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"Round like a circle...

Post #1 made 13 years ago
by Rooster
...in a spiral like a wheel within a wheel... " as the song goes.
Is anyone else as indecisive as me?
I've spent the last couple of weeks going around in circles.
I'm anxious to get into BIAB as quickly as possible, I'm rapidly running out of kit beer.
First I was all set to get a Buffalo 40 litre electric urn but was unsure about element gunging up, element cutting out and ease of thoroughly cleaning the tap.
Then I thought I had settled on the Hop and Grape electric 50 litre boiler perhaps upgraded with the stainless steel hop strainer and tap.
Then I decided that I may as well, for only a little extra cash, upgrade this to 75 or 98 litre but with additional element, then I could make double batches but I'm now having doubts that I will be able to manoeuvre this on my own while it is full of hot wort even if I have it on a wheeled platform.
Last night I was almost back to the Buffalo urn. :?
This morning I'm wondering if I should just get myself a 19 litre stockpot for the kitchen stove and do a few Maxi BIAB's and put off the decision for a while - maybe then I'll be able to sleep at night again :sleep:
Then again if I do this would it be more useful to get a bigger size stockpot? How big a stockpot can a standard gas cooker hob bring to a rolling boil?
..."never ending or beginning..."
Someone put me out of my misery - pleeaassssssse :headhit:

PS But if I go for a bigger stockpot than 19 litre, maybe I should just go for the H+G 50 litre and be done with :argh:

Sorry for all the smilies but they do express what I'm going through.

Post #3 made 13 years ago
by hashie
Rest assured, once you make your purchase, it will be wrong! Ha ha :)

If it was me I'd go for the H+G 50 litre jobbie and be done with it. You will be able to knock out 23 litre batches with ease and with some farting about, be able to knock out doubles using maxi-biab.

Make your decision soon, before you change your mind and just buy beer from the bottlo :)
Last edited by hashie on 05 Jan 2012, 04:29, edited 3 times in total.
"It's beer Jim, but not as we know it."

Post #4 made 13 years ago
by joshua
Good Day, Hashie has the Idea, Many BIABer' go with a kettle twice the size of the batch you want to make. It will hold a double batch of grain, and then have a lot of headroom to help stop boilovers. I have found you Can't go too big, but it's easy to go Too SMALL. GO BIG!
Honest Officer, I swear to Drunk, I am Not God.
    • SVA Brewer With Over 100 Brews From United States of America

Post #5 made 13 years ago
by PistolPatch
I've got two kettles - both 70 litres. I am really happy with this size. I think the 90 litre would be a bit over the top for me.

There isn't much weight difference between a 50 L pot and a 70 L pot. There isn't much size difference either - usually 40 cm x 40 cm versus 45 cm x 45 cm.

The real question I'm seeing here Rooster is the 'manoeuvring' one. Can you give moire info on why you need to move the kettle when it's full?

Cheers,
PP
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Post #6 made 13 years ago
by Rooster
PistolPatch wrote:I've got two kettles - both 70 litres. I am really happy with this size. I think the 90 litre would be a bit over the top for me.

There isn't much weight difference between a 50 L pot and a 70 L pot. There isn't much size difference either - usually 40 cm x 40 cm versus 45 cm x 45 cm.

The real question I'm seeing here Rooster is the 'manoeuvring' one. Can you give moire info on why you need to move the kettle when it's full?

Cheers,
PP
I was planning on locating the boiler on a wooden work surface on top of my gas hob which conveniently has an extractor hood above, see earlier post viewtopic.php?f=5&t=1187 #3
The gap between the hob, after allowing say one inch for the wooden work surface and the extractor hood is appx 33 inches (840mm). I need to be able to manoeuvre a wort chiller into a gap of say 840-450mm (450mm being the height of the boiler) ie 390mm. This is also the amount of space I would have for inserting the bag and stirring. If you think this is manageable without having to "manoeuvre" the boiler, what about the 98 litre version which is 550mm high so would only give me 290mm for wort chiller, bag insertion and stirring, would this be too tight?
Last edited by Rooster on 05 Jan 2012, 07:01, edited 3 times in total.

Post #7 made 13 years ago
by stux
I would be concerned about large pots on standard domestic hobs

I just invested in a 98L pot after having a 50L pot for a couple of years.

I would suggest the 70L if you're interested in doubles. 98L is fantastic but *big* :)

50L is great for singles, but a pita for doubles

An alternative to wort chilling is no chilling in an HDPE cube
Fermenting: -
Cubed: -
Stirplate: -
On Tap: NS Summer Ale III (WY1272), Landlord III (WY1469), Fighter's 70/- II (WY1272), Roast Porter (WY1028), Cider, Soda
Next: Munich Helles III

5/7/12

Post #8 made 13 years ago
by Aces high
stux wrote:I would be concerned about large pots on standard domestic hobs

I just invested in a 98L pot after having a 50L pot for a couple of years.

I would suggest the 70L if you're interested in doubles. 98L is fantastic but *big* :)

50L is great for singles, but a pita for doubles

An alternative to wort chilling is no chilling in an HDPE cube
Yep, like Stux said, a pot on the domestic hob is just not a good option (unless its 15L or less), it will struggle to get the pot to the boil and because of the base size of your pot is quite large it seems to radiate a lot of heat back down and the whole hob really starts to heat up more than it should

I have a 114L pot with burner built in on a frame on wheels. It sounds bit cumbersome, but the only time i need to lift it off is when i hose it out at the end. I roll the whole thing out of the shed, lay it on the grass and hose it out. When the brewing is happening, there is no need to move anything.

Ive yet to try a triple batch, but my I reckon its coming soon.
Last edited by Aces high on 05 Jan 2012, 08:56, edited 3 times in total.

Post #9 made 13 years ago
by Rooster
Some good feedback here, keep 'em coming.
I could actually go the gas burner route and brew outside and then go with as big a boiler as I want but I've always been concerned with flies in the brew - is this a problem :dunno: ?
I mean we all like a beer with body but is this taking it a bit far?

Post #13 made 13 years ago
by joshua
Good Day, I was reading about early brewing history. They NEEDED flies to bring stuff to ferment their beer. By 1750 they figured out the syuff was yeast....Go Flies!
Honest Officer, I swear to Drunk, I am Not God.
    • SVA Brewer With Over 100 Brews From United States of America

Post #14 made 13 years ago
by Aces high
I brew in a big open shed and there are always flys around. The tend not to get anywhere near the brew even when the gas is off and I am waiting to whirlpool it. Once i've pulled the bag out and its sitting in a bucket they do hang around the bag, but other than that its fine. I've never had one Kamakazi into my wort yet :thumbs:

Post #16 made 13 years ago
by stux
I've had to toss out a large starter I'd spent a week building up when I found a vinegar fly in it :(
Fermenting: -
Cubed: -
Stirplate: -
On Tap: NS Summer Ale III (WY1272), Landlord III (WY1469), Fighter's 70/- II (WY1272), Roast Porter (WY1028), Cider, Soda
Next: Munich Helles III

5/7/12

Re: "Round like a circle...

Post #17 made 13 years ago
by goulders
Going back to the boiler, I use a 40l buffalo and is easy to clean and I have had no problems with crud on the element. There is a slight crescent at the end of the boil, but I get a good rolling boil and it comes off with a bit of vinegar. I use a hop stopper and have no problem cleaning the tap.
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