AG BIAB Starter Kit

I know i'm going to get some real stick for this (especially from the Dark Lord Clibit) but after all the chat recently about BIAB starter kits i've decided to upgrade from brew can kits over to the dark side and have a go at an AG brew, so this evening i've ordered my starter kit from Geterbrewed using the forum discount code :thumb:

Why Geterbrewed rather than HBS - After weighting both up i decided that the false bottom and the thermometer included as part of the kit were worth having, and yep i could have probably saved a couple of quid sourcing separately, but to be honest i couldn't be bothered. I did however prefer the brew kit range from HBS (they seemed to have more) and i've settled for an American Pale Ale with my kit and will see how that goes for now.

To date i've only made up one Coopers can kit which seemed a bit to simple, the idea of creating my own monster and breathing life into it appeals more to me, the pack thats coming is all measured and weighed out with detailed instructions which i recon will give me some experience to develop forwards.

No stick from me!

i got the hbc one have done one brew cant really offer much advice but allow plenty of time i took about 5 hours over first one
have your water measured out and a couple of ltrs of ice cold water
and relax and enjoy the fruits of your labour

You will not regret it Duffman, and you will never go back to straight kits (with possibly the exception of an odd, quick Coopers lager brew with dry hop when required).

Enjoy your first BIAB brew, and post some piccies here which we can all enjoy !

Hello chaps!
I have been researching the bare-minimum equipment that I can add to my existing setup in order to start successfully doing some AG brewing. And this thread has been really useful!

I had a go at Clibit's simple AG method recently with "some" success (I managed to make a wort with about the right SG anyway!). And the process of at least trying to brew from scratch with my rudimentary equipment was very useful, because if nothing else I have learned what worked well, and what didn't.

So - as far as I can see, the main problems for most people attempting an AG brew are heating up enough water initially (I only have a halogen hob to use, with a large-ish stock pot), controlling the temperature for mashing, and cooling your wort after the boil to a pitch-able temperature. Is that about right?

It seems to me that the main things I need are a cheap boiler and an immersion chiller. That would immediately eliminate some of my main issues. Therefore this kit from HBC looks ideal. The only thing that is holding me back is the fact that this boiler doesn't have a thermostatic control. I guess what I would like to know is how much of a problem this is?? I've seen the Peco boilers with Thermostat control for around £70-ish, and with an actual temperature control for around £110. Is it worth spending the extra on one of these which presumably can maintain a stable temperature for a 1 hour+ mash - or is the standard boiler sufficient (especially if wrapped in a blanket etc)?

It just strikes me that this HBC kit for less than £77 delivered (after HBF discount!) is great value considering it comes with an AG kit which is around £20 value, and a chiller that must be £30-40. Not to mention the mesh bag. It does seem like a bargain! So should I not worry about the lack of thermostat?

As always - your advice is much-appreciated! :)

The HBC Kit is a steal.

I bought it a couple of weeks ago, only used it once as waiting for a FV to get free'd up this weekend before doing another brew.

Not having a thermostat/control was no biggie at all for me.

Effectively you just:
1. heat the water to 70°C then turn the power off and pop your grain in to mash (once you get your grains in it will drop from 70°C to 67°for the mash).
2. pop the lid on loosely and insulate the boiler for the mash with a coat/sleeping bag/duffet. Stand it on some wood or something insulating rather than a concrete floor to avoid the temp dropping during the mash.
3. Mash for an hour or so.
4. Lift the grains out and then pop the power back on to bring to the boil and leave on for the boil.
5. Turn the power off at the end of the boil and you are ready to chill the wort.

If the temp drops off below say 64°C during the mash then you can pop the power back on to raise back to 67°C.

Hope this helps, here is a picture of the kit from HBC - don't forget to use the 5% forum discount code if you do purchase.

The grain kit isn't shown, just the 'hardware', the wort chiller doesn't come with the connectors, just push the hose on and use jubilee clips or look at adding some hozelock connectors:

Thanks so much Spapro! That is such a helpful post, and confirmed everything I wanted to know. I am definitely going to order the kit now in that case. Can't wait to start another AG brew!!

Cheers!

