Ready to move to all grain, any equipment kit suggestions?

[Osborne]

I tried searching, but couldn't find anything recent on a good equipment kit to get. I've been brewing extract for a year now, and feel its time to move on.

I think my burner from Northern Brewer, and wort chiller will suffice. But I don't know if my 8 gallon kettle is big enough.

Also for a grain mill I was thinking the Cereal Killer from AIH.

I like the looks of this kit since if I decide to do 10 gallon batches, I'm I worry about lifting a hot heavy kettle of water and pouring in...

http://www.northernbrewer.com/fermenters-favorites-essential-all-grain-brewing-starter-kit-10-gallon

 

[LBF]

I started with extract and moved to partial mashing early on. I was doing BIAB partial mashing in the kettle, worked out well. I finally made the switch to all grain this year. Well, that and I moved to an outdoor burner, 15 gallon Spike Brewing kettle and a counterflow chiller, but yea.

I can be a bit cheap at times, and I'm rather handy so I built my own all-grain setup. My mash tun is a 70 quart Coleman Extreme cooler from Walmart that I set up with a home-made Bazooka tube for a drain and just batch sparge it. I made a hot water tank out of a 48 quart Rubbermaid cooler from Home Depot so I could use one brew kettle. With the outdoor burner and 15 gallon kettle, plus my all grain setup, I can brew 11 gallon batches. Just did an 11 gallon batch yesterday that called for around 35# of grain, which put me fairly close to the top of the mash tun, but still plenty of room. I put together a couple videos of building my MT and HWT.





I measure and heat the mash water in the kettle, then put it in the mash tun and add my grain. When I'm a half hour or so into the mash, I'll measure and heat the sparge water and put it in the HWT. Then I can vorlouf and run the MT into the kettle. Run the sparge water from the HWT into the MT and leave it sit a minute, then vorlouf and run again. HWT just gets opened and turned over when I'm done to drain since all it had was water in it. MT gets dumped on the compost pile while the boil is starting, then I just squirt it out good and let it drain. When the boil is done, the wort is chilled and in the fermenters, I just have the kettle and chiller to clean up.

An 8 gallon kettle would probably be big enough for a 5 gallon batch. You might want to pick up some Fermcap and use it though, it'll keep it from foaming up during the hot break.

 

[Subdivisions]

I have a 9 gallon kettle. I bought an $8 bag and do 5 gallon BIAB batches in it. I reserve 2 gallons of water and do a dunk sparge in a home depot bucket to allow for some headspace. I've done up to 1.075 OG beers this way. You could easily go higher by putting more water towards the sparge.

P.S.

I do cold water (room temperature) sparges. Squeeze as much wort out of the bag as possible then put the bag in the bucket and dump 2 gallons in. Then stir it up a couple of times over 10 minutes. It works very well and it's easy to squeeze every last drop out of a cool bag. The stickiness of your hands and arms tells you that the conversion was good.

I'm looking to go towards @LBF 's way and use a mash tun. The pros are that I'll get much less trub into the fermenter and could easily do much higher OG beers ( as well as doing a parti-gyle). The cons are that I'm quite satisfied with the way it's working right now and don't want to change.

 

[mongoose33]

I was doing extract brewing. I lucked into a mash tun as part of buying out a guy who was getting out of brewing, so I switched from extract to all-grain.

Here are the things I have collected to do that:

1. Mash Tun. Mine is 50 quarts, or 12.5 gallons. Came with a torpedo screen and ball valve, it's very nice.

2 Mash paddle for stirring. I have a metal spoon but a plastic mash paddle won't soak up heat like a metal spoon.

3. Refractometer--easy to see what the gravites of the runnings are.

4. A PH meter to check mash PH.

5. Lactic acid and a pipette with suction bulb. For adjusting mash PH.

Could you do without any of the above? Perhaps 3,4, and 5--but my issue is I'm trained as a scientist and measurement is what it's all about. So I can't easily dismiss anything that helps me measure what's going on. That's either a character flaw or an admirable trait, you decide.

 

[JunkCatsOnThePorch]

This mash tun is identical to the one I have and am very pleased with it. Also this is a wonderful store so please check em' out.

http://www.txbrewing.com/10-gal-cooler-mash-tun.html

Ive never had a stuck sparge or mash. I guess getting the false bottom at the same place you get your grain milled has some advantages. 75% Efficiency. I fly sparge with another cooler and have a 7.5 gallon kettle that is just hardly big enough for 5 gallon batches. If you are afraid of moving hot liquid around, a gravity fed system like mine or the one you showed might not be the best for you.

 

[bigken462]

I think you'll find a 50.00 Rubbermaid round cooler is favored with many here on the forum. The one from my brew shop came complete with valve, screen and cooler for 95 bucks. You can make them cheaper, but I didn't want the headache of shopping for supplies. I personally use a bazooka screen with this cooler and have not had any major problems. Like many, I carried over stuff from extract brewing and still use most of those items today. I have a 15 gallon pot which is great for doing 5 gallon batches and while I've not yet done a 10 gallon batch in it, could probably do so without much problem.

