Equipment list for Anvil Foundry + BIAB

[zinn]

I am new to brewing. I ordered an Anvil Foundry 10.5 and plan to use the brew in a bag (BIAB) method. I want to make sure I have all the equipment I need to brew my first 5 gallon batch before the Foundry arrives. Here is the list of things I think I need so far. Can anyone tell me if I need to add anything to the list?

• Anvil Foundry 10.5
• GFCI extension cord (unless I can plug regular extension cord into GFCI outlet?)
• Mash paddle
• Gypsum + Calcium Chloride + Baking Soda (to treat water)
• Brew bag
• Gloves (for squeezing bag)
• Stirring spoon
• Fermenter
• Something to transfer the wort into the fermenter (this may not be necessary, as I think I can just open the valve on the Foundry)
• Rice hulls
• Beer ingredients (malt, hops, yeast)
• Bottles or keg

Thanks! Excited for the first batch!

 

[rburrelli]

Thermometer and hydrometer would be obvious things to have.

 

[yamhill]

I just brewed my first batch on the Anvil Foundry, and I have a lot to learn, but here are some questions and observations.

..What's you water source? Are you adding the water directly to the foundry or transferring it from somewhere? If you add it directly, are you using distilled or RO water, or from the tap. If from the tap, do you want to filter it? If you transfer the water, you need that bucket or whatever. I'm brewing in my garage and using filtered tap water. I used a drinking water hose, and a filter canister and cartridge.
..Are you buying the grain already milled, or do you need a mill? If you have a mill, how do you measure and set the roller gap?
..Are you buying pre-measure recipes, or do you need a scale for the grains?
..Where does your stirring paddle rest when it isn't being used? A clean bucket for me.
..Do you want to measure PH?
..Are you going to sparge? If so, what's you plan for the sparge water? How do you heat it, transfer it, etc?
..How does your grain bag fit? I used some binder clips to help hold mine in place.
..It seems to me that the bag interfered with the dispersion plate for recirculation. I rested it on top of the clips holding the bag, and my mash efficiency was right at 70%, so that seems okay, but the setup seemed precarious or at least kludgey to me.
..What do you do with the pump and hose when you disconnect it? I used a bucket -- a repeating pattern.
..Where do you put the grain bag and/or mash pipe when you pull it/them out? I used a tub with a footprint bigger than a 5 gallon bucket. The mash pipe doesn't fit my 5 gallon buckets.
..Do you want a pulley to help lift and hold the bag? Do you want to let it drain through a big colander into a bucket?
..Where do you put the chiller when you pull it out? I used a bucket.
..Where does the water flow from the chiller go? I used a three 5 gallon buckets and a large tub to collect the water in my garage. I used the warmest one for cleaning later, and the other buckets outside for my thirsty plants.
..I used a few disposable plastic cups to hold pre-measured hops.
..A sensitive scale for for hops and water treatment and the like.
..Maybe measuring spoons for water treatment as a scale alternative.

I'm pretty tall, so I put the foundry on top of a board on top an inverted milk crate to raise it a foot or so. It had enough room for the foundry 10.5 and the pump.

Short answer: lots of buckets and tubs.

 

[RM-MN]

• Mash paddle
• Gypsum + Calcium Chloride + Baking Soda (to treat water)

Mash paddles are great. Big wire whisks are greater. They really break up dough balls.

I use an acid blend to treat my mash water. Easier to keep one bottle in stock instead of 3.

Rice hulls

I have never needed rice hulls with BIAB, not even with a 70% rye malt. The bag is the filter, not the grain.

I bought a Corona style grain mill and have it set as tight as I can. I've learned to expect a very high mash efficiency with the grain milled so fine. A no sparge batch got me 80% brewhouse efficiency and much higher than that by adding sparges.

 

[zinn]

I just brewed my first batch on the Anvil Foundry, and I have a lot to learn, but here are some questions and observations.

..What's you water source? Are you adding the water directly to the foundry or transferring it from somewhere? If you add it directly, are you using distilled or RO water, or from the tap. If from the tap, do you want to filter it? If you transfer the water, you need that bucket or whatever. I'm brewing in my garage and using filtered tap water. I used a drinking water hose, and a filter canister and cartridge.
..Are you buying the grain already milled, or do you need a mill? If you have a mill, how do you measure and set the roller gap?
..Are you buying pre-measure recipes, or do you need a scale for the grains?
..Where does your stirring paddle rest when it isn't being used? A clean bucket for me.
..Do you want to measure PH?
..Are you going to sparge? If so, what's you plan for the sparge water? How do you heat it, transfer it, etc?
..How does your grain bag fit? I used some binder clips to help hold mine in place.
..It seems to me that the bag interfered with the dispersion plate for recirculation. I rested it on top of the clips holding the bag, and my mash efficiency was right at 70%, so that seems okay, but the setup seemed precarious or at least kludgey to me.
..What do you do with the pump and hose when you disconnect it? I used a bucket -- a repeating pattern.
..Where do you put the grain bag and/or mash pipe when you pull it/them out? I used a tub with a footprint bigger than a 5 gallon bucket. The mash pipe doesn't fit my 5 gallon buckets.
..Do you want a pulley to help lift and hold the bag? Do you want to let it drain through a big colander into a bucket?
..Where do you put the chiller when you pull it out? I used a bucket.
..Where does the water flow from the chiller go? I used a three 5 gallon buckets and a large tub to collect the water in my garage. I used the warmest one for cleaning later, and the other buckets outside for my thirsty plants.
..I used a few disposable plastic cups to hold pre-measured hops.
..A sensitive scale for for hops and water treatment and the like.
..Maybe measuring spoons for water treatment as a scale alternative.

I'm pretty tall, so I put the foundry on top of a board on top an inverted milk crate to raise it a foot or so. It had enough room for the foundry 10.5 and the pump.

Short answer: lots of buckets and tubs.

Super helpful! Thanks, friend.