Cheap & Easy 10 Gallon Rubbermaid MLT Conversion

[barrooze]

Wilserbrewer, I currently have a MT I made from my old beach cooler and some hardware. I use Denny's method often. I would recommend it to anybody.

My set up works well but it is getting old and was never that efficient. I am also trying to upgrade to 10 or even 15 gallon batches. So I think I need a better system. To build my own good system it seems I'm only saving if I skimp on parts... a cheaper cooler, braided hose instead of a false bottom. I want it to be efficient and move up with me as I brew more and more.

What do people use for brewing 10-15 gallon batches?

Regarding the false bottom comment, IMHO they work the best in cylindrical MLTs or kettles. In my experience, the only cylindrical MLTs I've ever seen are 10gal. If you are wanting to do up to 15gal batches, you may want to reconsider the false bottom as I think the only way you can get 15gal of a beer with a 10gal MLT is to supplement with extract or just make a very low OG beer.

The attached pic is in my 12gal MLT. I did a 12gal batch of 1.070 wort. Very tight fit! I'll be upgrading to a 70qt rectangular cooler sometime this year.

EDIT: Grain bill had 30# of grain.

 

[day_trippr]

^ "very tight fit" is a bit of an understatement

Looks like Mount Malt Island rising in the middle...

Cheers!

 

[Snisup]

^ "very tight fit" is a bit of an understatement

Looks like Mount Malt Island rising in the middle...

Cheers!

I want to live on that island!

 

[mnstarzz13]

First time poster. 3 yrs brewer here in MN.

6 yrs later and this thread is still giving. I used this model to a Tee (except my hose was 5ft). Cooler was $45+tax and parts were $32 w/tax. \

My only issue is that the spigot wants to spin. Any resolutions to that?

 

[dongemus]

After doing more research we (my brother and I) decided we want to do 15g batches. For some of our grain bills this might reach 50#s! I guess the igloo is out of question. We need a big rectangular or something else. Any good suggestions?

 

[barrooze]

After doing more research we (my brother and I) decided we want to do 15g batches. For some of our grain bills this might reach 50#s! I guess the igloo is out of question. We need a big rectangular or something else. Any good suggestions?

I'm thinking of upgrading to this cooler for my bigger batches:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-70-Quart-Xtreme-Cooler/4807332

Read the comment "Xtreme Mash Tun". Has very good info on equipment to convert to a MLT.

 

[jflongo]

I'm thinking of upgrading to this cooler for my bigger batches:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-70-Quart-Xtreme-Cooler/4807332

Read the comment "Xtreme Mash Tun". Has very good info on equipment to convert to a MLT.

If you want to do 15 gallon batches - 70 quart xtreme cooler
If you want to do 10 gallon batches - 70 or 52 quart xtreme cooler or 10 gallon rubbermaid/igloo cooler

Personally I'm going to go to the 52 quart xtreme for my 10 gallon batches, "IM HOPING" it holds heat even better than the 70 quart for 10 gallon, but not positive.

 

[tre9er]

I'm thinking of upgrading to this cooler for my bigger batches:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-70-Quart-Xtreme-Cooler/4807332

Read the comment "Xtreme Mash Tun". Has very good info on equipment to convert to a MLT.

I have this cooler. I did end up with a slight amount of leaking at the bulkhead, so I silicone'd the opening and let it cure before re-assembling. I now get a tiny bit of leakage during the mash, but it's probably 2-4oz. of liquid, so I don't care. The silicone means it's not going into the insulation and getting nasty, so I've accepted it.

It's huge, though. I usually only have 20# of grain in it and it's maybe half full (I mash SUPER thin, too, usually 1.75-2qts/lb). I lose 10* overnight, which is how I mash. I don't usually lose even 1* in a 60m mash.

 

[jflongo]

I have this cooler. I did end up with a slight amount of leaking at the bulkhead, so I silicone'd the opening and let it cure before re-assembling. I now get a tiny bit of leakage during the mash, but it's probably 2-4oz. of liquid, so I don't care. The silicone means it's not going into the insulation and getting nasty, so I've accepted it.

It's huge, though. I usually only have 20# of grain in it and it's maybe half full (I mash SUPER thin, too, usually 1.75-2qts/lb). I lose 10* overnight, which is how I mash. I don't usually lose even 1* in a 60m mash.

That's why I mention the 52 quart one for people as well if they want to do 10 gallons. It would fill it up more, and probably keep the heat better.