Youtube and Google is your friend. If you have the spare time and bandwidth, tear it up. Plenty of great stuff out there. The only thing I would say is maybe rethink the mill part if you are limited on cash. Don't get me wrong, I just purchased my first mill which was a MM3 last week and it's freaking great, but that said...I've never once had a problem with the crush my store gave me. Just something to consider if you needed to use that cash elsewhere on other important things.

What I would suggest is a good 10 gallon cooler with your choice of screen and ball-valve. A pot sufficient to do a 6-10 gallon boil. This will give you much needed insurance to prevent boil overs. A burner of some sort like a turkey fier burner. This heats my water to a boil pretty quickly. Seems it was a SP10 or something like that.

There are tons of lil items which will make your brewday much easier. I wish I could provide links, but I'm short on time here at work, but I'll cover what I can.

1. Wallpaper tray to hold your utensils.
2. Refractometer - quite possibly the best 20 bucks you'll ever spend.
3. Stainless long handled metal pot spoon.
4. Set of kitchen scales and digital thermometer pen.
5. Several spare lengths of tubing to use for blow off's and siphon.
6. Extra propane tank and consider finding a set of luggage scales to measure the weight of your propane tank before and after your first few set of batches. This will help you get a good idea of how much fuel you can start expecting to use.
7. Plastic or metal water pitcher.
8. Something to sparge with. Until recently, I used a aluminum turkey baster pan with holes poked in the top. Many also use a second 5-10 gallon cooler. Again is this extra cost worth it? Was to me, but I've used the 50 cent pans for the past 3 years with no problems.
9. At least a 50' wort chiller, but I think I recall you saying you already had that.
10. a box of disposable pipets to take sample gravity readings. I use one per brewday.

There are tons of other things to make your day easier. Sadly, with this hobby, I don't think you can ever have enough. Just think your purchase decisions through and make sure you can use them as you grow more into the hobby.

If you would like to take a look at BIAB, check out Wilserbrewing on the forum. He can set you up with all the bags you need and give some really great advice on BIAB and other techniques.

Good luck buddy. Post back with any questions you might have. Here is a link to a few pictures of my brewing junk. Nothing special, but it might can help you brainstorm some ideas.

Ken

 

[MVKTR2]

The only limits you have are imagination and bank account/credit limit. I don't have a lot of people to share beer with so 5.5 gallon batches are my absolute max. I use a 10 gal aluminum kettle Update brand bought from ebay was $54 including shipping(7 yrs ago), it works great! I too have a cooler mash-tun with a braided hose in the bottom. Though unlike most setups I fitted my braided hose over a length of copper tubing that has immense holes ground into the bottom of it. My thinking is this keeps the tube from collapsing as I often hear complaints about with such a braided hose setup. Half inch self made copper immersion chiller and I'm good to go.

Granted I was poor when I began brewing 8+ years ago and will always be frugal. However I get 81% efficiency on average while grinding my own grains in a corona style mill.

If money wasn't an object I'd do a 2 vessel (maybe 3 simply using my existing mash tun cooler for a mash-tun in the electric system) counter top 120v electric system. Fwiw I hate BIAB so I'd never go that route. In this realm an electric HLT with a homemade cooler mashtun as shown above or in this rather famous HBT thread ( https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=23008 ), and a 10 gallon kettle & burner would be a fairly efficient and cost efficient brew setup.

My basic costs:
10 gal pot - $54
46' 1/2" copper immersion chiller - $65 iirc
Corona mil plus wood for enclosed milling station with hinged door - $45
cooler based mash tun with hardware store accessories for build - $48

Hoses, clamps, kegs, co2 regulators, taps, lines, cappers, fermenters, keg-fridge, and everything else ... $300-375?

I've got roughly $500-550 in my entire setup which is cheap compared to most kegging all grainers.

 

[PADave]

Give BIAB a try. All you need is a bag, wilserbrewer bags are awesome by the way, and the equipment that you already got. Last batch I did was no sparge, full volume mash, and I got 87% efficiency. Simple, minimal equipment, works.

 

[Puddlethumper]

I think my burner from Northern Brewer, and wort chiller will suffice. But I don't know if my 8 gallon kettle is big enough.

Also for a grain mill I was thinking the Cereal Killer from AIH.

I like the looks of this kit since if I decide to do 10 gallon batches, I'm I worry about lifting a hot heavy kettle of water and pouring in...

I'd also suggest a 10 gal. boil kettle. Mine is 8 gal. and if I am doing a batch that requires a 90 minute boil it is about filled to the top. If that is your only vessel for heating water a 10 gal. kettle will heat enough to make a 5 gallon batch.

