Going all grain. What equipment do i need?

[timrox1212]

I currently brew 5 gallon extract brews on my stove. I've got all the usual starter brew equipment including a wort chiller. What will I need to get a basic all grain set up going?

 

[colbreeze]

I'm glad you asked this question because I want to start as well. Does it matter if your mash tun is rectangle or circle? Is the HLT necessary? I was going to get 10 gallon coolers in case I want to upgrade later. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[stpug]

This is always a nice display of a system that works perfectly well:
http://hbd.org/cascade/dennybrew/

The pot/keggle could be replaced by any other pot(s) that holds your liquid amounts, and I actually have an electric stove that can boil 7+ gallons so I don't use a burner at this point.

 

[kh54s10]

All you really need is a pot and 5 gallon paint strainer bag. (BIAB)
Where you go from there is up to you.
For a gravity system you will need a pot to heat your strike water, a mash tun, and if you don't get a second boil pot you can collect first runnings in a bucket then after adding your sparge water to the tun, pour the wort into the now empty pot.

I made my rig that has a 10 gallon pot on a turkey fryer burner on the top tier. This drains into my Rubbermaid beverage cooler tun on the middle tier. This drains into the boil kettle on a Bayou Classics SP10 burner. The BK is high enough to drain into my fermenter on the floor.

I have since turned it around so the BK is near the sink for cooling the wort.

 

[JrBeerGut]

Tim, I would take a short drive down to Adventures in Homebrewing if you haven't yet. They have everything you need. It's on Van Born just east of Telegraph. They're very helpful.

 

[JBeuchs]

I'm glad you asked this question because I want to start as well. Does it matter if your mash tun is rectangle or circle? Is the HLT necessary? I was going to get 10 gallon coolers in case I want to upgrade later. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Circular or rectangular is a matter of personal preference. I used a circular beverage cooler and a stainless water heater connector hose in lieu of constructing a manifold. I get between 75-80% efficiency with this setup. The rectangular option will pretty much require you to construct a manifold which I am just too lazy to do. There are several threads here and other places on line with instructions on how to do that.

 

[timrox1212]

Yea I live about 1 minute from adventures. I just wanted to get a better idea of exactly what I'll need and then I can price it out.

 

[JrBeerGut]

Ok. I have their 10 gal. Igloo with the false bottom. There are cheaper ways but this one works good and holds temp very well. I've only done 3 all grain batches so far but I didn't find it real difficult compared with extract/partial grain. I use 2 brew pots, 1 for the boil and the other for the hlt and just one propane burner. I just batch sparge using a plastic pitcher with measurements on the side to transfer it to the mash tun. I'll probably try fly sparging further down the road.

 

[Cyclman]

A key piece of equipment is a good thermometer, I really like the Thermoworks http://www.thermoworks.com/products/low_cost/rt610b_12+24.html

I wrong mash temp can quickly ruin a (or more than one) batch.

I also like the Seville Classics shelving for a 3-tier gravity shelf, cheap, strong, easy: https://www.sevilleclassics.com/products.php?pid=145.

 

[RM-MN]

Yea I live about 1 minute from adventures. I just wanted to get a better idea of exactly what I'll need and then I can price it out.

Need? or just want? Need is a pot big enough for the volume of water and a way to separate the grains from the wort at the end of the mash. That's all it takes. I've used a 5 gallon pot, a paint strainer bag and that's all it took. I could only do a 2 1/2 gallon batch because I needed room for the boil off and the hot break.