16.5L Grainfather sparge water urn as 1 vessel BIAB?

[trhr]

Hi all,

I'm a very novice BIAB brewer who has just upgraded from a 19L pot on the stove to a 38L crab pot on a small bbq.
The bbq gas burner is pretty powerful and works great, I have used the 19L pot on the bbq too.
The main reason was to get outside to brew, as my fire alarms kept going off with the steam.

I'm currently getting together some parts to eventually turn the 38L crab pot into an electric biab with re-circulation and a controller.
I also have a Grainfather sparge water heater urn, which has got me thinking.

Do you think it is worth turning two of these Grainfather urns into two 1 vessel BIAB?
I would like one to be a mini Grainfather (downward flow), and the other a faux Braumeister (upward flow).
I can buy the urns cheap and I have a metal based business, so I can get my hands on some 304SS Pipe and laser cut the bottom and top to make malt pipes and filters, etc.
I would bypass the thermostat and install an automated controller too. I will use an immersion chiller from grain and grape.
I have done the sums, and the final price will be ~$550 to $600 each (no cost for the SS and fabrication).
The mechanical part will be easy enough (fingers crossed) for me, but I'll probably struggle with the electrics. My sparky and the forum I hope will make it doable.

I live in the inner city in an apartment and I like trying different beers often, so I struggle getting through even a 19L keg.
I have a few 9L kegs and I would like to keep brews to 10 to 15L, so I can keg and/or bottle.
I've done the maths, and this is doable in the 16.5 urn with a sparge.
I'm thinking I could do double or even triple batch brew days (with my 19L or 38L pot) and get the variety I want.

So, my question to all you experienced diy brewers is this a decent idea or is this bat sh!t crazy?
Is there something simple I'm missing which makes this not viable? Any issues anyone can see?
I do love to tinker and build, so not worried about the time this will take.
Is this ridiculous, and I should just buy a robo brew, grainfather or a braumeister and be done with it?

Thanks in advance.

 

[trhr]

Hi everyone,

I'm finally getting this little project together (I've been a bit slack as I got my hands on a secondhand 20L BM).
Going with an upward flow faux mini Braumeister as it's easier to build and hopefully the grain bed will filter better and I'm only doing one now that I have the 20L BM.

I have all the stainless parts and have started fabrication and will post some progress pics soon.
I'm using a 2mm thick 8 inch wide SS pipe for the malt pipe and 3mm thick laser cut filter plates. I'm going to sanitary weld the bottom filter plate in place.
I grabbed one of Lael's controllers and have everything except for the pump and the stainless steel mesh filters.

I'm having trouble getting my hands on Stainless steel 304 or 316 fine mesh with around a 1mm aperture in a small quantity.
I got all my other stainless as offcuts from fabricators and suppliers I know, but the mesh is a bit harder. I seem to be able to only buy a whole sheet, or the small quantity online from overseas or ebay.
The overseas postage costs are horrible and the ebay mesh, I'm dubious about the quality.

Does anyone know a supplier in Brisbane or even Australia wide who will send a small quantity (400x1200mm max) of ~1mm SS mesh?

Thanks alot.

 

[trhr]

Hi again,

Still haven't got my hands on some stainless mesh that's ~1mm aperture (thinking that evilbay is the only option..). I got some 2mm aperture off cuts from a local mesh distributor, but it looks a bit large.

Anyway, my fitter and turner has some great ideas for this little build and I've got my hands on another coffee urn about the same size too, but since the elements aren't really going to work it looks like it'll be a custom element. So I might as well use a SS pot and make the build match the quality of the malt pipe.
This is about the only thing I can find that is the right size and ships to Aus:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CONCORD-Stainless-Steel-Stock-Pot-w-Basket-Heavy-Kettle-Cookware-for-Boiling/140678763592?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20131003132420%26meid%3Dfc01f94b1c064c3388fd4886f19f101e%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D141116063173#

Anyone ordered one of these Concorde brand pots before? How was it if so?
Does anyone know of any other SS pots around 25L that's ~30cm wide and at least 370cm tall?
I see Northern Brewers do a 8 Gallon Tall Boy pot that looks great, but can't find anyone that ships to Aus.

Thanks, any responses would be helpful.

 

[Denobrew]

You could try RS online.

http://au.rs-online.com/web/p/perforated-steel-sheets/4475313/

 

[stianoigard]

They are thin and dent easily and they are prone to rust on the lid. I have a 75L pot. Works great, though.