And, also as previously suggested, you might want to reconsider spending the money on a grain mill unless you are planning to buy malts in bulk. If that is your plan then you will certainly need one but there are other mills out there that you might want to consider.

Pick up a durable plastic 2 or 4 quart pitcher to use for transferring hot water instead of picking up the whole kettle. Much safer practice!

 

[Osborne]

I started with extract and moved to partial mashing early on. I was doing BIAB partial mashing in the kettle, worked out well. I finally made the switch to all grain this year. Well, that and I moved to an outdoor burner, 15 gallon Spike Brewing kettle and a counterflow chiller, but yea.

I can be a bit cheap at times, and I'm rather handy so I built my own all-grain setup. My mash tun is a 70 quart Coleman Extreme cooler from Walmart that I set up with a home-made Bazooka tube for a drain and just batch sparge it. I made a hot water tank out of a 48 quart Rubbermaid cooler from Home Depot so I could use one brew kettle. With the outdoor burner and 15 gallon kettle, plus my all grain setup, I can brew 11 gallon batches. Just did an 11 gallon batch yesterday that called for around 35# of grain, which put me fairly close to the top of the mash tun, but still plenty of room. I put together a couple videos of building my MT and HWT.

Mash Tun build

Hot Water Tank (HWT/HLT)

I measure and heat the mash water in the kettle, then put it in the mash tun and add my grain. When I'm a half hour or so into the mash, I'll measure and heat the sparge water and put it in the HWT. Then I can vorlouf and run the MT into the kettle. Run the sparge water from the HWT into the MT and leave it sit a minute, then vorlouf and run again. HWT just gets opened and turned over when I'm done to drain since all it had was water in it. MT gets dumped on the compost pile while the boil is starting, then I just squirt it out good and let it drain. When the boil is done, the wort is chilled and in the fermenters, I just have the kettle and chiller to clean up.

An 8 gallon kettle would probably be big enough for a 5 gallon batch. You might want to pick up some Fermcap and use it though, it'll keep it from foaming up during the hot break.

Thank you! I'll be sure to check out your videos shortly. It seems like the DIY would be a lot cheaper.

 

[Osborne]

I have a 9 gallon kettle. I bought an $8 bag and do 5 gallon BIAB batches in it. I reserve 2 gallons of water and do a dunk sparge in a home depot bucket to allow for some headspace. I've done up to 1.075 OG beers this way. You could easily go higher by putting more water towards the sparge.

P.S.

I do cold water (room temperature) sparges. Squeeze as much wort out of the bag as possible then put the bag in the bucket and dump 2 gallons in. Then stir it up a couple of times over 10 minutes. It works very well and it's easy to squeeze every last drop out of a cool bag. The stickiness of your hands and arms tells you that the conversion was good.

I'm looking to go towards @LBF 's way and use a mash tun. The pros are that I'll get much less trub into the fermenter and could easily do much higher OG beers ( as well as doing a parti-gyle). The cons are that I'm quite satisfied with the way it's working right now and don't want to change.

Brew in a bag seems really convienent, I was thinking a single temperature infusion. I'm still weighing my options and this looks like an appealing one. One downside I see for me is I like to do high gravity beers for cellaring, such as 1.090. I'll be sure to keep all this in mind, I'm intrigued.

 

[Osborne]

I was doing extract brewing. I lucked into a mash tun as part of buying out a guy who was getting out of brewing, so I switched from extract to all-grain.

Here are the things I have collected to do that:

1. Mash Tun. Mine is 50 quarts, or 12.5 gallons. Came with a torpedo screen and ball valve, it's very nice.

2 Mash paddle for stirring. I have a metal spoon but a plastic mash paddle won't soak up heat like a metal spoon.

3. Refractometer--easy to see what the gravites of the runnings are.

4. A PH meter to check mash PH.

5. Lactic acid and a pipette with suction bulb. For adjusting mash PH.

Could you do without any of the above? Perhaps 3,4, and 5--but my issue is I'm trained as a scientist and measurement is what it's all about. So I can't easily dismiss anything that helps me measure what's going on. That's either a character flaw or an admirable trait, you decide.

I wish I could luck into someone locally who wants to get out of it. But most people on this side of the state moonshine, and drink bud light. So I doubt I'll find anyone. I've been wanting to get a refractometer. Right now I'm just trying to get the essentials, then later on as I get more comfortable I'll buy all the little odds and ends.

 

[Osborne]

This mash tun is identical to the one I have and am very pleased with it. Also this is a wonderful store so please check em' out.

http://www.txbrewing.com/10-gal-cooler-mash-tun.html

Ive never had a stuck sparge or mash. I guess getting the false bottom at the same place you get your grain milled has some advantages. 75% Efficiency. I fly sparge with another cooler and have a 7.5 gallon kettle that is just hardly big enough for 5 gallon batches. If you are afraid of moving hot liquid around, a gravity fed system like mine or the one you showed might not be the best for you.

