Steel Pan

[CoxyBoy123]

I have a 7l pan, will that be enough to do an extract brew?

 

[oldjiver]

You will be limited in how much malt extract you can you can use by the viscosity (thickness) of the boil. Too thick and it will burn on the bottom of the saucepan. I have done extract brews with an 11 litre pan and used 1.5kgs of malt extract in about 7 litres of water, to make 2 gallons of beer. (you need a bit of headroom to avoid boil overs.) If you are happy to make 1 or 2 gallon brews with 1 kg no problem, but 23 litres is a no go I would think.

 

[CoxyBoy123]

Thanks for the response, I might just stop being skimpy and buy the 32l boiler from brew uk, anybody had any experience with this on a ceramic hob!

 

[Steve]

You will be limited in how much malt extract you can you can use by the viscosity (thickness) of the boil. Too thick and it will burn on the bottom of the saucepan. I have done extract brews with an 11 litre pan and used 1.5kgs of malt extract in about 7 litres of water, to make 2 gallons of beer. (you need a bit of headroom to avoid boil overs.) If you are happy to make 1 or 2 gallon brews with 1 kg no problem, but 23 litres is a no go I would think.

May be true but being extract it doesn't require boiling. I did an extract kit (exmoor beast from brew uk) and the recipe said for a 6l grain steep to add 900g of extract for the boil. Then the rest can be added post boil and cold water added up to the 15l brew length.

 

[oldjiver]

You will be limited in how much malt extract you can you can use by the viscosity (thickness) of the boil. Too thick and it will burn on the bottom of the saucepan. I have done extract brews with an 11 litre pan and used 1.5kgs of malt extract in about 7 litres of water, to make 2 gallons of beer. (you need a bit of headroom to avoid boil overs.) If you are happy to make 1 or 2 gallon brews with 1 kg no problem, but 23 litres is a no go I would think.

May be true but being extract it doesn't require boiling. I did an extract kit (exmoor beast from brew uk) and the recipe said for a 6l grain steep to add 900g of extract for the boil. Then the rest can be added post boil and cold water added up to the 15l brew length.

Thats a fact, and you can make beer by just boiling hops and pouring the "hop tea" over the extract. But I think the question implied that he wanted to boil the extract?

 

[rpt]

Most instructions I've seen for extract kits do require a boil. I think it's to get rid of the DMS (whatever that is) and to get a hot break.

 

[fbsf]

I've done a half length (11-12L) extract brew using a 7L pot, but I'm not sure I would want to do any bigger.

The problem with boiling thick and back-liquoring in the FV is that with such a thick wort you will end up using a lot of hops for bittering as a thick wort doesn't isomerise the alpha acids so effectively.

You could easily do a 23L brew in one of the cheap 19L stockpots, but I would also recommend an FV turned into a boiler - you can do this pretty cheaply for around £30, and I found it more energy efficient as the energy goes straight into the brew rather than round the outside, and you can also insulate the FV keeping even more heat in the wort - something you can't do with gas-on-steel.

 

[LeedsBrewer]

Thanks for the response, I might just stop being skimpy and buy the 32l boiler from brew uk, anybody had any experience with this on a ceramic hob!

no idea how effective the ceramic hob will be?

I have a gas hob and struggled to get my 10L wort (in a 15L pan) to boiling point.

+1 for the electricity route. get a plastic fv with thick sides (not one of the thin youngs ones if you can help it) add a tap, hop filter and element and you're done.

Or buy a ready made one here:
http://www.thehomebrewcompany.co.uk/33l ... p-576.html

 

[fbsf]

Or buy a ready made one here:
http://www.thehomebrewcompany.co.uk/33l ... p-576.html

That's exactly what I use, and from them too. Works brilliantly every time, and holds 30+ Litres on a rolling boil without issue.

 

[CoxyBoy123]

Or buy a ready made one here:
http://www.thehomebrewcompany.co.uk/33l ... p-576.html

That's exactly what I use, and from them too. Works brilliantly every time, and holds 30+ Litres on a rolling boil without issue.

Perfect, would this carry forward to BIAB?

 

[LeedsBrewer]

yep, fbsf just did a biab in one a couple of week ago. you can also use it in a 3 tier brewing system as either your HLT or boiler.