 

[tre9er]

That's why I mention the 52 quart one for people as well if they want to do 10 gallons. It would fill it up more, and probably keep the heat better.

But if you notice, I don't lose even 1* in 60m...so that's about as good as you can get with a cooler that's not having heat applied. Losing 10* in an 8 hour mash seems reasonable and has worked for me, too. I have made adjustments to starting mash temps accordingly.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Wilserbrewer, I currently have a MT I made from my old beach cooler and some hardware. I use Denny's method often. I would recommend it to anybody.

My set up works well but it is getting old and was never that efficient. I am also trying to upgrade to 10 or even 15 gallon batches. So I think I need a better system. To build my own good system it seems I'm only saving if I skimp on parts... a cheaper cooler, braided hose instead of a false bottom. I want it to be efficient and move up with me as I brew more and more.

What do people use for brewing 10-15 gallon batches?

Sounds to me like you are convinced you "need" a better system. I am a batch sparger and have no desire to fly sparge! So therefore, I have no need for a false bottom and would not consider it as an "upgrade", but rather another piece of equipment to disassemble and clean as opposed to just rinsing out a tun w/ a braid. A braid will also clear quicker and require less vorlaugh. For 10-15 gallon batches and batch sparging I would go with a 70 qt cooler and a robust hot water heater braid. JMO cheers! The 10 gal MLT'S sold with valves and false bottoms do not excite me being a batch sparger.

 

[dongemus]

OKay this is off topic, but why do you mash overnight? What temp do you start at/end at? What kind of beers do you do this with?

 

[Eddiebosox]

OKay this is off topic, but why do you mash overnight? What temp do you start at/end at? What kind of beers do you do this with?

Some people do it as a time saver, but there's different schools of thought on how it would affect the beer. Some think it would extract harsh tannins by letting it mash so long.

 

[tre9er]

Some people do it as a time saver, but there's different schools of thought on how it would affect the beer. Some think it would extract harsh tannins by letting it mash so long.

And others, like me, who've done it over a dozen times now, would disagree with that.

I do it to make brew day manageable. I heat strike while I weight and crush my grain, assemble my mash tun, etc. By the time I dough-in I've spent about an hour, maybe 90 minutes. I can then walk away and (if it's at night) go to sleep -OR- (if it's during the day) go do some other errands, spend time with kids, go to a movie, projects around the house, whatever. I never have to worry about the beer. When I'm ready, anywhere from 3-8 hours later, I flip on the sparge water and finish the process.

 

[tre9er]

OKay this is off topic, but why do you mash overnight? What temp do you start at/end at? What kind of beers do you do this with?

1. see above
2. I generally raise my temps by about 3* compared to 60m mashes due to the longer time spent in beta amylase's sweet-spot as the temp drops. Nobody has ever commented on my beers tasting different, out of style, etc. but it did take some time learning what attenuation I got with different temps. For instance, 153 will give me almost 95% attenuation, finishing at nearly 1.002 for a low-to-med gravity beer.
3. Any and all beers. I've made dry PA's up to malty Oktoberfests. Yet to make a stout, but that was true before I even started overnight mashing.

 

[dongemus]

Thanks for the reply. I don't jump up to vorlauf at 60 minutes, but I never thought of letting it go longer than 90-120 minutes or so. I have drained the MT and then boiled the next day. One day if it's convenient I might try a longer mash.

 

[tre9er]

Thanks for the reply. I don't jump up to vorlauf at 60 minutes, but I never thought of letting it go longer than 90-120 minutes or so. I have drained the MT and then boiled the next day. One day if it's convenient I might try a longer mash.

Some time when you want more Saturday to do other things, start the mash the night before, around 10 or 11 maybe, then get up relatively early on Saturday and finish the brew. You'll be done by 10AM and have the rest of your day free. Like I said, I'd start the mash 3* higher than normal, though, and definitely insulate with blankets, etc.

 

[VMCosco]

This may have already been mentioned, but I thought it was a nice realization. I searched the thread and didn't see that anyone had done it.

I made mine out of a 5 gallon Rubbermaid cooler. For the time being, I am going to use it for partial mash and use a bag in the cooler so I did not have to worry about filtering out the grain at all.

I replaced the barb on the inside with a brass "street elbow" (Watts A-782). By turning the the elbow downward, the opening is only 1/8 inch above the bottom. I drained the cooler and measure the deadspace. It was only 6oz!!!

Thought I would share this discovery for the benefit of anyone else who doesn't need the braided hose.