I'll check it out thanks! It's only the initial pouring from the kettle that I'm worried about.

 

[Osborne]

I think you'll find a 50.00 Rubbermaid round cooler is favored with many here on the forum. The one from my brew shop came complete with valve, screen and cooler for 95 bucks. You can make them cheaper, but I didn't want the headache of shopping for supplies. I personally use a bazooka screen with this cooler and have not had any major problems. Like many, I carried over stuff from extract brewing and still use most of those items today. I have a 15 gallon pot which is great for doing 5 gallon batches and while I've not yet done a 10 gallon batch in it, could probably do so without much problem.

Youtube and Google is your friend. If you have the spare time and bandwidth, tear it up. Plenty of great stuff out there. The only thing I would say is maybe rethink the mill part if you are limited on cash. Don't get me wrong, I just purchased my first mill which was a MM3 last week and it's freaking great, but that said...I've never once had a problem with the crush my store gave me. Just something to consider if you needed to use that cash elsewhere on other important things.

What I would suggest is a good 10 gallon cooler with your choice of screen and ball-valve. A pot sufficient to do a 6-10 gallon boil. This will give you much needed insurance to prevent boil overs. A burner of some sort like a turkey fier burner. This heats my water to a boil pretty quickly. Seems it was a SP10 or something like that.

There are tons of lil items which will make your brewday much easier. I wish I could provide links, but I'm short on time here at work, but I'll cover what I can.

1. Wallpaper tray to hold your utensils.
2. Refractometer - quite possibly the best 20 bucks you'll ever spend.
3. Stainless long handled metal pot spoon.
4. Set of kitchen scales and digital thermometer pen.
5. Several spare lengths of tubing to use for blow off's and siphon.
6. Extra propane tank and consider finding a set of luggage scales to measure the weight of your propane tank before and after your first few set of batches. This will help you get a good idea of how much fuel you can start expecting to use.
7. Plastic or metal water pitcher.
8. Something to sparge with. Until recently, I used a aluminum turkey baster pan with holes poked in the top. Many also use a second 5-10 gallon cooler. Again is this extra cost worth it? Was to me, but I've used the 50 cent pans for the past 3 years with no problems.
9. At least a 50' wort chiller, but I think I recall you saying you already had that.
10. a box of disposable pipets to take sample gravity readings. I use one per brewday.

There are tons of other things to make your day easier. Sadly, with this hobby, I don't think you can ever have enough. Just think your purchase decisions through and make sure you can use them as you grow more into the hobby.

If you would like to take a look at BIAB, check out Wilserbrewing on the forum. He can set you up with all the bags you need and give some really great advice on BIAB and other techniques.

Good luck buddy. Post back with any questions you might have. Here is a link to a few pictures of my brewing junk. Nothing special, but it might can help you brainstorm some ideas.

Ken

I'll look more into the DIY options, I'm going to watch some videos later today, including the ones LBF posted. I'll also look around on here, and Google. I may rethink that. I just like the idea of being able to store grain for up to a year.

Thank you for posting this list of recommended items! I'll be ordering one of those wall paper trays next time I'm on Amazon. And creating a list for the most other items that I'll need to get once I'm ready.

I'm interested about your water filtration. Where I live in Eastern, Kentucky our water comes from the local lake. I've been needing to contact the water company for an analysis. But I believe our tap water might be good to brew with (StarSan never gets cloudy if that means anything). I really enjoyed looking at your setup, good looking beer too!

I'll be sure to post back with my progress (which may be slow until my semester of school is over). Thanks!!

 

[Osborne]

Give BIAB a try. All you need is a bag, wilserbrewer bags are awesome by the way, and the equipment that you already got. Last batch I did was no sparge, full volume mash, and I got 87% efficiency. Simple, minimal equipment, works.

I may start out with this, I've been seeing it recommended a lot.

 

[Osborne]

I'd also suggest a 10 gal. boil kettle. Mine is 8 gal. and if I am doing a batch that requires a 90 minute boil it is about filled to the top. If that is your only vessel for heating water a 10 gal. kettle will heat enough to make a 5 gallon batch.

And, also as previously suggested, you might want to reconsider spending the money on a grain mill unless you are planning to buy malts in bulk. If that is your plan then you will certainly need one but there are other mills out there that you might want to consider.

Pick up a durable plastic 2 or 4 quart pitcher to use for transferring hot water instead of picking up the whole kettle. Much safer practice!

I've been worried about this boil kettle not being enough. I should've got a larger one from the start, but it was a deal running on northern brewer for it and the burner for $120...Plus I got 20% off my total order.

Yeah i'm thinking of putting off the grain mill for now...If I end up having to buy a new kettle.

I found a 4 quart pitcher on Amazon! I'll be ordering it to move the hot water. Ken also recommended this. Great idea!

