Grain Mill or Wort Pump?

[Boogogee]

Here is my dilemma. Eventually I will purchase both a pump and a mill, but as the 2014 brew season winds up I've been debating on which I should invest in first. I use two keggles and a large cooler to produce 10gal all-grain batches. I get my grain crushed at my LHBS and I have been getting great crushes followed by horrible ones. It's hard for me to create a recipe and not be able to accurately predict efficiency. It's also a pain to move 12-18 gallons of water around on brew day. So I figured maybe some of you would have made a similar decision at some point. If my wife and I weren't in the process of home-buying I'd probably just buy both, but for now I can get one....Debate

 

[kombat]

Grain mill.

 

[BrewFry22]

Grain Mill. Start buying 50 pounders of your most used grains. The crush will directly effect the outcome of your beer. The pump is more of a luxury item.

 

[passedpawn]

Pump. Save your back. But note that there are more costs than the pump alone. To do it right, you'll want to add camlocks to your kettle, pump, and then of course you need silicone tubing. All that stuff can be gotten from our suppliers here (I got mine from http://www.brewhardware.com/).

 

[AnOldUR]

for now I can get one....Debate

I agree with kombat. There is no debate. It's all about the beer.

A pump will make it easier, but a mill will help you make better beer.

 

[Bean]

If given the choice I would say the mill. For me, all a pump did was allow for me to make my setup more compact but a headache to work with sometime. If you have the space to spread out (vertically or horizontally) when you brew and let gravity do its thing you will never need a pump.

 

[OneImpBrewery]

I'm actually a little shocked on the responses. I would have surely said get a pump but you guys are stating to sell me on buying a mill. Could someone point me to the a good resource on milling your own grain please?

If you do go with a pump I would suggest greatbreweh.com The pump is small but works great and will shut off automatically if it starts to get dry. Also about half the cost of a chugger.

 

[kh54s10]

Why not get both. You can get a Corona style grain mill for $25 to $50. I have been using one for 2 years. I may upgrade someday. Others have been using Corona mills for 10 years or more.

 

[USAFSooner]

Another vote for a pump and another second for brewhardware.com. Moving and lifting 10G of liquid is an accident waiting to happen.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[cjgenever]

Mill. Bulk grain savings will get you to your final setup faster. Better beer!

Sent from my SCH-R970 using Home Brew mobile app

 

[UWDawg13]

I vote mill.

Let me say that I have no experience with AG (yet, but plan on it) but in your OP you say you're getting inconsistent milling from your LHBS. This just seems like you can take a variable out of the brewing process plus the cost savings of bulk grains will help you buy that pump sooner right?

 

[CA_Mouse]

Get a mill. Better crush, better control on your mash... Equals better beer! I bought my mill last year and will be buying my pump this year. I'm much happier having bought my mill first. My recipes are pretty much dialed in and I'm producing great beers, now it is time to make it easier to move the liquid.

 

[troy2000]

Why not get both. You can get a Corona style grain mill for $25 to $50. I have been using one for 2 years. I may upgrade someday. Others have been using Corona mills for 10 years or more.

I love my Chinese knock-off of a Corona mill. It works well, and I paid less than 25 bucks for it. But they aren't for everyone....

I had to do some tweaking on mine, before it worked properly. And after reading up on them, that seems to be almost standard. So if you aren't at least a bit mechanically minded, and/or don't have the time or inclination to fiddle around, you should probably get the pump instead and pencil in a more expensive American-made mill somewhere down the line. Even good-quality grain mills aren't really big budget busters.

 

[westo2]

Mill.... start buying grain by the 55lb sack. The savings will pay for the pump. I have a pump. I don't use it. I let gravity be my friend. I use my mill each and every time.

Add to that the freedom to just decide to make a batch on a whim.

 

[atoughram]

After back surgery a few years back, definitely the pump... Get an "Add a pump" kit from Brewhardware - and a few basic male camlocks..

You've only got one back - take care of it.

 

[cjgenever]

Back issues? Didn't see that. Get the mill with brewing funds. Scrape the rest together for the pump and call it an investment in your health.

Sent from my SCH-R970 using Home Brew mobile app

 

[VladOfTrub]

Gravity's your friend until you go up hill or lift something.

 

[Boogogee]

Thank you guys for all the great comments! I very heavily leaning towards the mill now, I think being able to produce better beer and dial in my recipes out weighs the convenience of a pump. I will however redesign my system to allow gravity to do more work for me on brew day. Any suggestions for mill brands? I've had experience with a Schmidling before and liked it.

 

[cjgenever]

I think with mills you get what you pay for. There just aren't enough on the market to drive down the price without sacrificing quality.

I bought a cereal killer for $100 a few months ago. I don't regret the choice, but I will go with monster mill next time. The ck is engineered well with good parts, but the quality control isn't what it should be with machined parts.

Sent from my SCH-R970 using Home Brew mobile app

 

[passedpawn]

Love my Schmidling

 

[jsmcclure]

I love my pumps but I'd vote for the mill. Adds an element of control. Opens the door to bulk grain purchases.


Sent from my iPad using Home Brew

 

[SavoryChef]

Spend the money once on a monster mill. Don't buy a barley crusher, it will wear out in a year

 

[divrguy]

Monster mill. I never knew how consistent I could be until I got the mill. 2 cents!

 

[pablosbrewing]

Why not get both. You can get a Corona style grain mill for $25 to $50. I have been using one for 2 years. I may upgrade someday. Others have been using Corona mills for 10 years or more.

Charlie P's mill of choice.

It won't grind 5 pounds per minute but that's OK

 

[CA_Mouse]

Spend the money once on a monster mill. Don't buy a barley crusher, it will wear out in a year

I bought my Barley Crusher over a year ago and I've crushed nearly 400# without any issues.

 

[atoughram]

I bought my Barley Crusher over a year ago and I've crushed nearly 400# without any issues.

I havent put 400# through it yet, but it will no doubt last for thousands of pounds...

Does your mill have ball bearings?

And to support my last post... I had TWO pumps before I bought a mill...

For you youngun's near me - When you lift too much and mess up your back, Puget Sound Spine Institute in Tacoma is the place to go... Make sure you have at least five weeks of disability insurance...

 

[CA_Mouse]

I havent put 400# through it yet, but it will no doubt last for thousands of pounds...

Does your mill have ball bearings?

I believe that it has brass bushings instead of bearings. Bearings would need lubrication almost constantly since the mill produces so much gritty dust in the process.

 

[mjdonnelly68]

A mill will pay for itself if you buy even just your 2-row in bulk.

A pump can be a giant PITA and introduces another point of possible failure.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Get a mill and a one gallon plastic pitcher. Even doing 10 gallon batches. How hard is it to move 5 gallons of sparge water 1 gallon at a time.


Wilserbrewer
Biabags.webs.com

 

[PeteNMA]

If you don't get a reliable crush from your LHBS then buy a mill. Pumps are awesome but if you don't have your crush under control then all the are doing is chasing your own tail.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[ChiechiBrouw]

A grain mill was one of the best investments I ever made. I can buy bulk grains, my brew process is way more reproducible, and fresh-crushed grains smell awesome first thing in the morning.

As for moving water: When I don't want to life a large volume of (hot) water, I put both containers at equal heights and connect them. When they equilibrate, I move the half-filled receiver to the floor. Also, lift with your legs

 

[kcmobrewer]

I vote for both . Seriously though, mill. Pump saves your back, I agree with that. However, I find greater value in accurately predicting and increasing my efficiency.

 

[IslandLizard]

Another vote for the mill. I bought a Monster Mill MM-2 after doing some research last year. Wouldn't brew without it. You could build your own hopper and baseboard if you want to save a few bucks.

You'll need a decent drill too if you don't have one. The Low Speed heavy duty drill from Harbor Freight was under $50. If you have a Super Coupon it can shave another 20-25% off that. Make sure to get the one with the yellow speed adjuster wheel in the trigger. They sell a similar model that doesn't have that, on the same shelf.

 

[eric19312]

Get the mill (first). Start buying grain in 50lb sacks and you will likely see your grain costs drop dramatically. Put the savings ($0.50/lb?) toward the pump...AND take control of the crush to get consistent mash efficiency.

I use the barley crusher and the harbor freight drill. 1,000 lbs of grain though it over last 2 years and it is doing just fine and so far I am not wishing I had paid more to get a monster mill. Crusher with hopper and base is $118 on the Beersmith website now. Look for a coupon for that drill. Put the savings on the $ between the monster mill and the barley crusher (looks like the mm2 with base and hopper is $204 but maybe can do better) toward the pump...

Pumps are really nice to have...I just got a pump about 5 batches ago and am still learning to use it. I went chugger (~$140) with hose barbs, the fittings and hoses do add up (probably in for about $40 worth of hoses and $30 worth of fittings so far). It is already speeding up my brew day, and really makes my homemade counterflow chiller work the way I had hoped it would work. I am noticeably less tired at end of brew day also.

 

[T-townaler]

Buy an inexpensive thickness gauge from your local auto supply store. Read up on the milling blogs on what the gap is best in your area. Before your LHBS grind your grain have them check their gap with your gauge and have them adjust it to your specs. Voila! Consistency in your grain milling. Guage - $10. Back repair costs = $0 if you buy a pump.
Buy the gauge and the pump. Enjoy!

 

[fletchergsmith]

Depends on what you want more, easier brew day or more consistency.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[MrFeltimo]

Mill,
I used my mates this weekend, Barley Crusher, and it was great.

 

[Nagorg]

I'd vote for the pump if you can only buy one or the other. My chugger has proven to be a HUGE help on brew day since I'm usually doing 10 gallon batches. I'd like a grain mill but honestly don't know where I would set it up. I sure don't have anywhere to store bags of grain and such. For me, the LHBS does a fine job of storing that stuff and their mills have been doing a fine job too.

 

[Boogogee]

Update:

I want to thank all of you for the replies! Today I bought a double side adjustable schmidling mill. I will be conditioning the grain and brewing tomorrow. For all the pump voters out there I will be investing in one as well some where down the road.

 

[kh54s10]

Update:

I want to thank all of you for the replies! Today I bought a double side adjustable schmidling mill. I will be conditioning the grain and brewing tomorrow. For all the pump voters out there I will be investing in one as well some where down the road.

For $$ reasons I went for a 3 tier gravity system. I have plumbed in a filter and valve to the HLT on the top tier which is on a turkey fryer burner. In the middle is my Mash tun. next is the boil kettle which is high enough to drain to my fermenters on the floor.

No pumps, no lifting pots of water (especially hot) except the fermenter into the basement and my fermentation chamber.

I will be looking at the Schmidling or a Monster when and if I ever retire my Corona knock off.