Moving On Up

[samhighley]

Ok, so i'm currently doing extracts/partials with partial boils in a 6 litre pot (approx. 4-5 litre boil), and i'll definitely be moving to AG in the future.

Currently my brews mostly look like 1.5kg liquid malt extract with 50-90g hop additions in the 4-5 litre boil, with another 1.5kg liquid malt extract added to pot at flameout (to get mixed thoroughly).

As an interim step i'm thinking the next move is to go to full-size boils, which is going to require an investment in:

• A large pot, somewhere in the vicinity of 30-50 litres.
• Something to chill the wort on the way to the fermenter
• Something to keep the hop trub out of the chiller (Kettle Hopscreen Cylinder?)

I'm happy to invest in stainless steel as a (potential) life-long investment.

My current thinking is a stainless pot from Beer Belly as they'll also TIG weld a fitting into the kettle for a ball valve, and one of their hopscreens for keeping the hop trub out of the chiller. Given the relatively small price difference between 36 and 50 litres pots, should I just go for the 50 litre with the possibility of doing double batches?

In terms of chilling i'm thinking the MashMaster ChillOut MKIII.

 

[Steve]

should I just go for the 50 litre with the possibility of doing double batches?

go bigger....ive just started doing double batches in a 50 litre vessel and it gets a bit touch n go regarding near boil overs.
Cheers
Steve

 

[peas_and_corn]

I do 44L batches and I boil in a 100L pot- there's a decent amount of room for it to fill when it boils, so life is easy RE boil overs (haven't had one yet!!). I seriously recommend something like this. Are you in SA? I got my pot from a place in Campbelltown, on Lower North East road, if you are indeed from SA give me a PM and I'll give you directions.

I use a hop sock from CraftBrewer for taking care of hops.

 

[BoilerBoy]

go bigger....ive just started doing double batches in a 50 litre vessel and it gets a bit touch n go regarding near boil overs.
Cheers
Steve

Totally agree I've got a 75L SS pot and wished I got a 100L, mostly because of the initial boil over :unsure: potential when doing double batches.

All the best,
BB

 

[samhighley]

Are you in SA?

Nope, i'm in Canberra.

Thanks for the offer of directions though.

 

[ham2k]

I moved to AG only recently. I originally planned to do 19 litres batches (as i was doing with extract) and got a 30 litre pot. I regret not getting a bigger pot.

When I fill one of my no-chill cube, i can usually get around 22 litres in there and most recipes are already for 23 litres, sure you can scale them downwards but I would prefer to fill the cube.

When i got my pot, i also got a new burner which increased the evaporation rate, thereby increasing the starting volume for the boil. And because I can now get a really vigourous boil i need more headspace to stop boilovers.

Basically, i have to babysit my boil (which i actually really enjoy) now rather than getting a few other things done (which I get in trouble for).

 

[dj1984]

hey peas and corn where abouts was this place you got your pot from and how much was it

 

[warra48]

Go bigger if you can.
I have a 40 litre pot, and it is big enough to do 23 litre batches, but no more.
You have to consider your initial volume of wort in your kettle is about 40 to 50% bigger than your final batch size, and you need room for the inevitable foaming when your hot break forms and when you dump your hops in.

 

[hoohaaman]

Agree with warra48,I have a 60lt pot and can just manage 30lt into fermenter.My evaporation of 8-9lt per hour kills a bigger batch.

I have tried tweaking burner for a lower evaporation rate but gave up and just formulate for 8lt per hour.My perfect pot size for a double batch would be 80lt.100lt is just too big for my situation.

Bigger the better if feasible,I say