Best Value For Money Ag Set Up?

[jetman]

Hi all, i'm just sitting back enjoying another successful BIAB all grain brew and i'm disappointed that I have only 10litres available

Currently i'm mashing etc in a 19lire pot on the stove in the kitchen, I keg my beer and have the facilities to ferment (temp controlled) and keg 80litres.

Can you guys please give me your opinion on where I should head next, in order to get greater quantity for my efforts?

Thanks for your help, Jet

 

[raven19]

My suggestion would be get yourself a 50L keggle or similar with a larger bag and a mongolian burner or similar.

Same process just in a bigger 'pot'.

I assume you have maxed out your pot with grain so a higher OG then watering it down probably would not be an option.

You could also add a can of goo into the fermentor h34r: :lol:

 

[beerdrinkingbob]

I do the 19 Ltr stovetops and generally get between 12 and 13 ltrs of high gravity (1074) wort and then top up to 19 or 20 ltrs with a sg of 1049 most times!!

That being said i have kegs lined up for when i move into the new house and will do double batch 3 v.

 

[ekul]

+1 to what raven said, but with a bigger pot. 80L stainless pots can be had for around $100 at cheap asian stores. They're cheap and thin but they do the job well.
Why do i suggest this? Because tis just as easy to make two batches as it is to make one, well not quite, the bag is a little heavier. But if you're going to spend 5 hours brewing, you may as well come away with 2 batches, instead of one.
And get into cubing too, its great. If you have two days free you can knock out 92 litres of beer quite easily. Plus with cubing you can do a double batch, apply cube hops and come away with two beers that can taste very different, even though the grain profile is exactly the same.

Happy brewing mate!

 

[felten]

a free keggle would probably be the best value but ali pots are also good bang for the buck, and there's a thread somewhere here about a ebay seller with cheap SS pots.

As for heat, you can either go with an electric element, or get a cheap 3-4 ring burner w/ standard BBQ reg. OFC there are better options for burners, but if you want bang for the buck I think electricity works out to be cheaper than buying LPG bottles.

I use a 50L ali pot and above 3 ring setup myself, takes about 20-25 mins to go from mash out to boil which isn't too bad.

 

[jetman]

And get into cubing too, its great. If you have two days free you can knock out 92 litres of beer quite easily. Plus with cubing you can do a double batch, apply cube hops and come away with two beers that can taste very different, even though the grain profile is exactly the same.

Happy brewing mate!

What exactly is cubing mate?

 

[beerdrinkingbob]

What exactly is cubing mate?

It's no chilling, if you use the search you will get plenty to read.

 

[jetman]

It's no chilling, if you use the search you will get plenty to read.

Thanks Bob

 

[seemax]

easiest solution is an urn, but new that will cost $200+ for 40L

alum pot of sizes around 35L can be had from asian shops, ebay, 2nd hand catering, etc fairly cheap or invest in large pot for similar to an urn

im still using the same 26L esky I got for free with a stainless braid as a manifold... a sqm voile from spotlight ... and a 32L pot for $30 plus $20 of fittings and taps

my biggest investment has been the monster mill, but worth every cent!

 

[jyo]

Ebay Stainless Stockpots

More stainless plus Ally

Here are some cheap links for stockpots, mate. I started off with my 36litre thin stainless cheapo pot from an Asian supermarket and it has seen 30+ brews no problems. It cost about $45. Plus a free 3 ringed burner, a medium pressure adjustable reg and hose ($60) and a brew stand kindly welded up by a fellow brewer (some beers). Some silicone hose ($20) and a cube ($20) and you are rockin.

As others have said, you can keep the cost down if you are resourceful and keep things simple. Keep an eye out for verge pickups for possible brew stands and eskys. If you add the totals of an esky, burner, adjustable reg, manifold and bulkhead construction (if you make it out of copper it is a bit pricey, about $70) then a 40 litre urn and some curtain does sound like good value. It just depends which path you want to go down.
Cheers, John.