 

[dsniegocki]

I've recently switched to using a BIAB bag in my 10 gallon Igloo mash tun, as opposed to using the false bottom. It has eliminated stuck sparges, I can grind the snot out of the grain if I choose. And clean-up is now SO SO easy. It is so nice to just yank the bag out, dump the grains, rinse it, and be done. All the advantages of the Igloo cooler insulation (hardly get a degree of temperature drop during the mash) with the easy clean-up and no stuck sparges of BIAB, with fly-sparge efficiency. Bit cheaper than buying the false bottom, etc.

+1 on using your own grain mill, I love keeping bulk grain handy and just grinding as I need to.

Get a good thermometer, here's a quality inexpensive alternative to the thermapen:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0021AEAG2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Keep an eye out for refractometer specials, they seem to crop up on the reseller sites fairly frequently. Good tool to have for AG.

Good luck, you'll love AG, it's like switching from Betty Crocker to baking from scratch!

 

[bigken462]

I'll look more into the DIY options, I'm going to watch some videos later today, including the ones LBF posted. I'll also look around on here, and Google. I may rethink that. I just like the idea of being able to store grain for up to a year.

Thank you for posting this list of recommended items! I'll be ordering one of those wall paper trays next time I'm on Amazon. And creating a list for the most other items that I'll need to get once I'm ready.

I'm interested about your water filtration. Where I live in Eastern, Kentucky our water comes from the local lake. I've been needing to contact the water company for an analysis. But I believe our tap water might be good to brew with (StarSan never gets cloudy if that means anything). I really enjoyed looking at your setup, good looking beer too!

I'll be sure to post back with my progress (which may be slow until my semester of school is over). Thanks!!

Ya know, I purchased those filters out of pure inexperience thinking I needed them to filter wort before the boil. I used it once, maybe twice before I realized it was exactly the waste of time and money everyone said it would be. A good cold break, tablet of wirlfloc, time, patience with a lil bit of Knox goes a long way. All for much cheaper than those filters cost.

As for our water, I actually have good water. But where I lived on a dead-end road, we did have some problems with sediment, so I thought I would go ahead and use it just because I had already wasted money buying the things. I still find myself using it today, but really to be honest, I don't know that it improves my beer. I've been thinking about adding a charcoal filter to see if helps or hurts anything, but I doubt it will change much.

As for the tray, they are very durable. I've used mine for 3 years and only after a residential move with it getting banged around has it started leaking. Sadly the paint store where I purchased it at no longer sells them, so I have to find another place.

Very recently, I've added a second burner to the kit and now am able to overlap batches between the mash/boils. Was able to kick out three the other day for the first time. As sore as my back was, doubtful I will do it again. lol

Looking back, I don't know why I was intimidated by AG. I will admit, doing BIAB really helped build my confidence level up some before jumping into AG.

Once I actually purchased the cooler, I was really surprised at how well it held temps up. I'm looking forward to be able to do a true hands-off fly sparge next weekend.....If there is such thing. My old process worked fine, but it required a ton of trips back and forth pitching water. No biggie, unless you get side tracked and look over there to see you've forgotten it.

Keep after it buddy. I think you'll be surprised of the great beer you can brew without breaking the bank account. True the shiny stuff is awesome, trust me, I look at my MM3 as a trophy, but only because I've wanted one for a long time. I have never purchased more than a few kits at a time, but that may change now. We'll see.

Let us know how your brew day goes.

 

[LBF]

I did BIAB my partial mashes and a couple small batch all grains. But I quickly got tired of moving a heavy bag of hot, wet grain. That and with my hip issues, it wasn't agreeable at all. It's true that now I have to deal with lifting and moving coolers, but all the hot wet stuff is inside of them and unlikely to splash on me. And probably my next investment will be a pump so that I can do away with gravity flowing everything. After that, I'll probably get a grain mill.

I've heard a lot of people use a BIAB bag in a cooler. Especially for the reason of stuck sparges. So far, I've done 4 batches in my cooler MT and zero stuck sparges. Not even a hint. Three of those were 11 gallon batches with 25-35# of grain including things like flaked wheat and rye. I have heard that if you use a round cooler with a false bottom, they can be prone to stuck sparges. I use a braid and it's proven effective. I batch sparge for simplicity, there's no worries about watching the PH, I just run off the first mash and usually batch sparge twice on an 11 gallon batch (run half of the sparge water in, stir, vorlouf, drain, repeat). It's easy and with the correct crush, you can get identical numbers to a fly sparge. I get stuff with a lame crush (that looks like it would be prone to stuck sparges) from my local homebrew supply store, but I still get over 70% efficiency with no problems.

 

[LBF]

I'm looking to go towards @LBF 's way and use a mash tun. The pros are that I'll get much less trub into the fermenter and could easily do much higher OG beers ( as well as doing a parti-gyle). The cons are that I'm quite satisfied with the way it's working right now and don't want to change.

