New BIAB brewer and set up

[Sourz4life]

I made the switch to all grain after only a few brews. It just interested me more so I wanted to do it. Of course there is an expense with it as most set ups us a HTL, MTL, then Kettle. I started all grain with BIAB though. Its a really good way to get into all grain to understand the process of it and get used to the temp ranges you'll be dealing with. I started BIAB out with a 5 gallon SS kettle, one of the bags from northern brewer. I didn't even have a immersion chiller, and the brews still came out good. So its not always the equipment that makes the brew, its just the care you put into it. I made the switch by making a MLT myself from a Igloo 10 gallon cooler. Target had them on sale for 40 dollars. Used that and a thread on HBT on how to convert it into a ball lock set up with a home made bazooka screen basically. I've replaced with a false bottom since but it worked just fine originally as well. The parts for that cost me 27 dollars, so I ended up spending 67 dollars on a 10 gal MTL which is not bad at all. That pretty much does my all grain brewing. You just need a strike kettle to boil to temp, and to be honest you could use your strike kettle as the same as the boiling kettle. The only convenience of having 2 separate ones is not having to move them around and just have a brew stand or something with 3 different levels. And to best honest I do that myself. I just use a pump to help navigate the wort back up into the kettle and never had issues. I as well am on a budget so I had to get some of the pieces over time and just dealt with what I had.

 

[UndeadFred]

Well for 5 gallons? You can probably find an old keg somewhere for $50, you can find a normal based element for $10 if you look (I use a $9 closeout, but I had food grade paint left over from a project years before to keep the base from rusting. $25 for a brass based one otherwise), $60 for a spa panel, $25 for a phase control dimmer (SSVR) and a potentiometer. That is about as cheap as you can go and have a safe system. Adding a PID and SSR and a RTD sensor is another $60 or so and a ball valve is $10 to $15. A commercial bag is about $20, but you can literally make one for $1.50.

 

[TexasWine]

- 60 quart pot: $56.99 http://www.webstaurantstore.com/60-qt-standard-weight-aluminum-stock-pot/40760385.html
- Lid for pot probably another $12 or so.
- Hot Pod from Brew Hardware: $26 http://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/hotpod-ewl3.htm
-2000 watt SS element: $19 https://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/element1500_short.htm
-Wire and plug for installing the element ~$8

So for a grand total of $125 to $130 you can have an electric brew kettle. No absolute need for a PID or a pump. Heat the water up, add your grain, insulate, wait a while, pull the grain out, boil. The 2000 watt element will be perfect for boiling anything from 3 gallons to 7 gallons. If you use an aluminum kettle you might need to insulate your kettle to boil the larger volumes (with a sleeping bag, blanket, or something else). I boil 7 gallons @ 1800 watts easily, and with a bare 62 quart kettle.

 

[wilserbrewer]

I agree with TW above, except I would suggest a 10-12 gallon kettle to keep the surface area low considering the "low" wattage element.

GFI outlet $12

Concord 40 or 50 qt stainless w/ lid $65 - $75 shipped

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CONCORD-Pol...hash=item20fd189049:m:mpPuevxvxy2IzMuXj4gs9ow

The brewhardware hot rod is worth a look as well IMO, eliminates any drilling of the kettle, and gives you the ability to heat different vessels, and also heat and stir a mash directly if you need to raise the temp a little bit...

https://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/hotrod.htm

 

[thunderwagn]

- 60 quart pot: $56.99 http://www.webstaurantstore.com/60-qt-standard-weight-aluminum-stock-pot/40760385.html
- Lid for pot probably another $12 or so.
- Hot Pod from Brew Hardware: $26 http://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/hotpod-ewl3.htm
-2000 watt SS element: $19 https://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/element1500_short.htm
-Wire and plug for installing the element ~$8

So for a grand total of $125 to $130 you can have an electric brew kettle. No absolute need for a PID or a pump. Heat the water up, add your grain, insulate, wait a while, pull the grain out, boil. The 2000 watt element will be perfect for boiling anything from 3 gallons to 7 gallons. If you use an aluminum kettle you might need to insulate your kettle to boil the larger volumes (with a sleeping bag, blanket, or something else). I boil 7 gallons @ 1800 watts easily, and with a bare 62 quart kettle.

I agree with TW above, except I would suggest a 10-12 gallon kettle to keep the surface area low considering the "low" wattage element.

GFI outlet $12

Concord 40 or 50 qt stainless w/ lid $65 - $75 shipped

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CONCORD-Pol...hash=item20fd189049:m:mpPuevxvxy2IzMuXj4gs9ow

The brewhardware hot rod is worth a look as well IMO, eliminates any drilling of the kettle, and gives you the ability to heat different vessels, and also heat and stir a mash directly if you need to raise the temp a little bit...

https://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/hotrod.htm

Great advice here. It's pretty much the advice I was given and it's worked very well for me.
I purchased this 10 gallon alum kettle on Amazon and love it.
Bite the bullet and get the lid for it.http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001CHKL68/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
I also went with the Hot Rod brewstick and installed a $10 2500 heating element I purchased at Home Depot. I had gfi, plug and wire, but I believe Brewers Hardware offers the option to install element, plug and wire...ready to go.
And of course you can't go wrong with a Wilser bag. Be kind to your wallet and buy a good bag from the get go. You'll save money and Wilser has sells all the time so be on the lookout for those!

 

[TorMag]

Thanks guys. Allready have the Wilser bag, 50 q concord kettle with lid. Will have to look into the rest.

 

[UndeadFred]

One other option I considered but decided against because I could do it the "right way" was, if you have access to a panel, put in two elements in kettle, two 20A breakers on each side of the neutral (different hots) and two GFCI's. That would get you 4 KW which is enough for 8 gallon boil easily. You could put a boil control on one (SSVR or a "router speed control" from Harbor Freight) and unplug the other when holding a mash temp, or likely even a boil. This probably can be done very cheaply as a couple of 20A 115V GFCI's would be $20, a couple of breakers would be $15-20, and that router speed controller is $15 when on sale with a 20% off coupon. That the pot, a bag and a thermometer would be adequate. So $50 for a used keg, and $55 for the rest plus $20 for a bag is about $125.

The only downside to this is if you did decide to PID temperature control at a later time you might need two SSR's, one on each hot/element, though one and the other half being a SSVR (phase control dimmer, router speed controller, etc.) is likely to work also.

 

[golfgod04]

ugh I dont know what to do