Large Quantity Brewing

[jiminycrickets]

So I've been brewing normal amounts of beer for a few months now (5 gal at a time) and have had some pretty good results.
Now I want to upgrade a little and start brewing in larger quantities. 20-30 gallon range.
Does anybody have any experience with this?
Here are my concerns:

1- I need a container big enough to ferment in. I was thinking something like this: http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=25000&catid=765
If thats no good what kind of containers would you recommend?

2- Does fermenation take longer with a larger quantity or will it still take about two weeks as long as I scale the amount of yeast accordingly.

 

[MalFet]

You don't need to do anything particularly different for 20-30 gallon batches, but those cans sure don't look food grade to me.

 

[jiminycrickets]

Any ideas on where I could get a food grade container that big?
I heard that #1 or #2 plastics would work - even though I'm not entirely sure what that ranking means.

 

[jiminycrickets]

Another thing is that I want to do this for CHEAP!

 

[superjunior]

I typically brew 30g batches. I ferment in the basement so what we do is just use regular size buckets and just pitch as normal in each one. makes carrying them down the steps much easier

 

[Caboose]

You don't need to do anything particularly different for 20-30 gallon batches, but those cans sure don't look food grade to me.

I agree...I do like the price though.

I just did a quick search and found this one (with lid) at Midwest Supplies for $42.95

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/20-gallon-plastic-fermenter-with-lid.html

As for the extended fermentation time. I havent done anything larger than a 5 gal batch, but I would assume that it would take the same time, it would just require more yeast.

 

[ajwillys]

Rubbermaid Brute's are FDA and NSF approved. You can use them. You will need some sort of a gasket to seal the top off. Your biggest issue with such a large container will be controlling the fermentation temps. Something that large can get hot in a hurry without adequate cooling.

However, I would be much more concerned about the other things. You obviously can't lift this much liquid so you will need a pump. Depending on how you are chilling, that will likely need to be upgraded. Your MLT and kettle will surely need to be bigger. Going big is a significant investment.

 

[marnel]

Another thing is that I want to do this for CHEAP!

Not sure anything about this is going to be cheap. It's going to cost you 4-6 times more in incredients, unless your planning on partial boils you will need large enough kettles and mashtuns.

I've seen 20 gallon foodsafe buckets at hbs for about 50 dollars, i believe most online shops do aswell.

 

[ThePearsonFam]

These meet FDA standards... Was considering one myself.

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=25197&catid=513&clickid=searchresults

 

[ThePearsonFam]

I'd be concerned about scratching/gouging the insides when cleaning...

 

[Jeromy]

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=22828 these are what a friend of mine uses. He swears by them

 

[RugerRedhawk]

I think the fermenter is going to be the least of your worries. Bringing 20-30 gallons to a boil is no joke.

 

[ThatGuyRyan]

Those are food grade and work. My local HBS sells them and I got one before when they were out of buckets. I fermented in it twice using a garbage bag that I soaked in sanitizer and then used bungee cords as a giant rubber band to hold it on. It worked but was a pain in the ass and looked like stove top jiffy popcorn when the bag ballooned up! It got so big I thought it was going to burst but it didn’t.

 

[unionrdr]

Well,now I know where the plastic conical fermenters I saw on youtube came from. Good link,thanx! Gunna look into this stuff...

 

[MrStrangeBrew]

I think the fermenter is going to be the least of your worries. Bringing 20-30 gallons to a boil is no joke.

EXACTLY!!! your are gonna need some serious equipment and serious amounts of time!! not only do you need to bring 20gal to a boil well actually more if you plan on ending with 20gal. you have to mash, sparge, chill and bottle/keg all of that liquid with pumps and all kinds of containers that are going to need to be cleaned and sanitized. crazy amounts of water that if you care or not will need to be treated for certain styles. man i could go on.. im not trying to shoot you down at all. hell id help you i just want you to know what your getting into because its going to be a huge investment of money and time.

 

[MrStrangeBrew]

I agree...I do like the price though.