I was relatively satisfied with how my BIAB partial mashes were working out. Messy and sticky as it was, it worked. But now that I've moved outside and into things the way I have, I wouldn't have it any other way. To be able to blow out an 11 gallon batch in 5 hours without getting sticky is nice. Now while brewing I typically enjoy a homebrew and a cigar and let the equipment work for me. The only thing better would be to have a pump to move things so I wouldn't have to gravity flow.

Doesn't look like you're all that far away from me, if you'd ever want to come check things out and maybe do a brew day with me, you're welcome to. I know a lot of people around Pittsburgh seem to think that Butler is on the other side of the planet, but I can be down in the city in less than an hour if I don't hit too much traffic, and places like Monroeville are only 30 miles away (I say only because I work construction, so a 20 mile ride is a normal commute for me).

 

[Osborne]

I'm a little apprehensive of the BIAB, it seems you need some kinda pully system? I homebrew under the deck outside the basement door, so I guess I could rig it up on a deck rafter?

 

[bigken462]

Everything you need to make it simple and easy right here! Grains don't weigh that much, pretty much any overhead support will do. Even then, it's not necessary if you have a colander to set over the pot. Giver @wilserbrewer a shout. He'll set you up.

 

[mongoose33]

I wish I could luck into someone locally who wants to get out of it. But most people on this side of the state moonshine, and drink bud light. So I doubt I'll find anyone. I've been wanting to get a refractometer. Right now I'm just trying to get the essentials, then later on as I get more comfortable I'll buy all the little odds and ends.

You kind of have to keep looking at Craigslist to see what pops up.

I liken Craigslist to fishing--you don't always get a bite, but there's enough action to keep you casting the line.

 

[LBF]

I'm a little apprehensive of the BIAB, it seems you need some kinda pully system? I homebrew under the deck outside the basement door, so I guess I could rig it up on a deck rafter?

It kind of depends. A pulley system would certainly make it easier to lift a grain bag and with it you could pick up a grain bag and let it drain without a colander or sieve, especially with a large grain bill, but it's not absolutely necessary unless you're doing a BIAB for say, an 11 gallon batch where you can have 35# of grain, plus the weight of all the water it's soaked up. Now it would take some effort to lift the steaming hot bag of grain in that situation, so a pulley system would be very helpful to most people.

 

[Puddlethumper]

I'm interested about your water filtration. Where I live in Eastern, Kentucky our water comes from the local lake. I've been needing to contact the water company for an analysis. But I believe our tap water might be good to brew with (StarSan never gets cloudy if that means anything).

One step you might want to consider is getting a brewing specific water analysis done of your water supply. Ward Labs provides that service for a reasonable fee:

You can send them a sample in your own bottle for $27.25
http://www.wardlab.com/images/sampleforms/homebrewer.pdf

Or you can buy one of their test kits for $42.00:
https://producers.wardlab.com/BrewersKitOrder.php

If you are making good beer you may or may not feel the need. I am drawing water from my own well so wanted to know what I was working with. That information, along with a lot of reading on this forum, has helped me learn how to adjust the water profile as needed for the various styles of beer I like to make.

 

[Osborne]

It kind of depends. A pulley system would certainly make it easier to lift a grain bag and with it you could pick up a grain bag and let it drain without a colander or sieve, especially with a large grain bill, but it's not absolutely necessary unless you're doing a BIAB for say, an 11 gallon batch where you can have 35# of grain, plus the weight of all the water it's soaked up. Now it would take some effort to lift the steaming hot bag of grain in that situation, so a pulley system would be very helpful to most people.

Gotcha!

 

[Osborne]

Everything you need to make it simple and easy right here! Grains don't weigh that much, pretty much any overhead support will do. Even then, it's not necessary if you have a colander to set over the pot. Giver @wilserbrewer a shout. He'll set you up.

I was checking out his site the other day, as the time nears I'll probably contact him.

 

[Osborne]

This mash tun is identical to the one I have and am very pleased with it. Also this is a wonderful store so please check em' out

I can't get your links to work.

 

[Osborne]

One step you might want to consider is getting a brewing specific water analysis done of your water supply. Ward Labs provides that service for a reasonable fee:

You can send them a sample in your own bottle for $27.25
http://www.wardlab.com/images/sampleforms/homebrewer.pdf

Or you can buy one of their test kits for $42.00:
https://producers.wardlab.com/BrewersKitOrder.php

If you are making good beer you may or may not feel the need. I am drawing water from my own well so wanted to know what I was working with. That information, along with a lot of reading on this forum, has helped me learn how to adjust the water profile as needed for the various styles of beer I like to make.

I've been buying the Wal-Mart spring water. So if I'm able to use my own tap water for brewing it would sure cut down on cost. I thought about sending it off for analysis, I've read about that before.

