What sized pots should I get?

[sportscrazed2]

I have 2 pots 7.5 and 7 gallons respectively. I want to start all grain simple with brew in a bag and would like a variety of beer and the lower the amount of liquid the faster I can get boiling on my stovetop. I have a turkey fryer but I won't use it until winter is over. I want to do 1 gallon or 2.5 gallon batches in these pots. what sized pots do you think i should get?

 

[humann_brewing]

really? 1 - 2.5G batches? After spending 6 hours brewing a beer and extra time related to the rest of the process I would want more than 1 - 2.5Gs I would think a 7.5G pot would be good for 4-5G batches the latter if you have a foam control of some kind.

 

[DustBow]

You should be fine with the two pots you have now if you only want to do 1 - 2.5 gallon batches.
I would go 9-10 gallon size when/if you decide to step up to 5 gallon batches

 

[GillandCo]

You should be fine with the two pots you have now if you only want to do 1 - 2.5 gallon batches.
I would go 9-10 gallon size when/if you decide to step up to 5 gallon batches

You don't need 10 gallon pots to brew 5 gallon batches I use to brew 5g batches with a 7 gallon pot, you just have to watch for boil overs...

I would never brew a batch that small because I feel its a waste of time...Unless your experimenting with recipes.

I don't see the need to buy new pots when the ones you have will work just fine.

 

[sportscrazed2]

More variety in beer I can drink dude. and I think 6 hours is kind of high don't you? if you only do 1 gallon batches it won't take long at all to cool it off or heat the liquid. also gilanco i can really do a 1 gallon batch ina 7 gallon pot?

 

[GillandCo]

I was talking about 5 gallon batches in your 7g pot...Your telling me you have nothing in your house that can boil 1-2 gallons?

If you notice I say "Unless your experimenting with recipes" I wasn't trying to be a dick, only you can justify the need to brew one gallon batches...for me its just not worth it.

 

[pretzelb]

More variety in beer I can drink dude. and I think 6 hours is kind of high don't you? if you only do 1 gallon batches it won't take long at all to cool it off or heat the liquid. also gilanco i can really do a 1 gallon batch ina 7 gallon pot?

A lot of the time is fixed, like the 60 minute boil. Then there's the heating of liquid, which can take a while. Plus there is set up and tear down of equipment. BIAB might save you some time as I'm not totally familiar with that.

I don't do BIAB but my main pot is 8g and I do 5g batches with no problem. I have a cooler for a MLT so the only size concern is how much I want to go into the boiler (the cooler handles the grain). I plan for 6.4g into the boiler and boiling over isn't too much of a problem.

Trying to cram your grains into the pot with the bag might be an issue but boiling in a 7.5g shouldn't be tough.

 

[sportscrazed2]

I don't really need to justify 1 gallon batches. maybe ill save those for extract batches since I can probably crank out a 1 gallon extract batch in 90 minutes.

 

[sportscrazed2]

you really want to know why i want to do small batches? i'm testing out my stovetop to see how fast i can get 5 gallons boiling it's been 48 minutes with 2 burners cranked up and it's still not at a rolling boil. wish i lived in so cal or something where i could brew on my deck all year round

 

[ashyg]

you really want to know why i want to do small batches? i'm testing out my stovetop to see how fast i can get 5 gallons boiling it's been 48 minutes with 2 burners cranked up and it's still not at a rolling boil. wish i lived in so cal or something where i could brew on my deck all year round

Turkey fryer and a coat

 

[sportscrazed2]

I bought a turkey fryer from bass pro shop but I really don't want to use it outside during the winter. any reason i can't do a 2.5 gallon batch in 7 gallon pots? will water levels be too low for the grain to even reach?

 

[maida7]

You don't need 10 gallon pots to brew 5 gallon batches I use to brew 5g batches with a 7 gallon pot, you just have to watch for boil overs...

I would never brew a batch that small because I feel its a waste of time...Unless your experimenting with recipes.

I don't see the need to buy new pots when the ones you have will work just fine.

To do a true Aussie style BIAB you need a great big pot. A 10 gallon IS necessary for 5 gallon BIAB batches.

 

[maida7]

I bought a turkey fryer from bass pro shop but I really don't want to use it outside during the winter. any reason i can't do a 2.5 gallon batch in 7 gallon pots? will water levels be too low for the grain to even reach?

Your pot should work great for that size batch. You may even be able to go a bit bigger.

 

[GillandCo]

I bought a turkey fryer from bass pro shop but I really don't want to use it outside during the winter. any reason i can't do a 2.5 gallon batch in 7 gallon pots? will water levels be too low for the grain to even reach?

Your theory sounds correct, that would be my only guess as to why they wouldn't work...I understand your concerns for not wanting to get frostbite while brewing. You could always do a partial mash on your stove if you still wanted to brew 5 gallons....Im trying to convert you, if you haven't figured it out already

Try filling up however much water you need and see if there's enough depth to steep them grains.