Newbie questions - sorry!!

[Jensen]

Hi everyone, as i'm on a self imposed "tight" budget, i've sourced a few things, which hopefully will be suitable to
do my first AG brew, but I though i'd run these past you just incase i'm going in completely the wrong direction.

I've found a 22ltr(that's up to the brim) Coolbox...
Firstly, will it be big enough for a 5gal brew?
Secondly, At this stage I don't want to canibalise it by fitting a manifold thingy, I still need it in tact as it's part of the camping equipment (at the moment!), So I was thinking.. can I mash in it, then, rather than runoff from the Coolbox, can I empty it into a fermenter fitted with a tap and manifold thingy, do the runoff from there, then carry on sparging in ther fermenter, therefore doing away with the need to drill a hole in my coolbox.
My thinking behind this is, initially I was going to mash into an insulated fermenter, but thought a coobox would be more efficient, so i'd just use the fermenter to sparge.- any thoughts?
Also, when sparging is keeping the temperature as crucial as when mashing, i.e should I insulate the fermenter anyway?

Sorry about asking such dumb questions - I'll certainly be asking a lot more :grin:

 

[A T]

You're coolbox will be big enough, i don't understand why you can't fit a tap to it and still use it when you're camping? Anyway isn't it a bit late in the year for the great outdoors? temperature control is not as crucial during sparging as it is during mashing but is still important Personally i think you're gonna make the process long and hard if you don't fit the tap to the cool box. When are you planning to do your first brew? Oh welcome to the forum :

 

[BrewStew]

as AT said, it's really no biggy sticking a tap on your picnic cooler... the manifold should be removable anyway for cleaning purposes.

you can of course go the fermenter bucket route too, and wrap it in camping mats, sleeping bags and old duvets.

the choice is ultimately yours, whether buying new kit, or doing it on a shoe string, but i would say the less time you've got to spend faffing with equipment the more time you can actually enjoy spending the day brewing

as for more nooby questions, go for it :thumb: we were noobs once too! and we're still learning

 

[Jensen]

Thanks for your replies
Here goes some more newbie stylie questions - got plenty more yet

I've now decided to hack up my coolbox (don't tell my wife!)
I was wondering - how far up should the tap be from the base of the coolbox?
Should I make the manifold to cover as much area as possible, or will a single piece of pipe suffice?
Should I go holes or slits?
Do I need to fit a boiler tap or can I use a fermenter tap?

Also - I did a test run earlier, to see how long a boil would take and how the coolbox kept to temp,
and can't believe that the piece of **** hob on my cooker wouldn't boil, couldn't get it past 85deg :cry:
I might have to rethink my boiler - might get a propane boiling ring - has anyone used these?

Anyway
cheers
:

 

[A T]

Thanks for your replies
Here goes some more newbie stylie questions - got plenty more yet

I've now decided to hack up my coolbox (don't tell my wife!)
I was wondering - how far up should the tap be from the base of the coolbox?
Should I make the manifold to cover as much area as possible, or will a single piece of pipe suffice?
Should I go holes or slits?
Do I need to fit a boiler tap or can I use a fermenter tap?

Also - I did a test run earlier, to see how long a boil would take and how the coolbox kept to temp,
and can't believe that the piece of **** hob on my cooker wouldn't boil, couldn't get it past 85deg :cry:
I might have to rethink my boiler - might get a propane boiling ring - has anyone used these?

Anyway
cheers
:

Keep the tap as close as possible to the bottom which will keep any losses to a minimum, it's best to cover as much area as possible with your manifold and reduce the chance of getting a stuck mash. I think the done thing with these manifolds is slits although i'm not sure why and lastly about the tap use the best quality tap available to you. You'll be buying shiny by this time next year :lol: :lol: Good look with the cool box conversion and as always if you need to ask anything there's usually somebody here

 

[Jensen]

Thanks AT, i'm off to wickes later to get some pipe and fittings - my first expense in AG brewing
Although i'm sure there's some in the garage, just can't find them - the annoying part is, my dad was a plumber
for 30 years and he sold all his left over fittings at a car boot sale last year :cry:
Let that be a lesson to all - don't ever get rid of ANYTHING - you'll need it one day

Cheers
:

 

[BrewStew]

great stuff Jensen :thumb:

you're slipping down the slope already

soon you'll be looking at everything and thinking "how can i use that for brewing" :lol:

 

[Jensen]

great stuff Jensen :thumb:

you're slipping down the slope already

soon you'll be looking at everything and thinking "how can i use that for brewing" :lol:

Already am, I had a dream about brewing last night :lol: luckily not a nightmare, i'll save them for my brewdays