Cooler Mash Tun

[IslandLizard]

I then save the 2 gal of preheating hot water in a bucket for clean up later.

Or save for the sparge? That's what I do.

 

[Yesfan]

Most folk with a cooler mash tun seem to only see a few degrees drop during a mash without any recirculation....enough to be scarcely relevant and worth the lack of 'total-control' to the average brewer. I'm wondering now if I've only been reading about indoor brewers, usually electric.
Any outdoor brewers care to weigh in on temp drops using a cooler?

About a degree or two over the course of an hour with mine.

 

[Malticulous]

The first step in my brew day is to use an old turkey fryer burner to heat up a couple gallons of water to 170 degrees or so to dump in my Igloo Cooler mash tun to warm it up. This usually takes 10 min or so. At the same time I am heating up my 5 gal of strike water with my good Blichmann burner which takes 20 min or so. I then save the 2 gal of preheating hot water in a bucket for clean up later.

By preheating my mash tun like this for 10 min or so, my temperature drop during the mash is virtually zero.

I use Brewers Friend calculator. With it if you preheat it will over shoot. It's been accurate for me. I used to use a different calculator and did have to pre-heat. With it I believe the tun temp and grain temp should be the same.

 

[VikeMan]

Regarding preheating... If using a good calculation (one that considers the thermal mass of the tun), there's no need for a preheat step.

 

[huckdavidson]

The Coleman 48 qt coolers were very popular for batch sparging.

AFAIK, they no longer come with a drain which is a shame as it was easy to slip a 1/2" ID x 3/8" OD hose through it with a stainless braid slipped on the inside as a filter.

https://www.coleman.com/coolers-drinkware/hard-coolers/chiller-48-quart-cooler/SAP_2160729.html
The HomeDepot, Lowes or Igloo 10 gallon round coolers also work well but require a bulkhead setup with valve and a boil screen/bazooka filter.

 

[redrocker652002]

The Coleman 48 qt coolers were very popular for batch sparging.

AFAIK, they no longer come with a drain which is a shame as it was easy to slip a 1/2" ID x 3/8" OD hose through it with a stainless braid slipped on the inside as a filter.

View attachment 829298

https://www.coleman.com/coolers-drinkware/hard-coolers/chiller-48-quart-cooler/SAP_2160729.html
The HomeDepot, Lowes or Igloo 10 gallon round coolers also work well but require a bulkhead setup with valve and a boil screen/bazooka filter.

That is the one I have with the drain plug. It was used so maybe it has lost some of it's insulation? Either way, I have only used it for sparging so far.

 

[mac_1103]

Any outdoor brewers care to weigh in on temp drops using a cooler?

Just finished a mash. 10.5 lbs of grain with 3.5 gallons of water, which leaves about 3 quarts of head space in my five gallon igloo cooler. Temp after dough in was 152F and dropped to 148F after an hour. Beautiful day; 75F outside. Backyard is well shaded. Tend to see less of a drop if grain bill is a little bigger and the cooler is filled to the top, especially if it's hotter outside.

 

[IslandLizard]

Just finished a mash. 10.5 lbs of grain with 3.5 gallons of water, which leaves about 3 quarts of head space in my five gallon igloo cooler. Temp after dough in was 152F and dropped to 148F after an hour. Beautiful day; 75F outside. Backyard is well shaded. Tend to see less of a drop if grain bill is a little bigger and the cooler is filled to the top, especially if it's hotter outside.

I used to wrap the cooler mash tun in a sleeping bag. And put some insulation foam under the bottom.

 

[mac_1103]

I used to wrap the cooler mash tun in a sleeping bag. And put some insulation foam under the bottom.

Yeah I know. I did this for science. Inquiring minds wanted to know what the igloo can do on its own.

I'll probably brew another batch later this week with a similar sized grain bill. I'll add some extra insulation for that one and report back again.

 

[IslandLizard]

Yeah I know. I did this for science. Inquiring minds wanted to know what the igloo can do on its own.

I'll probably brew another batch later this week with a similar sized grain bill. I'll add some extra insulation for that one and report back again.

Another option I just thought about.
Not sure if it's any better than a sleeping bag or moving blankets, though...

Make a box of 2" styrofoam, without a lid. Include enough space to home the valve/hose too.
Lie down a piece of that foam to set the cooler onto, a little bigger footprint than the box. Then invert the foam box over that.

Let's not forget a cement or even dirt floor draws quite a bit of heat too, as does any breeze, even at 80F.

 

[Yesfan]

The Coleman 48 qt coolers were very popular for batch sparging.

AFAIK, they no longer come with a drain which is a shame as it was easy to slip a 1/2" ID x 3/8" OD hose through it with a stainless braid slipped on the inside as a filter.

View attachment 829298

https://www.coleman.com/coolers-drinkware/hard-coolers/chiller-48-quart-cooler/SAP_2160729.html
The HomeDepot, Lowes or Igloo 10 gallon round coolers also work well but require a bulkhead setup with valve and a boil screen/bazooka filter.

I had that same cooler (in red) way back before I even thought about brewing my own beer. It did however kept a lot of my favorite brands of brew cold. Ah, the memories.......

I'd think it wouldn't be hard to add a drain if someone still wanted to use it.