I just did a quick search and found this one (with lid) at Midwest Supplies for $42.95

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/20-gallon-plastic-fermenter-with-lid.html

As for the extended fermentation time. I havent done anything larger than a 5 gal batch, but I would assume that it would take the same time, it would just require more yeast.

how the heck do you get the brew out? submersible pump? i guess you could just install a nozzle on the bottom. doesnt look like it has one.

 

[ThatGuyRyan]

how the heck do you get the brew out? submersible pump? i guess you could just install a nozzle on the bottom. doesnt look like it has one.

Large auto siphon. You will have to hold it in the barrel to get the last few gallons though.

 

[montecristo]

These meet FDA standards... Was considering one myself.

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=25197&catid=513&clickid=searchresults

Those look interesting. What do you do in regards to an airlock?

 

[unionrdr]

I was just thinking to drill a small hole for the grommet that fits a standard airlock in the screw on lid. I also feel the 15G size would be perfect for doubling the usual 5-6 gallon batch. Still plenty of head space.
Then get the lever operated valves for the bottom,& one just above where the trub settles for siphoning off the brew. That's what I've seen on youtube so far.

 

[montecristo]

I was just thinking to drill a small hole for the grommet that fits a standard airlock in the screw on lid. I also feel the 15G size would be perfect for doubling the usual 5-6 gallon batch. Still plenty of head space.
Then get the lever operated valves for the bottom,& one just above where the trub settles for siphoning off the brew. That's what I've seen on youtube so far.

Exactly what I was thinking....forgive my possibly stupid question, but would the standard airlock be able to keep up with a double batch?

 

[integrator]

The guys that own the lhbs can do 50 gallon batches. They ferment in the 15.5 gallon Sanke Kegs. You can find them pretty cheap. They built a cleaner system for it. There are a few in the DIY section.

 

[509inc]

You don't need to do anything particularly different for 20-30 gallon batches, but those cans sure don't look food grade to me.

Just make sure they are the round models. Rubbermaid grey, yellow, and white trash containers are certified to meet NSF standard #2, which makes them food-grade quality. You can look them up on the NSF web site under "Food Equipment".

The models with this certification are 2610, 2620, 2632, 2643 and 2655, which hold 10, 20, 32, 43, and 55 gallons respectively.

 

[unionrdr]

Exactly what I was thinking....forgive my possibly stupid question, but would the standard airlock be able to keep up with a double batch?

I don't see why not,with all that head space. A 5 gallon batch doubled to ten would still have 5G of head space. Kits like cooper's that make 23L (6.072G) could be rounded off to 12G to make the beer a tad better,& leave 3G of head space. Although,with the 12G brew,I'd probably use a blow off for the 1st 4 days or so.

 

[superjunior]

EXACTLY!!! your are gonna need some serious equipment and serious amounts of time!! not only do you need to bring 20gal to a boil well actually more if you plan on ending with 20gal. you have to mash, sparge, chill and bottle/keg all of that liquid with pumps and all kinds of containers that are going to need to be cleaned and sanitized. crazy amounts of water that if you care or not will need to be treated for certain styles. man i could go on.. im not trying to shoot you down at all. hell id help you i just want you to know what your getting into because its going to be a huge investment of money and time.

not really. we use two kettles and split the batch in two. 18 gallons in the 25g kettle and 12 gallons in the 15g kettle (extract/grains). drain into regular size fermenting buckets through the spigots, carry down stairs and pitch the yeast. the biggest investement was the kettles. the camp chef burner can get the big kettle to a nice rolling boil in under 30 min. the smaller kettle takes even less. we stagger the times so we only need one wort chiller. really not that big a deal

 

[MrStrangeBrew]

not really. we use two kettles and split the batch in two. 18 gallons in the 25g kettle and 12 gallons in the 15g kettle (extract/grains). drain into regular size fermenting buckets through the spigots, carry down stairs and pitch the yeast. the biggest investement was the kettles. the camp chef burner can get the big kettle to a nice rolling boil in under 30 min. the smaller kettle takes even less. we stagger the times so we only need one wort chiller. really not that big a deal

well that makes a lot more sense!! btw love the profile pic!