BigW 19l mash tun

[twenty]

Anyone mash in a 19l stock pot from BigW?

Just running some numbers on a cheapish 3v system and it looks like i should be able to get about 18-19L out of a 19L mash tun.

4-5kg grain
15L at mash
15L sparge

wouldn't be able to incorporate a mash out, but 30ish litres into the kettle looks doable to fill a post mix keg.

Any thoughts? or would you just not bother as a mashout couldn't be achieved ?

Cheers
Glenn

 

[dr K]

No
and No

 

[Roosterboy]

Too small .

 

[sp0rk]

Spring the extra cash for a 40-50L esky
Any cheap one will do
A copper manifold won't cost too much, if you don't have a blowtorch or can't borrow one, crimping the elbows MAY work
see www.howtobrew.com for the article on copper manifolds
I personally dropped the $100 for a beer belly falsie, after reading all the great reviews

 

[SBOB]

Or spend not much more on a slightly bigger pot from eBay and do single vessel biab...
Though, your heat source will probably be more of the deciding factor of any recommendations.

 

[Weizguy]

Gumtree for a cheap esky/ cooler, or BIAB 40l urn or pot.

The tribe has spoken regarding the 19 Wallies pot.

 

[SBOB]

The tribe has spoken regarding the 19 Wallies pot.

though it works well for a grain basket inside a 40l urn

 

[Lecterfan]

Or get stuck in, have a good time, then build up your gear later like many people do. Don't let equipment hamper your AG journey. If you are doing cheap-ish, as in as cheap as you can, then a couple of those pots are a great start to AG adventures. My, and many other peoples, AG journey started with these cheap bits of equipment. I respect the "tribe", but humbly submit that a great many of us have successfully got into it this way as well. Sometimes saying "wait and buy something more expensive" is not the best advice (even when it is still solid advice in the long run).

 

[Judanero]

You could also BIAB side by side with two big w pots, i.e- split grain and mash in two, lift bags and boil in two, splitting hops between the two.

Pretty sure there is a thread where someone does just that.

Or if you've your heart set on 3v get a 30/40 L esky as someone has said previously (can be had for next to;if not free), two 19L pots and you're good to go; split the wort from the mash and boil in both pots... it'd be some juggling but it could be done.

 

[fdsaasdf]

The BigW pot is so cheap so if cost is a real motivator, why not adjust your brewing process to suit?

Prior to and in between 3V (stainless) 60L brew days I have successfully BIAB 15-16L batches using the BigW pot and adding a top-up kettle (using Beersmith to generate the recipe and calculate over-gravity). Efficiency is usually about 75% but last time I hit ~83% - likely due to the insulation I added for the mash.

Personally I'm not a fan of plastic insulated vessels as mashtuns, they seem to be very expensive for the utility and robustness they offer when compared with a stock pot or keggle. I don't question that there are many capable brewers using these plastuc vessels to great effect - they are just less hardy than an (often cheaper) stainless vessel wrapped in insulation that can be boiled in, hit with caustic or dropped :/

I would suggest to the OP that if the goal is to work with keg-like volumes initially before scaling up to a larger system, could you just make do with 15-16L batches until such time that you invest in a larger setup?

 

[twenty]

All good, thanks for the opinions. I would like to keep it stainless as i can weld it, valves and thermowells and make my own false bottoms.

as far as 19l pot, is the problem the inability to make sufficient volumes or large grain bills? as playing with brew mate it looks like id go close to filling a 19l post mix keg.

 

[kevinj]

"Any thoughts? or would you just not bother as a mashout couldn't be achieved ?"
Why cant you do a mashout?
Just sit the pot on a (portable) stove element, ramp and stir, or ramp and pump.
The only sacrifice is the grain to water ratio will be less than 3:1

Or you could do all grain partials 2.5kg grain + tin.

 

[crowmanz]

It can be done mate. I started out BIAB with 2 big w pots, I mashed in one, dunk sparged in the other, then split the runnings (and hops) between both pots, all boiled on the stove top.

Perfect way to get into AG for low cost.

 

[RdeVjun]

OP- yes, plenty and you can indeed mashout if you so desire, while 23L from the 19 stockpot is no great stress- it's called MaxiBIAB:
http://biabrewer.info/viewtopic.php?t=352
If it's the initial outlay for 19 or even 23L in the fermenter that concerns you, then you really can't get much cheaper than that very 19L stockpot, a BIAB bag and a 10L bucket and MaxiBIAB technique. The method came about with exactly these constraints in mind, while it has proved a great launching point for many an all- grain career.

 

[Dave70]

Look at this way. Once you move on, you will still have a hugely useful multipurpose stockpot.

 

[twenty]

thanks guys, appreciate the input and didn't think of just heating the pot for mash out. really looks like 19l mash tun would be too limiting, might just fork out for an esky when one comes on sale. I've already been using my stock pot for stove top BIAB and want to move on, will convert it to a HLT.

cheers
Glenn

 

[CyberAle]

I recently upgraded to 50L stockpots but prior to that I was using two of the big W 19L stockpots for a HLT and a Boiler and a 50L esky with a copper pipe in the bottom as a mash tun. Work great besides the fact that we would only get about 12L of beer into the fermenter by the end.

 

[Matplat]

I have a mate who currently uses a BigW pot as his mash tun. Insulated, with a false bottom. He has a separate urn for HLT and a 50L pot for a kettle, so batch sparges with great efficiency.

I use a BigW pot as my malt pipe, so it is effectively my mash tun. Good enough for single batches up to around 5.5kg of grain.

 

[Lord Raja Goomba I]

I use an esky as a mash tun with a BIAB bag for laziness sake, and boil on 2 pots on my portable stovetops, but previously on the stove at home.

I can comfortably crank out 25L, and have topped out at 40L recently of 1.050 beer and 32L of 1.080 beer that was split over 2 different beers - an RIS and IIPA.

 

[damoninja]

While I would never do it again...

I did my first few all grains in 15, 12 and 9L pots on the stove with an old school 25L willow esky for a mash tun with a grain bag. Several points in time it was full to the brim.

It was a ******* pain to sparge, made a huge mess all over the floor, never swore so much since I've been brewing.


I'd never have mashed in those pots, even 19L is a big ask. If you're going for an insulated stainless deal, go big and go BIAB.


I got thing thing a while back and it's done be great. Awesome value really.
http://kegking.com.au/56-litre-insulated-mash-tun-with-stainless-steel-ball-valve-and-stainless-false-bottom.html