Can a MT be too big?

[loljoewtf]

Hey guys,

I've been lurking for about 6 months. I finally got around to joining

My MT (re-purposed 7g decrepit cooler) broke. The top of it was bowed and cracked. The last two mashes lost about 15-20ºF over the 60min mash. Efficiency is a sore spot.

I'm looking to buy a new cooler to make into a MT. I batch sparge, fly sparging is for the 1% (kidding! ) So, from what I understand, there isn't a "too thin" problem for batch sparges, right?

I like to make high gravity beers. I saw this post: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/how-big-your-mash-tun-needs-123585/ and it helped. Well, I am someone that would enjoy 10g of barley wine!

I'm looking to expand to making 10g batches of a high gravity beer. Assuming ~ 75% efficiency, is this possible with a ~ 60qt cooler? I didn't quite understand the math in the aforementioned thread. It kept referencing '17' and I didn't know where that was coming from.

Any cooler recommendations for this? I've got an Amazon Prime account :-D I saw some of the Coleman Extreme series and whatnot, but I'm afraid to buy it in case I need something like a 100qt cooler (which Amazon carries, btw).

Also, I've got a SS braid setup that I can move from my old MT into whatever the new one ends up being. For large, rectangular coolers, is it worth using a grid array of pipe instead? I imagine there will be more pressure on the SS braid and it might get crushed because it will be literally twice the water/grain weight than it's used to. Kind of off topic, but consider it a bonus question!

Thanks in advance, and Cheers!

Joe

 

[bribo179]

Figure out your grain bill then google "can I mash it". There is a green bay rackers site that will calculate volume needed to mash the size of the grain bill.

 

[bbrim]

It is definitely worth making a manifold, mine gave me an efficiency increase of ~8%. If you have a bunch of air in you MT you will lose heat. If you buy a massive one you could cut a piece of foam in the shape of your cooler then wrap it in foil for when you want to do smaller batches. Good luck.

 

[sudsmcgee]

You might have a hard time fitting a big 10 gal barleywine in a 60 qt cooler. It would be close.

 

[Goblism]

I don't think that the barleywine would fit in the cooler, tone it down to a 8 gallon batch and it should definately fit (assuming a grain bill around 22lbs/5 gallons)

Think of how many times you will be making a barleywine and if the extra storage room will be worth the extra size as well as if you plan on making any smaller beers.

Or try and find a slightly larger cooler, closer to the 70 range

 

[Reno_eNVy]

According to Green Bay Rackers, at 1.25 qt/lb you can fit 38# of grain in a 60qt cooler.

 

[tdogg]

dont forget to leave room for mixing, mashout, and sparging.

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Oh sorry, I don't mashout and I batch sparge so I didn't think about that. But I've seen fly sparges where the top level of liquid is literally holding on to the MLT by the meniscus so I don't think you need that much room.

 

[yorkbrew]

I'd worry about the dead space in the cooler. If you have a behemoth with a lot of dead space it might not matter too much for a normal sized brew but if you want to make a smaller say 5 gal brew then a large dead space could be a problem.

 

[sonex]

yorkbrew got it right excessive dead space in the cooler could cause heat retention problems. your braid will be fine. I use a braid in a 48 and 70 qt coolers without any issues. a manifold or any other form of straining the grain from the wort makes no difference in efficiency. efficiency is determined by the percentage of sugars that can be extracted from the grain.

 

[Dan]

I imagine there will be more pressure on the SS braid and it might get crushed because it will be literally twice the water/grain weight than it's used to.

I used some heavy duty copper wire 10 guage I think (insulation removed) and twisted it around a wooden dowel. Fit inside the braid keeps the braid from crushing.

 

[loljoewtf]

This is all excellent information. Thanks guys, much appreciated