New to HBT and all-grain

[inhifistereo]

Hello there,

My name is David and I'm new to HBT. I have been brewing beer since the wee age of 4 (my great-grandmother was one of the top bootleggers up in Rockford, IL during Prohibition so it was only natural that subsequent generations have a healthy appreciation for booze)

Anyways, up until this point I've done nothing but extract brews but they just don't do it for me anymore and I'm interested in moving up to all-grain but I'm curious as to what would be the best equipment to start with. I've done a fair amount of research on this topic but because of the dizzying amount of choices I am looking for a little bit of help in choosing the best equipment to make 5 gallon all grain brews.

One piece of equipment I know I'd like to make is FlyGuy's 10 gallon Rubbermaid MLT but beyond that and a large brew kettle I'm not too sure what extra equipment I would need. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

A cooler and a pot large enough to boil about 7 gallons are really the only requirements. You could order milled malt or have your LHBS mill it for you.

Other items that are not required, but recommended are: grain mill, chiller, and a propane burner for starters. You'll probably find out soon enough that there's always hardware that can be purchased/made. We brewers love our toys!

 

[Yooper]

My gallery has my pictures of my very lame system. It works, though! You definitely need a MLT (I use a cooler), a brewpot and burner (unless your stove can handle it- mine can), and a wort chiller of some kind. I don't really think of anything else as necessities that you wouldn't already have with extract brewing. You can get much fancier, though, that's for sure!

 

[WBC]

Remember that temperature control also plays a large part in how beer tastes and if you have a temperature controlled refrigerator or freezer that really helps your ales and lagers to be the best. Read all you can about yeast types and what temperature ranges they ferment at. Used freezers can be found on the web. The Ranco temperature controller can hold fermenting to within 1 degree F. The link below has them for $44.95.

Ref "Ranco digital controller": http://search.ebay.com/ranco-controller_W0QQfnuZ1QQfsooZ1QQfsopZ3QQgbrZ1

 

[freyguy]

Besides the MLT, my ideal system for 5gal batch (and very close to what I have) would be:
10gal pot with spigot and hop-stopper installed
Turkey fryer burner
Counter flow chiller
Good themometers (More than one. Mine just crapped out on me halfway through my mash.)

Then you add all the non-necessary, but fun stuff:
Brewthrumometer for CFC
Oxygen setup to aerate
SS Conical Fermenter if your rich

Take a look at the hopstopper. I was reluctant to spend that much on it at first, but it really has been great to use, and I'd buy another again in a heartbeat. Combined with the CFC, transfering and cooling the wort couldn't be much easier. Just my two pennies at least.

 

[inhifistereo]

Thanks for all the great advice.

My basement has been a pretty consistent 68 degrees for 8 months now (we bought the house 8 months ago). I have thought about a refrig but I'll wait on that for a little while.

What homebrew suppliers do you all recommend? I've been using Williams Brewing for a number of years, but I've come across Northern Brewers and Austin as of late. Any others I should try?

 

[WBC]

Thanks for all the great advice.

My basement has been a pretty consistent 68 degrees for 8 months now (we bought the house 8 months ago). I have thought about a refrig but I'll wait on that for a little while.

What homebrew suppliers do you all recommend? I've been using Williams Brewing for a number of years, but I've come across Northern Brewers and Austin as of late. Any others I should try?

www.morebeer.com

Very good variety and prompt service.

 

[Professor Frink]

Thanks for all the great advice.

My basement has been a pretty consistent 68 degrees for 8 months now (we bought the house 8 months ago). I have thought about a refrig but I'll wait on that for a little while.

What homebrew suppliers do you all recommend? I've been using Williams Brewing for a number of years, but I've come across Northern Brewers and Austin as of late. Any others I should try?

Midwest is great also, I've never had a problem with them.

 

[medic_35057]

Thanks for all the great advice.

My basement has been a pretty consistent 68 degrees for 8 months now (we bought the house 8 months ago). I have thought about a refrig but I'll wait on that for a little while.

What homebrew suppliers do you all recommend? I've been using Williams Brewing for a number of years, but I've come across Northern Brewers and Austin as of late. Any others I should try?

I use Listerman's. They offer free shipping on orders over $35 if you are east of the Mississippi which is very nice. I have been able to purchase enough grains, hops and yeast for $35 to $40 to make 5 gallon batches of two different styles. Just my two cents.

 

[TheDom]

I couldn't imagine doing full 5 gallon boils without at least my little 25' immersion chiller. It used to take forever even with 3gal boils with the ice-bath method, now I'm down to maybe 20min with the warm Florida ground water flowing through it.

+1 on putting together FlyGuy's 10gal rubbermaid! I built it and it works great!

For the large pot, I'd check out the local scrapyard for a used keg you can cut the top off of, or you can always order one with the top pre-cut off from
http://www.brew-magic.com/

Welcome to HBT, it's the best thing that ever happened to my beer!

 

[kebrown]

Welcome to the wonderfull world of brewing....