 

[dsniegocki]

It kind of depends. A pulley system would certainly make it easier to lift a grain bag and with it you could pick up a grain bag and let it drain without a colander or sieve, especially with a large grain bill, but it's not absolutely necessary unless you're doing a BIAB for say, an 11 gallon batch where you can have 35# of grain, plus the weight of all the water it's soaked up. Now it would take some effort to lift the steaming hot bag of grain in that situation, so a pulley system would be very helpful to most people.

Osborne -

Can't take credit for this as I saw it in another post and haven't tried it myself... but if the pulley system/weight of the grain bag is an issue, you can try splitting the BIAG batch into two or three smaller bags, mashing them all at once... the efficiency should at least be the same, but you'll be pulling out smaller bags and wouldn't necessarily need a pulley.

 

[Puddlethumper]

I've been buying the Wal-Mart spring water. So if I'm able to use my own tap water for brewing it would sure cut down on cost. I thought about sending it off for analysis, I've read about that before.

The water analysis showed me that if I'm making dark beers such as porters, stouts and browns I can use my well water pretty much as-is. The dark malts bring the pH down to almost optimal levels by themselves.

If brewing lighter beers such as APA or cream ale I'll buy 5 gallons of RO water from the machine in front of the grocery store, mix in 5 gal. of my well water and a touch of lactic acid and the pH and all other numbers fall right in line. Your water will, most likely, be completely different. So the adjustments you'll need to make will probably be completely different from mine.

Brewing water chemistry is another whole field of study for the home brewer. But since water is THE dominant component of all beers I think it is pretty important. Again, just my .02c worth. And if the beer you are making tastes good to you then you may not want to mess with it at this point. Just something to think about.

Cheers!

 

[mongoose33]

I wish I could luck into someone locally who wants to get out of it. But most people on this side of the state moonshine, and drink bud light. So I doubt I'll find anyone. I've been wanting to get a refractometer. Right now I'm just trying to get the essentials, then later on as I get more comfortable I'll buy all the little odds and ends.

You have to keep fishing.

I checked tonite just for fun, and you won't believe this:

http://iowacity.craigslist.org/for/5487683570.html

 

[Rhetorik]

I've been buying the Wal-Mart spring water. So if I'm able to use my own tap water for brewing it would sure cut down on cost. I thought about sending it off for analysis, I've read about that before.

For water, check out this site to see if your city is listed. It will give you a basic breakdown, though it won't be as accurate as the water test as that measures the water coming out of your taps.

http://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/water-profiles/

You have to keep fishing.

I checked tonite just for fun, and you won't believe this:

http://iowacity.craigslist.org/for/5487683570.html

Yep, snap one of these kits up! They're a great deal.

 

[Subdivisions]

I was relatively satisfied with how my BIAB partial mashes were working out. Messy and sticky as it was, it worked. But now that I've moved outside and into things the way I have, I wouldn't have it any other way. To be able to blow out an 11 gallon batch in 5 hours without getting sticky is nice. Now while brewing I typically enjoy a homebrew and a cigar and let the equipment work for me. The only thing better would be to have a pump to move things so I wouldn't have to gravity flow.

Doesn't look like you're all that far away from me, if you'd ever want to come check things out and maybe do a brew day with me, you're welcome to. I know a lot of people around Pittsburgh seem to think that Butler is on the other side of the planet, but I can be down in the city in less than an hour if I don't hit too much traffic, and places like Monroeville are only 30 miles away (I say only because I work construction, so a 20 mile ride is a normal commute for me).

I might hit you up on that! I'm a lot closer than Pittsburgh. I'm in Harmony actually. I put Pittsburgh as a location since it's easy to identify the general area and no one outside of here would know if Harmony was here or Philly or in the Allegheny National Forest.

 

[PADave]

I might hit you up on that! I'm a lot closer than Pittsburgh. I'm in Harmony actually. I put Pittsburgh as a location since it's easy to identify the general area and no one outside of here would know if Harmony was here or Philly or in the Allegheny National Forest.

I'm close to Butler too. Any HB clubs, or LHBS around here?

 

[LBF]

I might hit you up on that! I'm a lot closer than Pittsburgh. I'm in Harmony actually. I put Pittsburgh as a location since it's easy to identify the general area and no one outside of here would know if Harmony was here or Philly or in the Allegheny National Forest.

I hear you there. Years ago I used Pittsburgh on forums, but I lived in Wexford then. Now that I've moved up close to Butler City, I just said F it and have been using Butler on the forums. I figure people can Google it if they care that much, haha!

I'm close to Butler too. Any HB clubs, or LHBS around here?

Not that I'm aware of, but maybe the three of us can get something going... I'd be up for organizing things.

Just noticed that you have Saxonburg as your location... I'm actually just off of Dinnerbell Road on the RT-8 side of things.

 

[Osborne]

I've been extremely busy I'm still considering BIAB but what about the Batch Sparge method? Any opinions on it?

 

[Puddlethumper]

I've been extremely busy I'm still considering BIAB but what about the Batch Sparge method? Any opinions on it?

