Extract, Partial, All Grain

[scripto]

I was hoping you could help me identify the basic equipment differences between the 3 extract, partial, & all grain kits. I'm using this for graphic representation of the three styles for a project, and are looking for some help from the experts.

What I have so far is for extract:

-Bottling bucket, fermenter, racking cane, basic boil kettle

Partial

-Same but upgraded the kettle, and added a cooler mash tun

All Grain

-Same but added a second kettle

Any/all help would be welcomed and appreciated.

 

[KrausenCrazedCanuck]

I've never used a mash tun back when i did partial brewing i had the grains in a bag and steeped them first before adding LME.
and my all grain kit only consists of a single kettle, mash tun, fermenter, racking and bottling equipment.
hope this helps
Cheers

 

[stratslinger]

What you listed is a way it could be done, if someone wanted to look at each of those methods as stages in building out their brewery towards all grain.

But if you're asking what's actually necessary for each stage:

You've got extract down pretty well.

For partial mash, you'd want to add a good thermometer that's very accurate from 140-170F for tracking your mash (and mash-out, if you so choose) temps, and like KCC stated above, that's pretty much it. You _could_ add a cooler mash tun here, but there's not necessarily a "need to have". Toss the grains in a muslin bag, heat the appropriate amount of water in your kettle and do your partial mash there, then remove the bag, top off your kettle to whatever your boil volume is, then carry on just like extract.

For all grain, you want to add equipment for mashing. That could be a few things:
- Just a single kettle large enough for Brew-In-A-Bag - and that'd be all the new equipment you'd need
- A Boil Kettle large enough for full volume boils (if you don't already have one) and a Mash Tun (this would give you enough to run a 2-vessel, no sparge system)
- A Boil Kettle large enough for full volume boils, a cooler or second kettle to act as your HLT, and a Mash Tun (this would give you enough to run a 3-vessel, more traditional batch- or fly-sparge system)
- These last two options could also work in some sort of structure to enable you to gravity feed one vessel to the next, or one or two pumps to move fluids from vessel to vessel

 

[scripto]

Here is what I have come up with so far. Please let me know your feedback.

 

[unionrdr]

I thought you'd be using actual pictures of the equipment, not drawings. That's a bit vague to me. Nice style though.

 

[scripto]

I thought you'd be using actual pictures of the equipment, not drawings. That's a bit vague to me. Nice style though.

No, hand drawing each of the three. Wanted to make sure it was accurate, so was hoping to get the "experts" opinions!

Any feedback is welcome.

 

[kombat]

I've never used a mash tun back when i did partial brewing i had the grains in a bag and steeped them first before adding LME.

Careful - that sounds more like "Extract with steeping grains" than "Partial." "Partial" is merely short for "Partial mash," meaning the grain bill has to include at least some base grains with sufficient diastatic power to perform conversion, and the mash has to be held at a specific temperature (more variation permitted with mere steeping).

 

[stratslinger]

A couple things seem a little confusing in your pictures - maybe working in some sort of labels might help?

Starting with the extract picture - going clockwise from the left, is that the: Bottling Bucket, Fermenter, Boil Kettle, and Spoon up front? If so - it looks like the bottling bucket has an airlock. Why is that? I've never seen that done before.

Then on the partial picture - again clockwise from the left: Bottling Bucket, Fermenter, Cooler (?), Boil Kettle (?). Same question about the airlock on the bottling bucket. You picture a thermometer on the cooler - I've seen that done, but it's pretty rare. Typically - especially in partial mash - folks just use a normal lab-type thermometer (or one of those fancy electrical types) and dip it into the mash to check temps throughout the mash. You get to check more than one spot in the grain bed, so you don't get "fooled" by cold or hot spots. And the boil kettle looks almost like a pressure cooker with a thermometer - it looks like there's a gauge on top of it and the thermometer on the front... I think it'd be a bad idea to poke holes in a pressure cooker for thermometers - I get that you're trying to differentiate between the kettle and the cooler, but maybe there's a different way to do so? (Or did I mix up the Kettle and Cooler in that diagram, and I just have no idea why there' be a round gauge-looking doo-dad on top of a cooler?)

 

[scripto]

A couple things seem a little confusing in your pictures - maybe working in some sort of labels might help?

Starting with the extract picture - going clockwise from the left, is that the: Bottling Bucket, Fermenter, Boil Kettle, and Spoon up front? If so - it looks like the bottling bucket has an airlock. Why is that? I've never seen that done before.

Then on the partial picture - again clockwise from the left: Bottling Bucket, Fermenter, Cooler (?), Boil Kettle (?). Same question about the airlock on the bottling bucket. You picture a thermometer on the cooler - I've seen that done, but it's pretty rare. Typically - especially in partial mash - folks just use a normal lab-type thermometer (or one of those fancy electrical types) and dip it into the mash to check temps throughout the mash. You get to check more than one spot in the grain bed, so you don't get "fooled" by cold or hot spots. And the boil kettle looks almost like a pressure cooker with a thermometer - it looks like there's a gauge on top of it and the thermometer on the front... I think it'd be a bad idea to poke holes in a pressure cooker for thermometers - I get that you're trying to differentiate between the kettle and the cooler, but maybe there's a different way to do so? (Or did I mix up the Kettle and Cooler in that diagram, and I just have no idea why there' be a round gauge-looking doo-dad on top of a cooler?)

Thank you, working on adjustments now. Any other feedback would be much appreciated!

 

[scripto]

Should the extract drawing show a plastic bucket fermenter instead of the glass carboy?

 

[unionrdr]

Folks use one or the other regularly, so maybe make a distinction between them, like either/or.

 

[scripto]

Folks use one or the other regularly, so maybe make a distinction between them, like either/or.

I am just trying to find the best way to iconically differentiate the 3. What products to include in each. That's my real obstacle.

 

[unionrdr]

It's a bit confusing showing both without some distinction. Maybe try just the carboy?

 

[stratslinger]

Fermenter selection is really a matter of choice, not necessarily a matter of "graduating" from one to the next as many seem to think. There are many extract brewers who start out with carboys (I did) and many all grain brewers who use (and prefer!) buckets, for various reasons.

And that doesn't even get into glass vs plastic carboys (how the heck you would pictographically differentiate between those two, I haven't a clue), or getting into the folks who bling out and look at various stainless options or various conical options...

tl;dr - probably better off to just pick a generic fermenter and stick with it for all the diagrams

 

[Kampenken]

I think your approach is fine, however there are so many variations, as others have posted and let me add a few more (just to really make you smack your forehead!):

Noting levels (beginner thru advanced) can be argued, however its fairly safe to put extract into the beginner category (typically this is how we first get into the hobby, heck even the guy from Lagunita's brewery began ~1999 on extract, he's the one that sold 50% to Heineken last year, for some say about $800mm!). But now I'm distracted...

I think of advanced levels is when one is trying to dial in consistency (in getting what they are aiming to obtain, or in simply repeating a good brew). Here is where all the water chemistry, pitch rates, fermentation control and even automation comes into play- so both partial and all grain fall in here, however you can have beginners in both of those categories.

Last thing I'll add is that all-grain can also simply be one piece of equipment- e.g. the Grainfather, pico-brew etc.

I think I get what you're trying to represent, but if you intend to speak on it, be ready to acknowledge other factors in the evolution, and not simply just more items.

And I like the pics, post some more!

Cheers!