuck sparges. I've heard of concerns for oxidization when the opposite happens and you have a large surface area, but I'm not sure how valid that is.
Bottom line, no mash tun can do everything, but if you know that your normal brews are, build in some breathing room there, and then if you jsut have to do a monster beer either figure something else out or do a 5g batch.
Bottom line, no mash tun can do everything, but if you know that your normal brews are, build in some breathing room there, and then if you jsut have to do a monster beer either figure something else out or do a 5g batch.
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