From plastic to stainless (HLT, Boiler, Mash Tun)

[dunks]

Hey guys, I'm currently running 23 litre brews using a converted coolbox a single 33 litre plastic bucket as my boiler and hlt.

I'm looking at purchasing a few items from http://www.ebay.de/sch/m.html?_from=&_n ... rtal&rt=nc .

I'm thinking of a 50 litre boiler and 50 litre hlt. But I'm unsure on the size of mash tun required, if I go the thermopot route, would the ~31 litre size be enough?

If I go the route of HERMS would I be able to keep my coolbox with copper pipe manifold, anyone have experience of this? It seems thermopots with false bottoms are the way to go!

 

[tazuk]

well all i can say is wot are you going to gain by going shiney ????
will it improve your brews ????
is the reason you want bigger brews ?????
also can you spend money improving brews in any other ways etc with your kit you have now
ie 60 ltr boiler plastic and bigger mashtun
cornie kegs etc

herms i can not fault i am in middle of going that way me self

this is my view :thumb:

 

[dunks]

Well, who doesn't like shiney things?

I just see SS as more durable and sturdy compared to plastic, my tap on the boiler has a slight droop to it from the weight. I also want to get a HLT to go alongside my boiler just to make my life slightly easier.

HERMS is just a project in the corner of my mind, not a priority.

The pots on ebay are pretty cheap, so it just seems a bit of a no brainer making the swap really. The only expense is the thermopot, hence asking if my cool box will make the grade if I do go herms.

 

[RokDok]

Get the biggest pots you can afford.

You can always do a small brew in them but you can't do a big brew with smaller pots.

I haven't seen any posts on here about people downsizing, but plenty on people getting bigger kit.

I don't think you'll regret future proofing.

My h'peth.

Cheers

RD

 

[Steamedbeech]

Agree, I,ve got a 70L MT wish I,d gone for the 80L , also don't get your pots through ebay contact Bergland direct, they'll give you a better price :thumb:

 

[dunks]

Thanks, will contact directly

Would a 31 litre thermopot be ample for 23 litre brews? Say for example I want 30l of wort. I think my cool box is around 35l it seems fine batch sparging.

I may just grab two 50 litre pots for now, but if I were to go HERMS, would a cool box with a copper pipe manifold work ok?