Downsizing - My new compact brewing setup

[Jimmy]

And no worries on the keg, get what suits you best!

I'm in no rush to sell the kegs, I'll probably just throw them down in my underground storage unit (now that the dirt bike is gone and I have room again! ) until someone wants them.

[Jimmy]

I made a little video today during my winter warmer brew. I just wanted to show how easy the mash tun drains using only the BIAB as a filter - no vorlauf, just wide open valve into the kettle.

[sleepyjamie]

what was your efficiency on this batch?

[sleepyjamie]

how much sludge are you getting in the bucket with BIAB/cooler method?

[Jimmy]

how much sludge are you getting in the bucket with BIAB/cooler method?

Mash efficiency was 77% today.

And what do you mean by sludge in the bucket? Just the post boil trub? If that's what you mean, then no more than a traditional mash. Today was the first time I actually whirlpooled and let it sit for about 15 min while I did some cleaning. I transferred very little trub into the fermenter today - though I don't care if it goes in or not.

[jeffsmith]

That's pretty slick. I'm curious about your efficiency as well. Bring able to drain into the kettle that quickly is looking pretty damn appealing.

[jeffsmith]

What's the price for one of those bags? I'm assuming that's a 70qt Coleman extreme cooler?

[Jimmy]

What's the price for one of those bags? I'm assuming that's a 70qt Coleman extreme cooler?

Yeah, that would be the cooler.

$30 for one the same as in the video

[Jimmy]

And another quick video of how quickly the stand breaks down.

[CorneliusAlphonse]

I made a little video today during my winter warmer brew. I just wanted to show how easy the mash tun drains using only the BIAB as a filter - no vorlauf, just wide open valve into the kettle.

hmm - interesting. when i try to drain my cooler without lifting up the bag, the bag sucks a tiny bit into the valve, and all the liquid has to drain through that one small point, and it goes quite slowly. I solve it by just lifting the bag a little bit. do you have anything on the inside of your cooler to keep the bag up off the bottom or away from the valve or anything?

[Jimmy]

No, I just put a 90* fitting as my pickup to avoid that problem.

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[sleepyjamie]

how much sludge are you getting in the bucket with BIAB/cooler method?

i guess what i meant by sludge is that with BIAB i found that since there i no vorlauf then i ended up with more "trub" at the bottom of the fermenter. nothing solid, just the extra crap that normally the grain bed / vorlauf filters out. this makes it more difficult when washing yeast. i have a bazooka screen as well, so that will help with preventing the bag from getting stuck in the ballvalve, which will hopefully let me do a vorlauf.

what grain crusher do u have and what is your rollers set to? hopefully i can get 75+ efficiency. im wondering if a mash out would up the efficiency a bit more.

I was gonna pick up the bag today but i ended up installing windows in my house, and one of the frames was a bit rotten so took longer than i expected. Im gonna pick that bag up from you tomorrow if u are around.

[sleepyjamie]

and where did u get the stand at?

[Jimmy]

how much sludge are you getting in the bucket with BIAB/cooler method?

i guess what i meant by sludge is that with BIAB i found that since there i no vorlauf then i ended up with more "trub" at the bottom of the fermenter. nothing solid, just the extra crap that normally the grain bed / vorlauf filters out. this makes it more difficult when washing yeast. i have a bazooka screen as well, so that will help with preventing the bag from getting stuck in the ballvalve, which will hopefully let me do a vorlauf.

what grain crusher do u have and what is your rollers set to? hopefully i can get 75+ efficiency. im wondering if a mash out would up the efficiency a bit more.

I was gonna pick up the bag today but i ended up installing windows in my house, and one of the frames was a bit rotten so took longer than i expected. Im gonna pick that bag up from you tomorrow if u are around.

To be honest, I've never really noticed much extra in my fermenters. Why not top crop to avoid the issue of anything mixed in with the yeast on the bottom of the fermenter?

I use a barley crusher - not sure of the setting.

To give you an idea of the amount of "stuff" that is in the bottom of my fermenter, this is the beer I brewed last weekend at Chalmers' place (as it sits today).

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[Jimmy]

and where did u get the stand at?

The stand is from Canadian Tire. It's the origami medium.

[Jimmy]

Jamie, I forgot to mention. I don't know if I'd want to use the bazooka with the bag or not. I decided against it because I didn't want to risk hooking the bag on the bazooka.

[sleepyjamie]

OK cool. I'm gonna experiment with it a few times and see what works out best.

I'll msg u tomorrow



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[RubberToe]

Right on Jimmy, great work!

[bluenose]

do any of the folks who bought the blichman burners figure out how long it takes to heat the water?

[dnickerson]

Jimmy, Are you still looking to sell the keg?

[Jimmy]

Jimmy, Are you still looking to sell the keg?

Sorry, sold all the keggles

[Jimmy]

If anyone wants one of these stands, they are on sale at Canadian tire for 30% off.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/origa ... rzSMPRDsrU" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[jtmwhyte]

Sticking with my compact theme, I found a stand to place my cooler high enough that I can gravity feed the wort into the kettle - using my pump for water transfers only.

It's the perfect height for the burner & pot, collapses like a mofo (literally, 20 seconds), and is rated for 250lbs per shelf.

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Just bought this shelf on clearance from Crappy Tire for $25

[Jimmy]

It's an awesome shelf. I still use it in the basement for storage.

[mthibodeau]

Just bought this shelf on clearance from Crappy Tire for $25

At which Canadian Tire?