Does anyone have any advice on how much is too much grain in a 5gal. round tun…brewed a Double IPA last weekend with a total grain bill at just over 16lbs. I came in a bit low on my initial rest temp and had to add a quart of almost boiling water to bring to desired rest temp. Everything went well, including an O.G. of nearly 1.090…just wondering if 16lbs. is max for a 5gal. setup.
Or is there a better approach for the tun…I know a lot of folks use square coolers?
Check out the “can I mash it” calculator, here:
Square, round… 5 gallons is 5 gallons. Sounds like an upgrade to a 10 gallon cooler is in your near future.
:cheers:
As you noticed, the capacity of a 5g cooler is “not enough”. 
I’m not sure how you fit 16lbs in 5 gallon cooler. At .75qt/lb that is 4.25g. 1qt/lb is 5.28g.
IMO, 5 gallons cooler systems are as worthless as the 1 gallon kits. Anything less than a 2.5g brewday is a waste of time. Anything less than a 36qt (9 gallon) and really a 48qt (12 gallon) cooler is to small.
On a cost/quarts basis, rectangular is going to be less than the round coolers.
[quote=“Nighthawk”]As you noticed, the capacity of a 5g cooler is “not enough”.
I’m not sure how you fit 16lbs in 5 gallon cooler. At .75qt/lb that is 4.25g. 1qt/lb is 5.28g.
IMO, 5 gallons cooler systems are as worthless as the 1 gallon kits. Anything less than a 2.5g brewday is a waste of time. Anything less than a 36qt (9 gallon) and really a 48qt (12 gallon) cooler is to small.
On a cost/quarts basis, rectangular is going to be less than the round coolers.[/quote]
I’d be worried about losing too much heat if I were mashing a small grainbill in a 36qt cooler. As a 3 gallon batch brewer, I’d like to upgrade to a better cooler than the 5 gallon round one I have, but it serves me well.
Why do you think anything less than 2.5 is a waste of time?
Thanks for sharing the calculator. Pretty decent tool.
[quote=“Beersk”]
I’d be worried about losing too much heat if I were mashing a small grainbill in a 36qt cooler. As a 3 gallon batch brewer, I’d like to upgrade to a better cooler than the 5 gallon round one I have, but it serves me well.
Why do you think anything less than 2.5 is a waste of time?[/quote]
You bring up a great point. Trying to match what you brew to the equipment you need. And may need in the future, if things change.
Like most, I started brewing 5 gallons. But as single person that doesn’t host parties, beer will sit around to long if I keep a large variety on hand. So I am looking at 2.5-3g batches also. I use a 48qt cooler. But have a 3g water cooler that the spout leaks and can be converted to a MT easily for 2.5g batches.
I say that the 1g kits are a waste because 1g = 128oz = 10, 12oz bottles. For the time it takes to boil, clean/sanitize and bottles 10 bottle, I’ll go buy the beer.
At 2.5 gallons, you are getting 24 bottles of beer. That is worth the time investment to me.
If one want’s to make an experimental beer and only do 1 gallon, that’s fine. But for a “production” level I can’t see it working out. For me.
Indeed. I really like 3 gallon batches. I also started with 5 gallon batches and I usually find that I start to get sick of a beer about half way through the keg, hence downsizing to 3 gallons. It’s been nice, plus I can brew inside on my stove. But I do miss brewing outside on some days when it’s really nice and there’s no wind. Great feeling, especially in spring and fall.
I generally brew for myself also since I don’t have many friends that come over to drink beer, only occasionally. So 5 gallons is really too much for me to drink, especially since I really enjoy the brewing process and want to brew as often as I can.
But I agree, 1 gallon batches are hardly worth the time, in my opinion.
I’m an advocate for using a cooler that’s reasonably matched to the batch size–even if you think you’ll go larger/smaller later. In the grand scheme of things, coolers are cheap and can be repurposed if you choose to upscale or downscale.
When doing a 5 gallon batch, I normally hold steady in a 60 minute rest or maybe lose up to a degree. I recently tried a 3 gallon batch in the same 10 gallon cooler. I lost ~5 degrees over the hour. The large headspace definitely makes a difference.
[quote=“kcbeersnob”]
When doing a 5 gallon batch, I normally hold steady in a 60 minute rest or maybe lose up to a degree. I recently tried a 3 gallon batch in the same 10 gallon cooler. I lost ~5 degrees over the hour. The large headspace definitely makes a difference.[/quote]
Definitely. I do 3 gallon batches in a 5 gallon round cooler, still lose 4-6 degrees over an hour. Slightly annoying, but I don’t think it’s detrimental to the finished beer. Might make it slightly more fermentable.
I’m looking to upgrade from extract to all-grain brewing. I have been doing lots of reading on this exact topic so I’ll know what equipment I need. Many things I have read suggested 1.5qts/pound of grain, which with a 12 lb grain bill means pushing a 5 gallon cooler to the limit. I was thinking of going with a 7-10 gallon cooler to handle bigger beers or larger batches down the road. The extra headspace and resulting loss of temperature has been a concern though.
Brandonscott79 if you can brew a 1.090 batch with a 5 gallon cooler why to upgrade for a 10 gallon?
With a 10 gallon cooler you will loose too much heat.
With a few exceptions, I normally brew batches using 9-12 lbs of grain and 1.5+ qt/lb in a 10 gal cooler. I typically don’t lose more than 1°F. The key is to preheat properly.
I like math and science as much as anyone but I like experience better. The 16lb grain bill rested for 80 minutes and the fly sparge took nearly 5 gallons at 200 degrees. If I can get this out of a five gallon tun I have no need to go bigger…
