120L extract brewery

[Bottoms Brew]

Hi having sourced a 120 L conical fermenter i want to start a litte 120L extract brewery under the stairs.
i am looking to get the best resulst i can thu this method
Are the best results achived by boiling the full 120L ?


That would be a big Boiler not sure about this but could 1 be made by using an inverted copper hot water cyliner with some extra kettle elements in the side ?

my thoughts were to constuct the thing in a well insulated plywood box.

all coments and help will be greatfully recieved
Thanks Claude B

ps if theres any1 with a boiler suitable for sale or knows wear 1 can be purchased at a reasonable cost that would also be benificial.

[mooj]

I don't if this thread might help you?

[maxashton]

How on earth are you going to fit an 120L conical under your stairs?

Probably best bet for a boiler would be a second hand household boiler. Most homebrewing boilers are at most 60L, so you'd have to boil and dilute to volume unless you built your own.

[mooj]

Depends on how big your stair case I suppose? BB, I assumed you would just be fermenting the beer under the stairs? If you are talking about a full brewery set-up under stairs then I think you may be a little mad You will need pumps and a way of extracting the steam for starters and ideally a water point. Spillages I would imagine will be a nightmare. Could be an interesting project.....

[pantsmachine]

Your mental(but in a good way). 120Ltr is not small. 4.5Ltrs small as is 9ltr etc etc. You can't fill the fermenter to 120ltr with wort otherwise it will oveflow madly once it starts to ferment. You really want 25% headspace within you FV of choice. What are you using to boil, electric or gas? What material is your conical fermenter i was looking at plastic ones on ebay for biodiesel, great way to get rid of the trub fast and to sample. You must have some staircase!

[Bottoms Brew]

thanks for the comments guys.

with further consideration i intend to place the 120 conical bio diesily thing fermenter 120L for less than a 100 quid (seems like a good bet if you have to spend momey) under the stairs along with the pump and the boiler and heat exchanger in the shed (could well be a little safer)

as for the boiler i was going to turn a direct copper water cylinder up side down cut the bottom out and fit with 2 extra kettle elements rap in insulation and mount it in a big mdf / ply box as the boiler is now to go in the shed i may go for a propane burner not quite sure yet.

i was hoping to produce 100L batches at a time from the 120L fermenter or am i getting a little close for a flod with this idea.

I am aiming to end up with a good dark mild and stout may well register and get a stall on the local farmers market not sure about that but i would be nice to sell good beer at the right price as there are plenty outlets selling pasturised beer to pasturised people usualy with a Kareoke machice going at the same time.

Kind Regards To All that have contributed to the tread.

Claude Bottom

[fivetide]

I don't quite understand why you would want to brew on this admirable scale, for such great reasons, and yet stick to extract. The first time you are sat on your stall and someone comes up and asks where you got your grain from etc... will be a sticky moment. Surely if you live in an area with farmers' markets and you want to sell to the people that go to them, then organic grain is the way forward. You can sell locally sourced and brewed organic bitter to the masses at sensible prices. In my trivial 23L brew length experience, one mention of extract turns people off - especially farmer types and people who love natural produce. Just a thought. I love your ambition though, and I'd buy a bottle or two at a market even if it were made from turnips. (In fact... )

[nil_fhios_agam]

How is the law in the UK for selling HomeBrew? I would have thought you couldn't sell it at Farmer's Markets without a licence, is that the case?

[Bryggmester]

Unlike small scale cider manufactures anyone who brews beer for sale must pay duty to HMRC or whatever they are called nowadays. Then there are all sorts of other hurdles such as local authority, H and S issues etc. If you're only intending to sell relatively few bottles it's a lot of hoops to jump through.

[ADDLED]

Unlike small scale cider manufactures anyone who brews beer for sale must pay duty to HMRC or whatever they are called nowadays. Then there are all sorts of other hurdles such as local authority, H and S issues etc. If you're only intending to sell relatively few bottles it's a lot of hoops to jump through.

"Honestly Mr Customs Officer, I'm selling beer bottles for homebrewing purposes. They just happen to be full of free beer".