Set up

[Dustin Kerr]

Hey brewers,

I have now done about 5-6 beers from the can. I am wanting to take the plunge and start doing an all grain batch.  I have some questions about the set up of kettle, mash tun and burner.

1- any suggestions on the size of stock pot I buy is? I was thinking a 30L from trade me. http://www.trademe.co.nz/home-living/kitchen/pots-pans-bakeware/pot... 

Will it matter if its a cheap pot or do I need a heavy duty pot?

2- The mash tun, get another bucket and put a valve on it or try the chilly bin method.  I like the bucket option cause its less space to take up. Any tips on making a false bottom? The hose from the spigot, can it be the fish tank stuff from mitre 10 or get some silicon hose. 

3- What sort of gas burner should I get. Don't want to pay heaps for one but also don't want to wait forever to boil water. IE size, btu and where to buy. 

4- Where to start recipe wise? Pale ale, IPA, Stout? What will be the most user friendly interduction into all grain brewing

All tips will be greatly appreciated.

Thank

Dustin

[Peter Church]

Hi Dustin, first off I haven't been doing this for that long so someone who knows more may come along with a different opinion,

I recently got my own setup, I went with a 60l pot with 2x 15mm outlets already fitted, see Karl at allgrain, started thinking that a 30-40 litre would be right for me but wound up going bigger and I'm glad that I did, I am doing brew in a bag for now rather than the mash tun, the biab is going really well, really happy with the results, its easy, and theres lots of good advice out there.

I got a three ring cast iron burner from mitre10 mega, they do need tuning to stop them sooting up your pot, you could look at getting a variable flow regulator on trade me but if you get your burner tuned in the 3 ring should be okay with the standard reg. or try http://allgrain.co.nz/index.php?cPath=14_18&osCsid=bece762ab0bf... this is probably a cheaper option that what I wound up getting.

Re recipe choice, my first was my own creation.. didn't quite hit the mark so I went with a couple of all grain kits, they have been put together by people with more experience than me so it means that I could just focus on technique, hitting temperatures, getting the process sorted etc. Most of the brew suppliers have options for a number of styles so pick one that appeals.

Get some form of decent temp measuring device early, I'd also recommend getting an immersion chiller early on too.

Right so thats my thoughts, good luck with the adventure

[Crusader-Rob]

Karl also has some all grain recipe kits available too.

Where about in NZ are you?

[Dustin Kerr]

Im in New Plymouth, really no good home brew stores around here. everything will be from the internet. Who is Karl?

[Dustin Kerr]

Thanks for that peter,

A couple follow up questions. Why 2 outlets on your pot? With the 60L is it more for room and no boil overs? Been a big help.

Thanks

[Peter Church]

Karl owns Allgrain,

Two outlets, one for a 15mm ball valve, currently to gravity feed to fermenter when finished but eventually will get a pump, counterflow chiller/recirc system going maybe, second is for a thermometer or thermowell to fit in, currently I have just capped this outlet, waiting for the thermowells to get back in stock, sensor from the stc1000 will then slot inside.

With Biab in a 60 litre pot I start with 39 litres water, add grain bill and still have plenty of space, finish with 23l batch size (roughly loose about 4l in the grain when removed, boil off about 8l over 90min, 3l in trub left in the pot) into the fermenter, if I go the way of the 3 vessel rig at some future point then the 60l capacity gives me space to boil a double brew

[Briggs Brewery]

Dustin,

Not sure what your budget is or far you want to go (once you start you always want to go the next step) but I found this 20l stovetop lager thread very helpful when I made the change from kits to BIAB. I started with a 20l pot from the Warehouse and did a couple of very acceptable beers with this. I used a gas burner from the Mitre10 instead of a stovetop but the principle is the same.

