Building an All-Grain System

Hey all,

I am currently waiting for some fittings and materials to build my all grain system. Just curious if any of you guys have any advice or tips. Here is what I have:

2 10gal igloo coolers
2 cooler bulkhead kits (inside fitting coupling - standard option, extra shim washer, 2 piece stainless valve, and hose barb for valve outlet 1/2" stainless)

8 ft 1/2" ID x 3/4" OD silicone tubing
1 Kettle Screen

I know how to put it together but hopefully you guys might have some useful tricks for me to use. Thanks brewers!

If you are able to return the coolers, I would. Then buy a 48-56 rectangular one.

http://hbd.org/cascade/dennybrew/

Lots of good info on Denny’s site for both fly and batch sparging.

Mashwater 3.3 is a good calculator for water needed. Works fine for either style.

http://gnipsel.com/beer/software/beer-software.html

And lastly, it’s as hard to do as you thought your 1st extract was going to be. Relax :slight_smile:

Are you planning to batch or fly sparge? What size batches are you planning to brew?

If you have not yet, I highly recommend reading “How to Brew” by John Palmer. He provides an excellent primer on how mashing works (factors affecting conversion, effects on attenuation, basics of brewing water chemistry, etc.).

Your water source is important. If you’re planning to use tap water, send a sample to a lab[/url] for testing to ensure it’s suitable for brewing or that you at least know what your profile is so that you can make any necessary adjustments. [url=https://sites.google.com/site/brunwater/]Bru’n Water
https://producers.wardlab.com/BrewersKitOrder.aspx
is a great tool.

I don’t fully agree with this. If the OP is planning to brew 5 gallon batches, 40 quarts is plenty of capacity for anything he would throw at it. I can’t imagine needing two of them though.

[quote=“kcbeersnob”]Are you planning to batch or fly sparge? What size batches are you planning to brew?

If you have not yet, I highly recommend reading “How to Brew” by John Palmer. He provides an excellent primer on how mashing works (factors affecting conversion, effects on attenuation, basics of brewing water chemistry, etc.).

Your water source is important. If you’re planning to use tap water, send a sample to a lab[/url] for testing to ensure it’s suitable for brewing or that you at least know what your profile is so that you can make any necessary adjustments. [url=https://sites.google.com/site/brunwater/]Bru’n Water
https://producers.wardlab.com/BrewersKitOrder.aspx
is a great tool.

I don’t fully agree with this. If the OP is planning to brew 5 gallon batches, 40 quarts is plenty of capacity for anything he would throw at it. I can’t imagine needing two of them though.[/quote]
In a fly sparge set-up the second cooler is the HLT.

[quote=“fightdman”]
In a fly sparge set-up the second cooler is the HLT.[/quote]
Yep. Even when batch sparging, I like to use a cooler to hold my sparge water until I need it. Certainly no harm to have the capacity, but a 40 quart cooler is more than you would normally need for a 5 gallon batch. I use a 20 quart cooler. Smaller footprint, cheaper and potential for less thermal loss to the deadspace in the cooler.

We are clearly making some assumptions in our responses. :wink:

There seems to be a general bias on this form for rectangular coolers. I get why some people use them, but without having all of the facts I wouldn’t advise someone to swap out something they already own to get one. They certainly do not perform any better than beverage coolers.

Never use anything toxic. Seriously, there are some videos on you tube that give great instruction but use toxic parts. Rule of thumb: use stainless, copper, and lead-free brass. Never use zink (which will poison you) or PVC that may release toxins. Best of luck with the build.

Thanks for the great advice everyone! I plan to fly sparge, i’ve read it is the most efficient and my 2nd cooler will by my HLT. I recently sent my water profile to Ward Laboratories and i have my water analysis complete. I bought the 10 gal coolers because I wanted to have the option to do double batches, and be able to handle to the higher gravity beers. Figured I should have every option in case I wanted to do it. I have all stainless steel couplings and fittings and the kettle screen is stainless steel as well.

If efficiency is your concern, you need to know that fly sparging is not necessarily any more efficient than batch sparging. I’ve batch sparged over 430 batches and average 83-85% efficiency…as good or better than most fly spargers. In addition, batch sparging can save you a lot of time and worries about tannin extraction. Use whichever method you like, but be sure you have accurate info on which to base your decision.

If efficiency is your concern, you need to know that fly sparging is not necessarily any more efficient than batch sparging. I’ve batch sparged over 430 batches and average 83-85% efficiency…as good or better than most fly spargers. In addition, batch sparging can save you a lot of time and worries about tannin extraction. Use whichever method you like, but be sure you have accurate info on which to base your decision.[/quote]
Just to support what Denny said: I average 85.8% efficiency batch sparging. I’ve got a fly sparging friend who averages closer to 79%–and his brew days is normally a couple hours longer than mine.

Oh and since we’re talking about efficiency just now, one more recommendation: use a water/grain ratio of 1.5 qt per lb or higher. I’ve found consistently that if I dip under the 1.5 mark, I lose efficiency.

Sounds like you’re on a good path. Best of luck!