 

[mac_1103]

OK so not that anyone asked but it was another beautiful morning for an outdoor brew here in central VA. Happy Fall! Partly cloudy with temps in the mid-60s. Today's grain bill was 11.25 lbs so we had a little less head space in the cooler. Also mashed a bit lower. Wrapped the cooler in an old blanket and put a towel over the lid. Then I covered it with the reflectix jacket that I use when I mash bigger beers in my kettle. Temperature was 150F at dough in and, wait for it... 150F an hour later.

 

[redrocker652002]

OK so not that anyone asked but it was another beautiful morning for an outdoor brew here in central VA. Happy Fall! Partly cloudy with temps in the mid-60s. Today's grain bill was 11.25 lbs so we had a little less head space in the cooler. Also mashed a bit lower. Wrapped the cooler in an old blanket and put a towel over the lid. Then I covered it with the reflectix jacket that I use when I mash bigger beers in my kettle. Temperature was 150F at dough in and, wait for it... 150F an hour later.

That's awesome. I am going to have to start using my cooler more. I like the idea that I can lauter the grain and try and get a clearer wort into the kettle. I have had enough trub at the bottom of my kettle that my banjo screen clogs up and I have to sterilize my hand and clear it to get as much of the wort as I can. Now, with that said, I am sure some of it is hop matter getting thru the bag as well. But, if I can use the cooler and get a clear wort with just a bit more work, I am all for it. Rock On!!!!!!

 

[mac_1103]

I like the idea that I can lauter the grain and try and get a clearer wort into the kettle.

Well I don't lauter, I just batch sparge. And for whatever reason(s), I had a helluva lot of gunk with this brew. I always put my wort through a 250 micron strainer when I transfer into the FV - today I filled two of them with trub and hops (only used 3 oz of pellets). Also seems like a few gravity points went with the stuff I screened out. But it's still going to be beer and SWMBO will probably like it better at just over 6% ABV instead of just under 7.

 

[VikeMan]

That's awesome. I am going to have to start using my cooler more. I like the idea that I can lauter the grain and try and get a clearer wort into the kettle. I have had enough trub at the bottom of my kettle that my banjo screen clogs up and I have to sterilize my hand and clear it to get as much of the wort as I can. Now, with that said, I am sure some of it is hop matter getting thru the bag as well. But, if I can use the cooler and get a clear wort with just a bit more work, I am all for it. Rock On!!!!!!

Lautering does clarify the wort, but it doesn't really filter out the significant stuff that comprises kettle trub. Besides hop matter, kettle trub is largely coagulated proteins from the hot and cold breaks. That said, I'm a firm believer in lautering, as it can keep a lot of the lipids from reaching the kettle. Excess lipids aren't good for wort/beer.

 

[Yesfan]

......Excess lipids aren't good for wort/beer.

What is the result? Is it just a cloudy beer? Taste impact? Shelf life?

Just curious.

 

[VikeMan]

What is the result? Is it just a cloudy beer? Taste impact? Shelf life?

Enzymatic and non-enzymatic oxidation to make Trans-2-nonenal, a driver of beer staling. Also, soapy off-flavor if beer left too long on trub (containing excess lipids).

 

[Yesfan]

Enzymatic and non-enzymatic oxidation to make Trans-2-nonenal, a driver of beer staling. Also, soapy off-flavor if beer left too long on trub (containing excess lipids).

How long is too long on the trub? I'm always wanting to hurry and get done when I'm chilling, so the last few batches I've been impressed how clear the wert is after letting it settle for about 15-20 minutes after chilling.

Thanks.

 

[VikeMan]

How long is too long on the trub? I'm always wanting to hurry and get done when I'm chilling, so the last few batches I've been impressed how clear the wert is after letting it settle for about 15-20 minutes after chilling.

Can't give you a good answer to that, because it would depend on how much fatty stuff made it to the fermenter, the style of beer, drinkers' taste thresholds, and probably other factors beyond my ken. But if you're wondering if there will be significant oxidation of lipids in the kettle during/after cooling, then I'd say no.

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

All interesting to read what other techniques folks are using.

I do full volume mashes with no lautering. I use a small low GPM pump to recirculate during the mash time though. When the mash is complete the wort is drained into a filtering grant I built from a quarter barrel with a 300 micron basket filter. From the grant the wort is pumped to the brew kettle. After the boil I drain back into the filtering grant then pump to the plate chiller. The grant acts as an accumulator too so I can better control flow.

Lots of pumping and draining going on but I haven't seen a whole lot of difference from doing it the other way. Somewhere in my vast collection of pictures I have one of the grant in action.

 

[IslandLizard]

Just dotting a few i's...

I do full volume mashes with no lautering.

I think you mean "no sparging."

"Lautering" (from German: "abläutern") is the separation of wort from the grist.
Since you use a bag or a mesh basket to hold the grist, just lifting it out after the mash leaves (sweet) wort behind in your kettle. The process of just lifting the bag (or basket) out of the kettle and letting it drip out is lautering.

There's also "vorlaufing" (from German: "vorlauf") which is recirculating wort through the grain bed for it to settle, becoming a natural filter/sieve to hold back grain dust and bits, to drain off (lauter) a clearer wort.

Sparging is rinsing/washing, basically. To collect more sweet wort from your grist, boosting mash and thus brewhouse efficiency.

https://beerandbrewing.com/lautering-and-sparging/

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

Yup, you are right, no sparging. Poor choice of words on my part.