Mash tun size

[ozpt]

Hi,

I want to star brewing all grain and I'm planning on building a mash tun.
How big do I need it to be, to make 20 to 30 litres of beer?
Should I be fine with a Coleman Xtreme 36QT?

Regards.

 

[Hopper5000]

Really depends on how strong of a beer you are making but that size should be enough to make 20-30 liters of decently strong beer

 

[ozpt]

Really depends on how strong of a beer you are making but that size should be enough to make 20-30 liters of decently strong beer

Thanks for replying
By strong you mean gravity?
It should be between 1.045 and 1.065...

I tried to search on the forum for information about my question, but I got confused with all the things to take into consideration, about the size.

 

[Pie_Man]

This may help: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/how-big-your-mash-tun-needs-123585/

 

[david_42]

I've got a 40 qt Cube and it is more than twice the size of the largest mash I've ever made. That was for a very high gravity (~1.140) barley wine.

 

[Hopper5000]

yes you should be able to hit those gravities with that tun size

 

[Brewbuzzard]

The size of the mash tun also depends on the size of the batches you intend to brew. If you brew 5 gal batches and have a 10 gal boil kettle a good starting point would be a 10 gal mash tun. I have always used this set up and I have made some big (high gravity) beers as well as smaller beers. Another thing to consider is the ratio of height to width. A ratio of "1" is good because you will never fill your MT to the top (unless you're adventurous). This is particularly important if you brew wheat or rye beers where you want to keep the mash lose and well filtered and avoid a stuck mash. Hope this helps,

 

[ozpt]

This may help: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/how-big-your-mash-tun-needs-123585/

Thanks
After intense search e I found the chart that they were talking about in that post and it's less confusing calculating with values.

I've got a 40 qt Cube and it is more than twice the size of the largest mash I've ever made. That was for a very high gravity (~1.140) barley wine.

yes you should be able to hit those gravities with that tun size

Thanks for the replys.

After reading alot of information, I think I would be better with the 36QT size. I prefer small batches but lot's of different beer styles than making a big batch.

 

[ozpt]

Reviving this post....
I saw on amazon a good deal. It's a 52 qt coleman xtreme, for the price of the 36 qt.
As I posted previously I only intend to brew 20L batches.
If I go with the 52 qt, will I lose efficiency? or will I be OK?

 

[Ski12568]

You will just have to heat the entire cooler so you don't lose your mash temp. A lot of extra cooler will suck heat from your mash, heating it prior to mashing will prevent a huge temperature swing.

One way to do this would be to put your strike water in higher than your target and let it cool to your desired temp. Might take a couple tries but once you know how much heat it takes you'll have the process dialed in.

 

[kombat]

It'll be plenty big enough, and you can mitigate heat loss due to excess dead space by covering your grain bed with a sheet of aluminum foil at the beginning of the mash. As a bonus, this also helps avoid disturbing the grain bed while vorlaufing. Just punch a few holes in it (I use the temperature probe from my cheap-o turkey fryer HLT pot) to let the wort drain back down into the grain bed as you recirculate/vorlauf.

 

[ozpt]

I did the math about the real quantity of mash inside the tun and it will be approximately 20 L (13 L of water and about 7L of grains). So that means a dead space of 30 L, and this is my biggest concern.
I dont want to buy something big and affect my efficiency.
How much heat loss should I expect during the mash?

 

[ozpt]

Update!

Got the 52QT Xtreme!
I have a question, can I use fibre washers to seal the tap connection? Would it affect the beer?

Also, I have to clean some brass fittings. On How to Brew says to use white vinegar. Can I use white wine vinegar instead?

Thanks,

 

[ozpt]

Can I use fibre washers to seal the tap connection? Would it affect the beer?

Also, I have to clean some brass fittings. On How to Brew says to use white vinegar. Can I use white wine vinegar instead?

Can someone help me on this? ^