That will be the last time I trust some online source. Thanks for clarifying guys, much appreciated.

Sorry, but this post really made me laugh.

I recently started to suspect this. But, I rarely go past 1.5:1. How high is too high? Aren’t you tempting the pH gods then?

I have used ratios as high as 2.1 to 1 with no ph issues. I just shoot for equal volume between my 1st and 2nd runnings.

Same here. and even if you don’t get equal runnings it doesn’t matter a lot. A 70/30 split will have little impact ion efficiency. My sparge is often a bit smaller than the mash runoff. I shoot for 1.65 qt./lb. for the mash and sometimes go higher.

[quote=“kcbeersnob”][quote=“fightdman”]
In a fly sparge set-up the second cooler is the HLT.[/quote]
Yep. Even when batch sparging, I like to use a cooler to hold my sparge water until I need it. Certainly no harm to have the capacity, but a 40 quart cooler is more than you would normally need for a 5 gallon batch. I use a 20 quart cooler. Smaller footprint, cheaper and potential for less thermal loss to the deadspace in the cooler.

We are clearly making some assumptions in our responses. :wink:

There seems to be a general bias on this form for rectangular coolers. I get why some people use them, but without having all of the facts I wouldn’t advise someone to swap out something they already own to get one. They certainly do not perform any better than beverage coolers.[/quote]

I hope to move to AG and batch sparging soon and happen to have a couple of 5 gallon coolers on hand. I’m still trying to wrap my head around all these numbers so i just want to clarify. You do 5 gallon batches and batch sparge with a 5 gallon cooler?

[quote=“dannyboy58”]
I hope to move to AG and batch sparging soon and happen to have a couple of 5 gallon coolers on hand. I’m still trying to wrap my head around all these numbers so i just want to clarify. You do 5 gallon batches and batch sparge with a 5 gallon cooler?[/quote]
I use a 10 gallon cooler as a mash tun and a 5 gallon cooler just to hold sparge water until I’ve drained my first runnings into the kettle.

In theory you could probably get by with a 5 gallon cooler as a mash tun if you are only planning to do standard gravity beers and you get very good efficiency consistently (meaning you can use a smaller amount of grain which requires less available capacity).

To illustrate, I plugged some numbers into Beersmith. The assumptions: 5.5 gallon batch, 85% mash efficiency (ME), 1.5 qt/lb water to grain ratio, and no dead space. Beersmith estimates that it is possible to produce a 1.058 OG wort using 11 lbs of US 2-row and that this would require a ~4.98 gallon mash tun. To produce 1.058 OG wort at 70% ME (all other variables remaining the same), you would need to increase your grain weight to 13.bs 5 oz. and this would require a mash tun capacity of ~6.04 gal. Again, all estimates just for illustration.

Since you already own the 5 gallon coolers, I say give it a go. The worst that could happen is that you make a session beer. :wink:

You could also just brew smaller batches if you want to use your existing equipment.

I use a 48 qt. rectangular cooler for a mash tun. There’s really no need for another cooler to hold sparge water, so I don’t use one.

Disclaimer: Not a pro

I never understood the two cooler thing. I’ve found myself adding cold water b/c I overshoot, and firing a burner when I undershoot. I also never understood the round cooler thing. Just seems like it could be awkward. I just made my own mash tun, and incorporated a thermowell/termometer. That was a useless addition, b/c it’s reading like 20* off. Keep it simple and check out Denny’s website. Don’t let things overwhelm you. Watch some youtube videos on batch sparging and all grain brewing in general. You can find some good 44qt stainless kettles for short dough on amazon, as well as burners. Most importantly (I’ve learned this in all of my hobbies) LOOK AHEAD! Try to buy things that you will use longterm, and will be part of your system for the duration. I just bought my second high pressure burner, and wish I had just bought one banjo. But they still make beer, so I mean…

[quote=“ACKbrew”]Disclaimer: Not a pro

I never understood the two cooler thing. I’ve found myself adding cold water b/c I overshoot, and firing a burner when I undershoot. I also never understood the round cooler thing. Just seems like it could be awkward.[/quote]
I’ve never understood advising people to buy something new when what they have on hand will work perfectly fine–at least to start if not for the long haul. :wink:

The two cooler thing is simple. Three vessels in total. A kettle for heating strike water, sparge water and performing the boil. A cooler to use as a mash tun. A third vessel used to hold sparge water while draining your first runnings into the kettle. The third vessel does not need to be a cooler. It can be any vessel large enough to hold the volume of sparge water safely at the required temp. Since I did not have such a vessel, I had to buy one. I decided to go with a cooler, so I would have the option to use it to hold the heated sparge water at temp until it was time to sparge.

Nothing awkward about a round cooler. Works great for me. No problems stirring the mash and no lautering problems. I get ~85% efficiency consistently. I hit within 2 degrees of my target temp every time–if not dead on. Heat retention is excellent. If I lose any temp during the rest, it’s only 1-2 degrees–even on very cold days.

What I meant was that if you batch sparge, you don’t need any 3rd vessel to hold sparge water. You can just add it directly from the pot you heat it in.