samnorfolk
Landlord.
- Joined
- Dec 12, 2012
- Messages
- 702
- Reaction score
- 17
i brew up 5 gal brews, what size cool boxes do people use for theirs?
Cheers
Cheers
I use a 28 litre cool box which will hold a maximum of around 8.5 kg of grain plus the mash water. That's more than enough for most 5 gallon batches.
Yes, as long as you don't want a very strong brew. I use a Tesco 24l coolbox with a typical gain bill of 5kg
No, but I think most people do.also did you have to add a tap to it?
No, but I think most people do.
Instead, I have a 12l plastic bucket with a tap fitted, and a filter behind the tap, which I use for sparging.
So, I bail out the cool box with a jug, pour it into the sparging bucket, and dribble hot water through the mash. This thread shows what I mean:
http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=59805
It just seems so easy to me to fit a tap through the single skin of a plastic bucket, rather than faffing around trying to seal a double-wall flexible container.
contain the mash in a net grain bag ala biab then place a siphon tube under the bag and up the side, or connect to a manifold or FB if you go those ways.. keep the tube in the box during the mash and then siphon the liquor out from under the grain mass, also makes clean up a doddle too..
go for a bigger 28/30l box if you plan on batch sparging, if fly sparging you can get away with a smaller tun just sufficient to contain the grain bill + an inch or so headroom, remembering that the lids all ingress into the box volume too somewhat.
cheaper boxes have very poor insulation and benefit from a complete pull and repack with upgraded insulation.. also dont forget to insulate the hollow lid..
if fitting a valve/tap seal it to the inner skin alone using a bigger access hole in the outer shell
enjoy..
Enter your email address to join: