Kettle size

[Jag75]

I got a buddy of mine interested in brewing beer . He built his own bar which is really cool. So I told him he should make his own beer . I dont forsee him getting an electric all in one . I did a extract batch with him to get his feet wet. He is going to get a start up kit and brew extracts for the time being. My question is the kit comes with a 8.5 gallon kettle. Will that be big enough to do a biab if he want to do all grain?
For 5 gallon batches

 

[chickypad]

For most grainbills that's likely going to be too small for a full volume mash if he wants 5 gals finished. He could do a dunk sparge though, in a bucket or second pot.

 

[Soulshine2]

I got a buddy of mine interested in brewing beer . He built his own bar which is really cool. So I told him he should make his own beer . I dont forsee him getting an electric all in one . I did a extract batch with him to get his feet wet. He is going to get a start up kit and brew extracts for the time being. My question is the kit comes with a 8.5 gallon kettle. Will that be big enough to do a biab if he want to do all grain?
For 5 gallon batches

Maybe. I'd get a 10 gallon anyway . In fact , I did. . I dont BIAB but my boils in my original 8 gallon pot boiled over a couple times while i was doing something else. The 10 gallon I dont have to watch it so much. I use the 8 for strike and sparge water heating.

 

[McKnuckle]

It will be big enough for the mash often, but not always. For boiling it will be fine. My 8 gallon kettle evaporates 0.86 gal/hr indoors with electric, 1 gal/hr outdoors with propane. So even with a 90 minute boil, you only need 6.5-7 gallons in there tops.

The mash will be dependent on how strong a beer it is.

I'd get a bigger kettle if I had the opportunity - but the 8.5 gallon will not be useless at all. Plus if one is bottling, just make a little less beer. It is so NOT a big deal to scale down a teeny bit.

 

[Carolina_Matt]

I feel like it's borderline. If that's the kit he wants, and it comes with an 8.5 gallon kettle, then it's probably not worth the extra expense to buy a slightly bigger kettle. But if he can get a kit without a kettle, he should target something bigger. I feel like it might be better to go that route anyway, since he would be able to buy a higher quality kettle that would maintain mash temps better. I would assume most kits come with thinner/cheaper kettles.

I have a 9.5 gallon kettle. The biggest BIAB I've done is a 1.075 OG beer and it fit, but it was pretty close to the top during the mash. There may have been a gallon's worth of headspace though.

 

[Jag75]

Thanks guys for the responses. Its actually a pretty decent kettle with a ball valve and a temp probe. I wonder if they ( morebeer) can substitute a larger say 10 gallon and charge a tad bit more .

 

[LittleRiver]

...8.5 gallon kettle. Will that be big enough to do a biab if he want to do all grain? For 5 gallon batches

I started out with a 15gal kettle for 5gal BIAB, and it's one of the best decisions I've made.

I never have to worry about boil overs, and I have plenty of space to do big beers or larger batches if I want to.

Definitely get a drain valve, but not a kettle mounted thermometer. The probe can snag on the bag and tear it.