BIAB - brew kettle and fermenter recommendations

[TestTickle]

I do 3 - 4 gallon batches, stove top, biab, in a five gallon kettle. Smaller batches mean I get to brew more often which means I have more variety on hand. Smaller batches also mean less weight too have to deal with.

You're not required to make five gallons at a time. I've always wondered exactly why five gallons got to be the "standard" .

Most likely because of five gallon kegs?

 

[dwhite60]

Most likely because of five gallon kegs?

I don't think the five gallon keg, known formally as a Cornelius keg, got into general use until the early 1980's. They were used primarily to hold soft drink concentrate in bulk for restaurants and convenience stores.

Five gallons was the standard before then.

 

[TestTickle]

I don't think the five gallon keg, known formally as a Cornelius keg, got into general use until the early 1980's. They were used primarily to hold soft drink concentrate in bulk for restaurants and convenience stores.

Five gallons was the standard before then.

The availability of 5 gallon carboys? Final answer…locking it in.

 

[user 298779]

I've decided to start brewing via the BIAB method (I did partial mash years ago).

I plan on boiling on the stovetop and bottling. I plan on doing 5 gallon batches.

I'm hoping to get some starter equipment recommendations. Ideally, I'd like to keep the cost of the brew kettle and fermenter at roughly $500 total. Any recommendations for a brew kettle and fermenter that will make my life easier?

Thanks!

So my first question would be; what are you already using (or did use) when doing partial mashes before? What boil volume were you doing?

Big consideration if you plan on using stovetop is the height (clearance) between top of stove burner to bottom of vent hood? It’s unlikely you’ll have clearance for boiling a full 5 gallon batch. You could do BIAB on stovetop at say 3 gallons but use grain bill for 5 gallon batch size. That would require you to add water to your fermenter to get 5 gal. Your efficiency wouldn’t be great but additional grain cost wouldn’t be much.

Not what you want to hear, but if you want to do BIAB on stovetop and enjoy the benefits of this process I’d suggest sticking to 2.5-3 gal batch size.

For 2.5-3 gal batches, SS Brewtech has a nice 5.5 gal kettle that’s great for using on stovetop. About $140 from MoreBeer.com. Anvil makes a nice entry level fermenter at around $130 for their 3 gallon size.

https://www.morebeer.com/products/ss-brewtech-stainless-steel-brewing-kettle-55-gal.html
https://www.anvilbrewing.com/-p/anv-fv-4gal.htm
I‘ve used both of these and find them great for smaller batch sizes.

If you consider the all-in-one systems (Anvil Foundry, Brewzilla, etc) it might be good choice as well.

Bottom line; you can make excellent beer with very basic equipment. A 304 stainless kettle & some plastic food grade buckets….you don’t need stainless kettle for that matter but I’d get one if possible. Concentrate on the basics, establish solid repeatable process, and then move on with “upgrades” if you’d like.

Just my $0.01 worth.

Cheers

 

[CascadesBrewer]

You're not required to make five gallons at a time. I've always wondered exactly why five gallons got to be the "standard" .

I have wondered this myself. My 1988 version of "The Complete Handbook of Home Brewing" by Dave Miller does not mention kegging as an option, but my 1991 copy of "The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing" by Papazian has an appendix on kegging beers (where commercial kegs and Cornelius kegs are listed as options). I moved to kegging around 1998.

It seems like 5 gallon buckets and carboys have been pretty standard sizes in the US for a long time, but most homebrew fermenters are in the 6.5 gallon range. I could see where 4 gallon batches in a 5 gallon fermenter could have been a better "standard" size, but maybe the availability of 5 gallon kegs locked in 5 gallons of finished beer as the standard goal.

But I am also a big fan of smaller batch sizes. If I am bottling, about any batch size works. Liquid yeast works better for batches around 2.5 gallons, but dry yeast is pretty flexible. I recently acquired a second pair of 10L Torpedo kegs (now have 4!) and also a 3.5 gallon Brew Bucket (to go with my pair of 3 gallon Fermonsters). While I do a "standard" 5 gallon batch now and then, most of my brews are either 5 gallons of wort split into two fermenters (usually with different yeasts or another variable), 2.5 gallon stovetop batches, or 1 to 3 gallons of wort fermented in 1.5 gallon fermenters.

 

[dwhite60]

The homebrew shop where I bought my first gear had a three gallon option, I went with five. At the time I was single and was drinking a lot of beer. Five gallons seemed to make sense. There was no financial advantage as gallon for gallon it costs the same for ingredients. There is a time advantage though.

Something I learned though, five gallons of good beer is great. Five gallons off not so great beer can be a chore to drink through. It's hard, at least it was for me, to dump five gallons of hard work and money.

 

[Saunassa]

I love my anvil 10.5 but until I get 240 into the garage, winter brewing will be using my mega pot on a propane burner. My 8 gallon mega pot works for 5 gallon biab but must be real careful when hot break happens. 10 gallon would have been best. Btw I have a bayou classic 11 gallon pot but don't care for the thinner bottom. Well and no ball valve either.

 

[RM-MN]

I love my anvil 10.5 but until I get 240 into the garage, winter brewing will be using my mega pot on a propane burner. My 8 gallon mega pot works for 5 gallon biab but must be real careful when hot break happens. 10 gallon would have been best. Btw I have a bayou classic 11 gallon pot but don't care for the thinner bottom. Well and no ball valve either.

I fill my pot until it is within 3/4" of the top. Using a thermometer I can tell when it approaches the boil and turn the heat down a bit so I slowly approach it, then have a whisk handy to stir down the foam so it doesn't boil over. I've done it several times without making a mess.

 

[DannyBoy270]

I fill my pot until it is within 3/4" of the top. Using a thermometer I can tell when it approaches the boil and turn the heat down a bit so I slowly approach it, then have a whisk handy to stir down the foam so it doesn't boil over. I've done it several times without making a mess.

Before I upgraded I also did this 3-3.5 gal batches in a 5 gal pot

 

[BrewZer]

Btw I have a bayou classic 11 gallon pot but don't care for the thinner bottom. Well and no ball valve either.

I use that pot. Last week's brew saw 8 gallons of water and 13 pounds of fermentables in it. Hot break was fanned and stirred, and never left the pot. Even the hops additions were well behaved.

We wound up with just about 6.5 gallons of brew. I'll probably get to bottle 6 gallons of that.

As for the thin bottom, at least it heats up the water fairly quickly...