 

[tre9er]

This may have already been mentioned, but I thought it was a nice realization. I searched the thread and didn't see that anyone had done it.

I made mine out of a 5 gallon Rubbermaid cooler. For the time being, I am going to use it for partial mash and use a bag in the cooler so I did not have to worry about filtering out the grain at all.

I replaced the barb on the inside with a brass "street elbow" (Watts A-782). By turning the the elbow downward, the opening is only 1/8 inch above the bottom. I drained the cooler and measure the deadspace. It was only 6oz!!!

Thought I would share this discovery for the benefit of anyone else who doesn't need the braided hose.

I did BIAB this way for several batches, myself. Very easy way yo get started

 

[BigPoppa502]

That's a great tip! Thanks. Ill be running out today to get that part.

 

[barrooze]

This may have already been mentioned, but I thought it was a nice realization. I searched the thread and didn't see that anyone had done it.

I made mine out of a 5 gallon Rubbermaid cooler. For the time being, I am going to use it for partial mash and use a bag in the cooler so I did not have to worry about filtering out the grain at all.

I replaced the barb on the inside with a brass "street elbow" (Watts A-782). By turning the the elbow downward, the opening is only 1/8 inch above the bottom. I drained the cooler and measure the deadspace. It was only 6oz!!!

Thought I would share this discovery for the benefit of anyone else who doesn't need the braided hose.

That'd be a great addition for a HLT or a BIAB, but if you need any manifold at all, this won't work.

This would also work well if used inside a boil kettle. I like the low profile so it won't interfere with whirlpooling very much. Was there an equivalent 1/2" part for those of us who opted for a 1/2" version?

 

[mmcouch]

Anyone have an extra SS washer that they could send my way? I have had the worst time trying to locate one or a vinyl washer for that matter. Just thought I'd ask before ordering from one of the online retailers in bulk.

 

[CGVT]

I don't have an extra, but I got mine at Ace Hardware. You might want to give them a shot if you have one near...

 

[chuckstout]

i don't have an extra, but i got mine at ace hardware. You might want to give them a shot if you have one near...

+1

 

[horsepackage]

I apologize if this was answered but in rsguards to the stainless washers... I found 5/8 neoprene rubber washers... would those work?

 

[sidepart]

Anyone have an extra SS washer that they could send my way? I have had the worst time trying to locate one or a vinyl washer for that matter. Just thought I'd ask before ordering from one of the online retailers in bulk.

Try looking at Menards, that's where I found mine. The website and even the guy in the store didn't think they stocked them...but I found it.

Menards in Saint Paul on Prior and University Ave if anyone is curious.

 

[sidepart]

Anyone have any thoughts on the stainless steel braided mesh tubing that this design calls for?

Mine is getting all mangled up during the mash process. The mashtun still works but the braided tubing looks like it's been all chewed up. ...is that...is that ok?

 

[tre9er]

Anyone have any thoughts on the stainless steel braided mesh tubing that this design calls for?

Mine is getting all mangled up during the mash process. The mashtun still works but the braided tubing looks like it's been all chewed up. ...is that...is that ok?

Get some bare copper wire, like 8 guage or something, wrap it around a pencil or similar to coil it. Pull it to spread out a bit, then carefully insert it through your braid.

 

[mattyb85]

Anyone have any thoughts on the stainless steel braided mesh tubing that this design calls for?

Mine is getting all mangled up during the mash process. The mashtun still works but the braided tubing looks like it's been all chewed up. ...is that...is that ok?

Buy some silicone tubing. Put notches in it and put it inside the braid. It will hold the shape and still allow the liquid through.

 

[JUST_BREW_IT]

I converted a 10 gallon Rubermaid cooler (rectangular not round) into a MLT today and I though I would share a couple things that came up:

1. Do your shopping at Lowe's if possible. Their 'standard' supply lines are SS. At Home Depot the standard is 'polymer weave.' I ended up getting a 'Flood Prevention' line because it was the only SS one available.
2. I am not sure if it was the Canadian conversion or things are more expensive here or if the price of brass has gone up but the components cost me a lot more than I was expecting ($20+ w/o cooler).

Leak test. Everything looks good.


I went with the 20 in. line. I am using the nylon cable ties.



Now I have a couple weeks wait to clear out a carboy to do my first all grain!


BTW, thanks FlyGuy for posting this thread. There is no way in hell I would have ventured to do this if it had not been for your pioneering work.

Glad to see there were no issues with a bigger cooler. This is my play.

Great thread fellas!!!!