 

[LeedsBrewer]

oh and you can also use an FV in an FV as a cheap and easy mash tun if you were wanting to go the AG route at any point. Google "papazian zapap".

It will cost you £8 for the fv. drill hundeds of 2mm holes in the bottom of it and then add some silver insulation and a tap and you're done. :thumb:

 

[CoxyBoy123]

oh and you can also use an FV in an FV as a cheap and easy mash tun if you were wanting to go the AG route at any point. Google "papazian zapap".

It will cost you £8 for the fv. drill hundeds of 2mm holes in the bottom of it and then add some silver insulation and a tap and you're done. :thumb:

That is fantastic! for the money, wouldnt it be worth adding elements to this? - http://www.brewuk.co.uk/store/ag-equipm ... s-pan.html

 

[fbsf]

Yup, would work just as well. If you intend to use it for BIAB though, make sure the bag doesn't get caught on the element - that's why I use a bag in an FV for my BIAB - less chance of me wrecking things!

 

[CoxyBoy123]

Yup, would work just as well. If you intend to use it for BIAB though, make sure the bag doesn't get caught on the element - that's why I use a bag in an FV for my BIAB - less chance of me wrecking things!

Yep, i would only use the boiler for liquor rather than mash in it, i like the idea that Leeds Brewer Posted. Will do a couple of extract in the pan before i move on to BIAB.

What elements would anybody recommend?

 

[LeedsBrewer]

my plan is to go for this http://www.themaltmiller.co.uk/index.ph ... ductId=389 though the 70L is only £10 more and would allow you to do double brew lenghts. :hmm:

with a 32L boiler you will probably struggle to get 23L without liquoring back a little. I think many people with those boilers aim for 19L

with a 50L you'd have no problem hitting the 23L or even a little higher if you wanted to. I'm going to get Rob from malt miller to cut 2 40mm holes for me so that i don't muck it up. and i'll order my 25kg bag of grain and other hops etc...

then you've got to buy the kettle elements, i don't fancy using the tesco ones so will buy the proper ones at £18 each, also some M8 lock nuts for them for a couple of quid each, also some kettle leads. I've been doing less brewing for a couple of months to save up...

But at least i know i'll not outgrow my equipment anytime soon. In another 6-12 months i might get a shiny mash tun and then another 6 months down the line get a HLT.

With the 32L SS boiler you might be able to get away with just the one 2.4kw element?? Check out morley home brew (he has them for £18.75 i think)

 

[fbsf]

Well, the cheap tesco kettle ones (£6 a go) seem to work well, but if you don't mind splurging a little more, then the HomeBrewCompany's oneis a little more robust on the outside, and less chance of touching something live.

You'll need a kettle lead (IEC Hot lead) but the HBC is a little expensive - ebay is cheaper... like Here

 

[CoxyBoy123]

Well, the cheap tesco kettle ones (£6 a go) seem to work well, but if you don't mind splurging a little more, then the HomeBrewCompany's oneis a little more robust on the outside, and less chance of touching something live.

You'll need a kettle lead (IEC Hot lead) but the HBC is a little expensive - ebay is cheaper... like Here

Thank you for your help, will just the one be ok?

Got plenty of kettle leads hanging around

 

[fbsf]

Ah - make sure the kettle leads are the "hot" ones - computer leads aren't suitable as they don't have the little notch at the bottom, which indicates they can't take the temperatures required.

I only have a single element in my 33L and it works fine... but up to you - a second will get it to the boil quicker, and you then always have a backup if one fails mid-brew!

 

[CoxyBoy123]

Ah - make sure the kettle leads are the "hot" ones - computer leads aren't suitable as they don't have the little notch at the bottom, which indicates they can't take the temperatures required.

I only have a single element in my 33L and it works fine... but up to you - a second will get it to the boil quicker, and you then always have a backup if one fails mid-brew!

Spot on, thanks a lot again.

Next month i reckon i will buy the steel boiler from brew uk and see how my hob stands up to the job, hope it does.

Just a thought, if my hob cant get it to a boil, i could always mash in the pot using hob, removed bag and fire up the elements for boil.... that could work