partial mash tun

[Penguin]

thinking of building the el cheapo version of the mini mash tun out of a 3 gallon igloo cooler. my question is how important is it that the cooler be brand new? ive got an older 3 gallon igloo that could do the job easily. since im going to boil the wort for an hour anyway it shouldnt be an issue should it?

 

[Yooper]

Oh, you can use an older cooler. Soak it in some oxyclean and water, scrub out the crud, and rinse. You should be all set!

 

[DrinksWellWithOthers]

My cooler is probably 10 years old. I used it as a water cooler on my high school and traveling baseball teams for a few years so its definitely banged up and it had been sitting in my garage ever since.