Virgin brewer here

[firedutyonly]

have not brewed yet. Just doin alot of research, takin a class when I have the time. So far, I bought 10 gallon Kettle, and stainless wort chiller, propane burner, a used soda keg, the fittings I'll need to keg(already had the converted fridge with CO2 setup. Looking at Fermentors. Seem to be drawn to the stainless conical type. Little pricey. wanna take a few more classes before I just jump in. Everyone saying I should just start with extract brewing. That SS 10 gal looks nice and has really good reviews.

 

[pshankstar]

First off welcome and congrats on looking into brewing and taking the plunge to buy some equipment. With a 10 gallon kettle you are going to max out on a 5-5.5 gallon batch of beer. You will have to watch for boil overs and what not. With that being said, look into the SS Brewtech Brew Bucket. It's perfect for those 5.5 gallon batches. Other options but not stainless steel are the FastFerment (I have it and love it) or the Catalyst. The catalyst is pretty new and I am not familiar with it but looks like another good option. I also have a Fermonster with a port and love that too! Good luck!

Oh there is nothing wrong with starting off with Extract brews, I did. Now I do all grain brewing using the BIAB (Brew In A Bag) method. If you want to jump into all grain brewing, I would suggest going with BIAB before investing in all the other equipment for a 3-vessel setup. Wilser bags get my vote for BIAB!

 

[Morrey]

My thought about fermenters: The best beer you'll make is beer fermented at consistent temperatures. Ambient temperatures in your home provide consistency since you typically set your thermostat for constant heating/cooling. Some folks have basements that are very consistent. But if you don't have temp consistency, beware this will influence your beer quality. You know your current needs and conditions better than anyone here offering advice.

I brew outside so I use freezers controlled by devices to maintain a constant temp, so nice SS fermenters won't usually fit in these freezers. I use 7.8G plastic fermenter pails with stellar results.

While not quite the eye candy or probably not as long lasting, a $15 plastic pail will make just as good a beer as a $500 SS Conical. And in cases as mine, much more practical from a temp controlled standpoint. Once you begin brewing you'll slowly but surely discover the things you need but best to start slowly as not to buy something that produces less than stellar results in your particular situation.

 

[Cyclman]

Welcome to the hobby, and the group, from CO