Help with new brew rig ideas......

[beercus]

SWMBO and sprogs bought me a 60L urn for Xmas from keg king. It has a ball valve already installed and I will have a sparky sort out a 15A for me. I have been all graining for a while now using a 30L Birko and have been VERY happy with the results. My main issue was time and only being able to punch out 20L at a time.

So I now have the two urns and am thinking how I can go about setting up a new brew rig. I am happy to play around with making holes, arrange hoist, building stands and using pumps etc, I am just looking to get more L's out of a 5hour brew! Probably would prefer to stick with BIAB, which I think is the best option in this case and what I know...

So questions for the knowledgable brewers out there:

1. How much will I expect to pay to get the 15A sorted?

2. How would you use the two runs to do some brewing?

Cheers

Beercus

 

[chemfish]

1) depends on various factors, probably $2-300 though unless mates rates or painful install
2) don't grain brew so can't say but I would assume you would use the second smaller urn for heating sparge water?

 

[neo__04]

only my opinion here....

1) Best bet is to run your own cable, 6mm cable for 15 amp is heaps. If you can get it to the point you want it, and get the other end just above your main switchboard, even buy a 30 amp circuit breaker, then all the sparky has to do it come around and just fit off. It would be an hours labour MAX, maybe $60-80.

I wired my whole new brew shed like that. They fitted off 6 power points, 6 lights, 2 x 15 amp points & wired up the whole switchboard, cost me $140. no mates rates, just purely hourly rate if you do all the hard yards.

2) Why not make your new rig up to do double batches, biab, same as your smaller urn. Then you can make either a double batch, single batch, or a double & single at the same time, different recipies.

I

 

[beercus]

I will have to talk to sparky mate about options....

- Bigger batches is the aim. How big? 50L output?
-Using the 30L as HLT and 60L as kettle and mash tun was the first thought.
- Or should I add in an esky as mash tun.
- Or I was thinking of turning 60 L into some sort of re circulation vessel and sparge out of 30L..

Beercus

 

[Adr_0]

You could also do a double in the 60L and a single in the 30L, then blend in the fermenter?

You can use the small one for hot water but your capacity will still be limited by the size of the 60L. This wouldbbe a good setup as it gives you hot sparge water right there.

You could also have the 30L as a sparge vessel where you move the grain from the 60 to the 30 after you sit at mashout for 20min.you then dunk the hot, dripping, heavy bag into the 30L (full of water at 78°C) then pump this over to your 60L one your recirc sparge is done.

It will at least maximise the volume of the 60L as once you remove the grains you can then fill up again with wort from the sparge.

 

[beercus]

I was thinking of finding a vessel that fits in the 60L urn, drill many holes in it ( crab cooker style) and put the bag in this. I want to avoid wort going everywhere when I hoist the bag out. I am not sure if I can find a pot that will fit in both the 60L and the 30 L which will limit me in doing this kind of dunk sparge. I have been doing this with the 30L urn and a 20L pot.

 

[spog]

Maybe a set of Big W / cheap shop nesting pots, one of which fits the 30 L urn with a heap of holes drilled in the bottom.
I drilled holes in the side of mine as well ( which I shouldn't have ) as I have to lift slowly so wort doesn't squirt out the side and all over the place .
But transferring from one pot to another and not wasting what is draining out the bottom would be an issue ( as you said ).
Maybe a length of box gutter,a wide piece of metal turned up on both long sides and some how mount it in place between the 2 pots,mount the 60 higher than the 30 so any spillage drains down into the 30 L urn ?
Cheers....spog...

 

[beercus]

I will have to talk to sparky mate about options....

Sparky came to look and he thinks I should use the spa power point as it is on its own 20A circuit. The urn has a 10A plug on it so no need to install 15A point.

All good. Time to take the 60L urn out for a run. Just need to work on a new beersmith profile and get a a 60L fermenter and decide on which beer I want to drink lots of....

Beercus

 

[stux]

I use a 100L and 50L to knock out 75L

You should be able to do 45-50L with your 60/30. Look into maxi-biab.

No need for a inner vessel if the bag is shaped like a tin can then it will form a drop shape and drain from the tip of the inverted dome.

 

[stux]

With all my trub and wastage I then get 60L into the fermenter and make 3 full kegs

 

[beercus]

I will start off with the bag and then lok at organising some kind of malt pipe. I just think it would be easier to lift anf drain.

50L out of the 60L urn would be great.

beercus

 

[stux]

In order to get 50L you will need very good kettle trub management (hop bags?) and perhaps mid boil sparge water topups

 

[beercus]

I use Hop balls and will likely brew a higher SG than needed and then dilute into the fermenter.

beercus