SS upgrade questions

[Hodda]

Hi All

Have been brewing away now for a year or two using 40l buffalo and coleman cool box MT.

Having spent the summer building a large summerhouse type thing, the missus has given the go ahead for me to splash out on some new kit that can be housed permanently in an area of this and payment as my 'wages' for the build!!

Anyway, this leads me to the pondering - not decided o makes yet although the ss ones like sweet! Anyway normally do 5g normal strength brews to fit into one corny but would like the option to do enough for a 2 corny batch now and again at normal strength (but on occasion would like to try to make 5g of a RIS style).

Id prob keep using my buffalo as a HLT for now and then upgrade the MT and brew kettle, but unsure of sizes - id ideally like to perhaps go down the induction hob route but am open to using heater element (aside from the nervousness of having to cut new shiny kit).

So would I be right in thinking that I could use a 10g thermopot MT which is adequate for normal 5g brews, would suffice for 5G of RIS and would also just cut to 10G for a double corny day, along with a 15G brew kettle?

Now I've looked longingly at the SS equipment and would consider the 10G infusion pot and then the 15g kettle if I could justify the costs to myself - I dont think I could go to the 20G SS pot as they would put me well past the budget

Any opinions?

[keith1664]

Are those UK or US gallons?
I brew 40L batches (10 ish US gallons) and wouldn't want to use a boiler less than my current 70L, I use a 50L thermopot mash tun which copes with my brew length easily.

Have you visited https://www.brewbuilder.co.uk/brew-pots.html as an alternative to SS stuff, alternatively I believe the cheap pots are still available from the continent, don't know the email though.

[PeeBee]

I'll agree with "keith1664". 50L mashtun and 70L boiler (boilers should have plenty of capacity to stop them splash or foaming over). Your current 40L HLT might be a bit small for 10 gallon brews, but if you use HERMS you can heat the mash water in the mashtun by pumping it through the HERMS coil (as I do). In future you might want to increase HLT capacity to 70L (heat all water in one place) or 50L (heat mash water via HERMS).

It will be trickier having a "one size suits all" fermenter: If big enough for 10g brews it will have vast headspace for a 5g brew.

All the holes in my pots were cut by Angel Homebrew - certainly takes the stress out of butchering a new pot.

[Hodda]

Food for thought there folks cheers - I did think the boiler would be tight just not sure if I could manage the few one offs.

Ha ha now I'm looking longingly at the GF / BM!!!

[Fil]

Dont let the prospect of popping out a few holes in a ss pot put you off. Use the right tools (qmax punch cutters) and its easy, the pilot holes for the punches need only bog standard hss drill bits as long as you start small 3-4mm and open up the hole with bigger bits till you have a hole big enough for the punches thru bolt.

[IPA]

Food for thought there folks cheers - I did think the boiler would be tight just not sure if I could manage the few one offs.

Ha ha now I'm looking longingly at the GF / BM!!!

Buy yourself a fifty litre BM with the optional twenty litre malt tube.

[f00b4r]

Or the 20L BM and on those rare occasions you need it double mash for volume or gravity.

[AlanManley]

Not sure if this has been shared on here before however I am currently looking at one of these www.hopcat.eu as an alternative to the other all in one systems (Grainfather, Ace, etc) as it's 50L.

Not bad for the price I don't think. Just on the fence between this and a 3 V system.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

[vacant]

£127 delivered gets you a 30 ltr version. Buy two.

http://r.ebay.com/Q3OeZp

[PeeBee]

Some of these "one pot" solutions are very enticing. My setup is traditional 3-vessel (70L + 70L + 100L, and a forth support vessel, 21L, on the way) and one of my next brews is a "Nanny State" clone - it would be nice to brew just one Corny full but my brewery's limitations mean it will have to be TWO Cornies full.

But these "one pot" solutions all miss an important fact - it's fun (if a bit expensive) building a customised brewery.

[Hodda]

Some of these "one pot" solutions are very enticing. My setup is traditional 3-vessel (70L + 70L + 100L, and a forth support vessel, 21L, on the way) and one of my next brews is a "Nanny State" clone - it would be nice to brew just one Corny full but my brewery's limitations mean it will have to be TWO Cornies full.

But these "one pot" solutions all miss an important fact - it's fun (if a bit expensive) building a customised brewery.

That's where I'm torn myself - 3v kudos looking cool setup but with more pain in the arse cleaning vs easier to clean, less faff ago with my mates saying it's cheating

[Bigbud78]

currently brewing with a gas, a 50L pot and a cooler mash tun and I'm fairly happy with my beer. I too cant decide which route to go, I have a baby atm so time is really limited so a GF is very appealing but then I'll get my evenings back in 12 months and I'll be wondering if I should have gone 3V with pumps ect.

I only ever want to fill one corny so the GF does seem like the right kit for me but I'm just not sure lol

[PeeBee]

... That's where I'm torn myself - 3v kudos looking cool setup but with more pain in the arse cleaning vs easier to clean, less faff ago with my mates saying it's cheating

To be fair on 3 vessel systems: One vessel shouldn't need cleaning (HLT) and the others just need the junk removing (spent hops and grain) and rinsed. There's no point sanitising.

But unless the setup is permanently plumbed in, it's still a PITA setting it all up (hence mine is plumbed in).