I bought one around the same time as Spapro. Likewise, I've throroughly enjoyed using it and wil lbe doing another couple of brews over the Bank Holiday weekend.
If you're ordering the HBC kit, you might want to look at a false bottom or hop filter too. Just to make life a little easier when transferring to the FV.

SiWHU said:

I bought one around the same time as Spapro. Likewise, I've throroughly enjoyed using it and wil lbe doing another couple of brews over the Bank Holiday weekend.
If you're ordering the HBC kit, you might want to look at a false bottom or hop filter too. Just to make life a little easier when transferring to the FV.

Click to expand...

Thanks Si that is very useful too. Good point about the hope filter/false bottom too! I was looking at the hop filter - but is that the best option?

I'll be using my hop filter for the first time thsi weekend, so I'll let you know

timcunnell said:

Thanks Si that is very useful too. Good point about the hope filter/false bottom too! I was looking at the hop filter - but is that the best option?

Click to expand...

Some on here just jug the wort out of the boiler into a FV - running it through a sieve with maybe sterilised muslin cloth also in the sieve. Thats the cheapest option !

I picked up one of those brupaks hop filters off ebay but not tried it yet.

The one from HBC comes with flexible hoses to push fit connect it into the rear of the plastic tap in the boiler.

I was expecting the push fit one but mine arrived with a bolt fitment so have had to do some diy to make it push fit !

Not tried it yet so hoping it stays put in the back of the tap during the boil.

Some piccies:

Nice work Spapro! :thumb: Looks very neat!

I ordered the hop filter from HBC along with the boiler kit. Hoping it'll come early next week.

What did you do regarding the wort chiller? I am guessing the wort chiller just comes "as is", so you just get the copper coil with the hooked ends? You don't get any hoses do you? I guess my plan would be to fit some Hozelock-type connectors for some garden hose. I've ordered a clamp-type universal fitting to connect to my kitchen tap which presents a Hozelock connection, so hopefully that'll work well. I just wasn't sure what I need to get from B&Q to connect to the coil?

Check out Spapro's update on this thread http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=55772&highlight=spapro&page=4 Shoudl sort you out for what you need the immersion chiller. Failing that, a couple of jubilee clips and some lengths of hose....

Ah yes, that's perfect mate - thanks very much! I'll pick up some compression fittings, male connectors and a bit of hose then. Cheers!

timcunnell said:

Ah yes, that's perfect mate - thanks very much! I'll pick up some compression fittings, male connectors and a bit of hose then. Cheers!

Click to expand...

You need - here is a shopping list:

2 x Brass 10mm to 15mm couplers (you ditch the nut and olive from the 15mm side): http://www.diy.com/departments/plumbsure-brass-compression-reducing-coupler-dia15-mm/34126_BQ.prd
2 x B&Q Blue Tap Connectors: http://www.diy.com/departments/bq-1/2-3/4-threaded-tap-connector/189833_BQ.prd
2 x B&Q Blue Hose connectors: http://www.diy.com/departments/bq-1/2-5/8-hose-connector/262127_BQ.prd

Plus some plumbers PTFE tape as the brass couplers are designed for 10mm pipe and my wort chiller was made with 9.5mm copper pipe. 5-6 layers of PTFE tape bulks out the width of the copper tube so the olive fits more snugly for a better seal once tighten up.

Brilliant mate thanks so much for this! Really appreciate your help - really kind of you to take the time you post those links. I shall post an update when I have it all set up! Can't wait!

Spapro said:

You need - here is a shopping list:

2 x Brass 10mm to 15mm couplers (you ditch the nut and olive from the 15mm side): http://www.diy.com/departments/plumbsure-brass-compression-reducing-coupler-dia15-mm/34126_BQ.prd
2 x B&Q Blue Tap Connectors: http://www.diy.com/departments/bq-1/2-3/4-threaded-tap-connector/189833_BQ.prd
2 x B&Q Blue Hose connectors: http://www.diy.com/departments/bq-1/2-5/8-hose-connector/262127_BQ.prd

Plus some plumbers PTFE tape as the brass couplers are designed for 10mm pipe and my wort chiller was made with 9.5mm copper pipe. 5-6 layers of PTFE tape bulks out the width of the copper tube so the olive fits more snugly for a better seal once tighten up.

Click to expand...