Then I found a 34 litre "Agee Preserver" (used for sterilising & cooking preserves in Agee jars) for $80.00 in a second hand store. It has an element, a tap, a "cage' over the element and a seal around the lid. This has served me well for the last five brews or so. I don't bother with a mash tun.

anyway, what I'm saying is, it doesn't really matter, you can start with nothing more than a 20l pot and a grain bag and work your way up.

whatever way you go, good luck, I'm sure you won't regret it

[Chris Banks]

Although some may say I have a bias/vested interest - for my two cents worth

1 - Spend the dollars on your kettle  especially if you go biab - if you cant afford a valve etc dont stress just spend what you can on the kettle and go a bit bigger if you plan to carry on brewing in the future it will see you through many upgrades

2 - Mashtun cheapest would be a bucket with drilled picnic plate - chillybin with braided hose is a good option esp if you have a chillybin already - I would get silicone hose again it will last , is foodgrade at + 60c and is futureproof.

3 -  If you get a decent kettle Karls burners are pretty sharp on price and plenty of grunt.

4 - I would say stout as you can concentrate on timing,hitting temps and cleaning rather than ultra clarity and how long till the next lot of hops go in ;-)

[Peter Smith]

+1 for the stout being first as was my own first choice, but it really needs 6-8 weeks in bottle.....   I am still amazed that my first stout turned out as black as Guinness....  tasted more PKB though for weeks 3-6.   I do BIAB and while I have a valve have not used the valve yet anyway as I brew on the floor, I autosiphon after chilling to a carboy for ferment after lifting kettle onto a table.    

Also personally I don't trust the fancy analog temp gauge things,  I think you are better off with a plan pot and a decent digital temp probe.   You don't need the gauge to tell you its boiling AND it wont be in your mash anyways for most biab brewers,  better to have a probe to find out whats really happening in the mash.

[Robert McLeod]

+1
I though at 60L pot would be large enough. It was, but now it isn't.

[Karl Hayes]

Hi Dustin.

I'm Karl, from allgrain.co.nz. Like Chris' response, I also have a vested interest as I sell brewing equipment but here's my 2 cents.

I have fundamentally changed my personal brewing system about 5 times in the last year and maybe another 5 times in the 10 or 12 years before that. Every single setup I used brewed some outstanding beer, and some arse gravy. My current setup is a simple 60 L BIAB setup which I'm using because the pot was dinged in transport and therefore un-saleable. The burner is an old wok* burner I bought off TM for $30. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that you don't have to spend heaps to make good beer but there are a few guidelines to assist you in making the right decision:

• If you're deciding between a 40L and a 60L pot, get the 60L. But make sure the 60L pot will comfortably fit the smallest batch of beer you'll want to brew
• Having ghetto equipment doesn't necessarily translate into worse beer but cheap tinny pots are harder to take care of and won't last as long, especially if you use a decent burner
• When you're choosing equipment, keep at the back of your mind if you'll be able to re-use it if you change your system, ie. increase volumes, change from BIAB to traditional 3 vessel, or vice-versa.
• You should get a burner to suit your vessel, powerful for a thick based pot, softer wider heat for a thin pot.
• For recipes, brew what you like to drink using the simplest recipe possible. You can start to fiddle with the recipe when you've gotten comfortable with your brew-day If you're stuck, ask for help on the recipe advice thread.

Hope you enjoy the upgrade.

* Q What's a wok for?

A Twowing at wabbits. :)

[Scott]

Just continuing on pot size - I was lucky to buy a nice heavy stainless pot, 50 litres, off TM. Problems started as soon as started brewing with it:

- my 3 ring burner didnt have enough grunt

- the pot didnt have a lid

- I couldn't fit the pot, let alone comfortably carry it with 25 litres of wort, in the bath.

So I then had to buy a good burner (Karl's are great), a round bit of glass from the recycling centre, and some copper coil and shape it into a chiller.

Just suggesting that partial extracts might be an easier, less gear intensive way into grain brewing. A book I've found lots of good partial extracts in is "Clone Brews" 

And remember to wash the grain bag as soon as possible after brewing. They mould up really quick if you let them sit around.

[Peter Smith]

Got to say that 60L 2 welded pot looks great for the price!