2 Keggle or 2 Keggle + Cooler?

[Imburr]

I currently have 2 keggles. One is a boil kettle with a thermometer and spigot at the bottom, and the pipe inside is not downturn for some reason. The second keggle has a sight glass, thermometer, and a downturn pipe and false bottom.

My intention was to mash in the keggle, but I am reading and having second thoughts. My process was going to be:

Heat water in mash keggle, add grain. Heat sparge water in boil keggle and put in temporary cooler to batch sparge. Runoff back into boil keggle, which I would flame up once full.

Would it make more sense to get a cooler for mashing? Problem is that I have this keggle with false bottom which would not fit into a cooler, so I would have to spend more to change. I suppose I could use my 5-gallon stainless pot for sparge water? Or I could buy and convert a 10-gallon cooler and pour my sparge water into it to keep it hot, then runoff into boil keggle?

Just trying to figure out the best way... I would hate to waste this false bottom in my keggle. Any input?

 

[BeardedBrews]

Mashing in the keg seems like a fine plan, and your plan with the cooler as a temporary hlt should work too. You can fire up the kettle with the first running from the mash while you do the second batch sparge.

Good luck!

 

[InLimbo]

How are you planning on maintaining temps while mashing in a keggle? Unless youre going to build a HERMS or RIMS setup between the keggles, I would use one keggle for hot liquor tank, one for boiling, and mash in a cooler.