What can I do with this set-up?

[morethanworts]

Thanks to a fellow member, I will shortly be the owner of a 28L coolbox mash tun. There's a bit of 'mission creep' going on here: I was going to continue on to just extracts (which I did a few years back), then I saw the mash tun going nearby...

Here's essentially what I now have (or will v shortly)

28L Coolbox mash tun
15L Stockpot (18L wilko, but I reckon holds more like 15L)
6L stockpot
Brewfridge w/STC1000
FV and bottling bucket
Numerous DJs
plus the usual bits and pieces

So no boiler or immersion chiller...yet...

Can the mash tun help out with extract/partial mash brewing as it is, or do I really need to buy or build a boiler and chiller?

 

[PD]

quote
or do I really need to buy or build a boiler and chiller?

Go on....you know you want to........ :twisted:

 

[Runwell-Steve]

I may have a stainless Immersion Chiller for sale very soon.

 

[BIGJIM72]

If your stove will take it why not grab another 18lt pot-then a 23lt brew would be feasible.

 

[alymere]

Look at doing a mini biab, go to biabrewer info (sorry I can;t post the link), lots of great info on there. The biabacus spreadsheet is great for scaling down recipes. You could chill in a sink of ice water or read up about no chill, just need a container for the boiling wort.

 

[morethanworts]

Thanks for the replies guys. Some useful ideas there. :thumb:

£15 for a second stockpot wouldn't break the bank.

Hadn't thought of no chill, though I'm not sure if I see myself going that way in he long term.

I start to think 2 tesco value kettles =£10, take out the elements etc like Big Yin's How To...

This pursuit does catch you!

I've asked for a 2L conical for my birthday, so now I'm looking at the stir plate How To...

You can get a long way without too many massive investments, unless you go shiny.

 

[Wetroads]

If your stove will take it why not grab another 18lt pot-then a 23lt brew would be feasible.

That's the cheap way. Enjoy...

 

[pittsy]

Hey there's a lot to buy build or beg so you'd better just go and get a large pot and be done with it , so much more to ponder on what's next lol.

 

[morethanworts]

Thanks all :thumb:

A second pot, 19L brewlengths (just to be on the safe side with boilover!) and a new (19L) corny seem like a good all round option, seeing that I want a new keg anyway.

...but then tomorrow I may have changed my mind!

Dividing the boil in two isn't too much of a problem then?

 

[boozy_shoes]

Dividing the boil in two isn't too much of a problem then?

No if anything it might be beneficial. You'll have more room to experiment (different hopping in each half to compare) and if you cool it in the two halves the temperature will come down quicker.

 

[Wetroads]

Dividing the boil in two isn't too much of a problem then?

No if anything it might be beneficial. You'll have more room to experiment (different hopping in each half to compare) and if you cool it in the two halves the temperature will come down quicker.

Slightly awkward sizes to keg if you do this, but bottling not a problem. The cooling / experimentation idea are big advantages though.

 

[morethanworts]

I found my fullish 15L stockpot took about 1h20 to get down to 26C (at which point I did a top up) in a cold sink with some freezer blocks, running a trickle of cold water constantly. This was with the lid on, mind, though I guess people leave it off using an immersion chiller. So I'm worried it would be slow.

Lid off? Presumably people leave it off for maybe 30 mins with an immersion chiller?

 

[pittsy]

I do , lid off while chiller is used and anywhere from 20 to 40 mins (depending on mains water temp etc summer/winter) Just make sure no flies about and close windows doors etc , no pets about too ( crap floating in air etc) so far only had 2 infections and 1 was from yeast the other was early on in brewing so probably not as clean as i should of been .

 

[morethanworts]

Thanks

I'll have to do a test. I guess if it takes an hour (say) in the sink with the lid off, that's perhaps a mitigated risk. Maybe I should just leave the lids on and let them take longer :hmm:

 

[morethanworts]

Update, and new help needed please!

Decision made. Seeing that we have a large enough cooker and good extraction in the kitchen, I'm going for the second stockpot option - which means little extra investment.

Next step... I've bought 10M of 8mm copper piping ready to make two smaller immersion chillers, one for each pot. The question is, is it OK to connect them in series? It would save quite a lot of extra cost on fittings/joints as opposed to connecting them in parallel, but the second pot would be getting cooled slower than the first I guess.

They'd still be fed from the same single water supply regardless, so the pressure would presumably be halved through each coil in parallel. Maybe that doesn't matter though, if you normally don't open the tap fully anyway... :hmm:

What do you think?
TIA :thumb:

 

[Wetroads]

I really don't see any problems at all with having them in series. I actually think the difference in cooling rates would be pretty negligible if you kept a decent flow going. I could be totally wrong though.