... want to upgrade from a simple stove stop extract setup to a simple, reliable, and relatively inexpensive BIAB setup....
There's nothing wrong with extract brewing, but you are going to love the taste of fresh all grain beer. I think you're also going to enjoy the BIAB process. It's a great way to brew, and you are wise in your desire to create a simple and reliable rig. That's all you need to make great beer.
...kettle is the best place to start. I highly doubt I will ever want to brew anything more than 5 gallons.... most of you recommend a 15-gallon kettle. Are there any recommendations for the perfect brand or other things I should be looking for?...
I started with a 15gal kettle, and it's one of the best decisions I've made. I've never had a boil over, and I've never had to use foam reducing additives or a spray bottle to fend off a boil over. I've only done 5 gallon batches in it, but if I want to do a bigger batch I have the capacity. So 15gal is a very solid decision.
Get a kettle with a drain valve, or install one yourself. It's just a great thing to have, and well worth its expense. Don't get a kettle with a thermometer. The thermowell/probe extends into the kettle, and can tear your bag unless you
always remember to take measures to avoid that. Being human, you won't
always remember. Make sure you check out
brewhardware.com for your hardware needs. I've had nothing but good experiences dealing with them. I added a brewhardware bulkhead/valve to my kettle, and it has never given me a problem.
Most any 15gal kettle will work, including aluminum kettles (boil water in aluminum before using to brew, to build up a protective layer on the aluminum). Stainless steel is generally considered better, and you can find good deals on a simple stainless kettle from several sources. Shop around.
I assume a burner is straight forward and even the cheapest one will work? Any recommendations or things I should be looking for?
You are correct that even a cheap one can be made to work. I started with a Bayou Classic SP10, an inexpensive burner that came with the kettle I bought. It did work, but man was it annoyingly loud.
I switched to a Bayou Classic
KAB4, and I have been very happy with it. It gives even heating (as opposed to the concentrated jet of the SP10), high heat output, and it is quiet as a mouse.
I built a platform for it, to raise it up to a level where I could drain from the kettle directly into my fermenter, taking advantage of the drain valve in my kettle (and eliminating the need to siphon).
What about the immersion chiller? Is it enough to get one of the pre-made models? Do I need to be concerned of how it fits into the kettle? I assume copper is better than steel? Should I just get the kettle and make my own chiller to fit?
It seems like you have already settled on an immersion chiller, as opposed to a plate or counterflow chiller. I think that's a solid decision. Immersion chillers are super easy to clean, because you only need to clean the outside, and the outside gets sanitized anyway when you immerse it into boiling wort. Plate chillers are notorious for building up difficult to clean crud inside them.
Copper will give you better heat transfer. I made my own
"ribcage" copper immersion chiller to fit my kettle, and it works great. Whether you buy or make, shoot for 50' (or more) of coil in contact with the wort.
What about the bag? I’m experimenting with a generic 24” x 24” mesh bag, but should I invest in a customer made bag or get something larger?
I had a bag custom made for my kettle by
Wilser. It's a high quality product for a very reasonable price, made of fine weave Swiss voile, and it was shipped without delay. I highly recommend a Wilser bag.
You'll see other bag brands that use webbing straps. The straps are actually not desirable. They're not needed for hoisting the bag, because the best way to attach a bag for hoisting is to use a loop of small diameter cord to make a
prusik hitch around the bag just above the grains. That way your attachment point is lower. Webbing straps would put your attachment point way up high after hoisting, making it difficult to reach.
Finally, is there any other equipment that I should be considering?
An overhead anchor point for hoisting your bag after the mash is one of the best upgrades you can make to a BIAB rig. Just hoist the bag, tie it off, and let it drain into the kettle during the entire boil. That way there's no need to squeeze the bag, and by the time you need to dispose of the grains the bag is lightweight and cool. Wilser sells a ratcheting pulley setup that works great, and is well worth its price.
You can start out with store milled grains, but as soon as possible get your own grain mill. Stores typically grind coarse, so people using traditional mash tuns don't get stuck sparges. But BIAB doesn't have that limitation, so grains can be ground much finer, which helps with efficiency. The best value on the market is a
Cereal Killer, driven with a
HF geared drill. A mill gap setting of .025" works very well for BIAB.
I use a kids sleeping bag to
insulate during the mash. It pulls down far enough to also enclose the burner. I typically stay within 1 deg for an hour long mash.
I love my
ChefAlarm thermometer, it's all the automation I need. The remote probe design is great, I can start heating water and go do something else, like grind grain. It will beep me when the water is ready. It has a timer which I use for monitoring mash and boil times, and it has hi/low temp alarms to let me know if temps get out of range during the mash. Its weakness is that the wire to probe junction cannot get wet,
I fixed that by encasing it in some high temp heat shrink tubing.
Thanks for your input and advice!
You are welcome. Post back here to let us know how it goes.