I've done nothing but batch sparge since I started brewing. That being said there are probably those who will say that fly sparging is vastly better. I am given to understand that with modern malts there isn't all that much to be gained from fly sparging and I typically get 80% efficiency from my AG setup. There will be others, I am sure, who will argue vehemently to the contrary.

After draining the first runnings I will calculate the volume drawn and, based on that, figure how many quarts of sparge water are needed. I add that many quarts to the mash tun, stir and let stand for 10 min +/- and then begin vorlouf. I do use a grant to allow the run-off to drain at a constant rate. I continue the vorlouff untill the runnings are clear which may take 10 - 20 minutes. Only then will I allow the grant to drain into the boil kettle.

Batch sparge has worked well for me and I see no reason to change, YMMV.

Cheers!

 

[LBF]

I've done nothing but batch sparge since I started brewing. That being said there are probably those who will say that fly sparging is vastly better. I am given to understand that with modern malts there isn't all that much to be gained from fly sparging and I typically get 80% efficiency from my AG setup. There will be others, I am sure, who will argue vehemently to the contrary.

After draining the first runnings I will calculate the volume drawn and, based on that, figure how many quarts of sparge water are needed. I add that many quarts to the mash tun, stir and let stand for 10 min +/- and then begin vorlouf. I do use a grant to allow the run-off to drain at a constant rate. I continue the vorlouff untill the runnings are clear which may take 10 - 20 minutes. Only then will I allow the grant to drain into the boil kettle.

Batch sparge has worked well for me and I see no reason to change, YMMV.

Cheers!

From what I understand about it, you are correct that with modern malts it doesn't matter in terms of efficiency to batch sparge or fly sparge. The thing that pushed me towards batch sparging is the simplicity. With fly sparging you need a sparge arm to sprinkle the water at a set rate over the grain bed and you have to monitor your PH as you sparge to make sure it doesn't get too high.

FWIW, I found that BeerSmith will calculate your mash water amounts and sparge water amounts along with strike temps once you get it dialed in to your equipment. That made my move to all-grain an easy one. Of course, they are arguably a little too precise with it (add 38.48 quarts at 162.7*F). I suppose it's possible to measure that much water exactly and I know you can get the temperature that exact, but I've been shooting for close enough. Maybe someday after I get a bit more practice at it I'll try to be a little more exact, but I figure if I'm a pint or so high or low on my volume and within a degree or so, it's still going to make beer.

 

[Osborne]

I BIAB now, previously I batch-sparged into an esky (uh, cooler) mash tun. You can do it, it's not overly technical, it just takes longer. I would recirculate until the wort runs clear/you're sick of recirculating, drain the whole batch into a fermenter (or anything with liquid markings on it), and then sparge with whatever amount you need to make up the boil volume. Refill that amount, stir, recirculate, drain, repeat if double-batch sparging, or boil.
The main benefit for me switching to BIAB was time. It knocked an hour + off my brew day straight away. I've been switching recipes a lot, finding my efficiency moves a lot depending on which type of grain I use, so establishing a reliable brewhouse efficiency has been difficult, but I did notice an improvement wholesale going BIAB. That could be put down to poor procedure with the mash-tun method, I don't know.Brews are potentially less clear, but that's something you can alter with whirlfloc/irish moss, and recently I've been tipping into the fermenter through a sanitised wheat bag, which cuts the trub in half.

I use a crab boiling pot. It's 38 litres (10 gal) and has a perforated aluminium pot that fits inside it which would usually hold crabs - very handy to strap the wheat bag into, making lifting a lot easier. The inner pot sits on top of the pot and drains. Currently I sparge by pouring water through the bag. No lautering or circulation involved. Or, use your old extract pot to teabag sparge. I'm sure that's the technical term...

I hot water sparge to save time - adding cold water to your boil pot increases the time needed to bring it to boil.

The limit is about 8kgs of grain - we could probably sneak that to 10 if I didn't use the inner pot. As long as you're paying attention as it comes onto boil, you can boil 9 gal in a 10 gal pot. That grain bill translates to about 1.050 for 6.5-7 gallons. I use 8 gallon fermenters, so for me it's a no brainer.

Prices in Australia are stupid (the pot cost $110 dollarydoos) but you could probably find one at a camping store stateside for less.

I haven't entered water chemistry yet. Sometimes I boil my sparge water the night before, let it cool, transfer the water, scrub the pot (to remove fallout) and boil away. The water definitely tastes cleaner at that point, but I think you'd need a more advanced tongue than mine to taste the difference in beer.

I have a 8 Gallon Tall Boy from Northern Brewer. Which I belive will be big enough for Batch Sparging (I doubt it would be for BIAB). I do plan on getting a better one eventually. I don't know why I'm so attracted to the batch sparge method, but I seem to like it better than BIAB. I don't think an hour longer will make much of a difference. When I have time to brew, I have plenty of time.


For a 10 gallon pot thats about right, at least without any deals or anything over there.