used dairy tanks, come on in

[defenestrate]

i was originally going to go with a 2.5 bbl system using 4 SS drums (2 MT AND 2 BK, much like the pyschobrew system) but now am leaning towards used dairy equipment- i found good looking tanks for a BK and MT, but i didn't pull the trigger and now the MT is sold . the tanks below would give me 3 bbl capacity with some room to spare- i would like to snap them up if they will work but it almost seems too good to be true.

can i get your opinions on this for the BK? 160 gallon SS, slopped bottom to 1.5" tri clamp fitting. $585. (38208 photos)

i'm waiting on some more pics and info on 53591, but am thinking about it for a MT.

great/horrible idea? obviously they will need some modifications to work, but i'm still thinking they are much cheaper than buying new 3 bbl equipment. all opinions wanted! cheers

[Jeff Lockhart]

The horizontal tanks will work for MT (with a slotted pipe down the middle) & FV (with a stand pipe). The other could be used (with mod. ) as the Kettle.

I've got a dairy tank system and it works great!

[defenestrate]

The horizontal tanks will work for MT (with a slotted pipe down the middle) & FV (with a stand pipe). The other could be used (with mod. ) as the Kettle.

I've got a dairy tank system and it works great!

as far as FV i plan on getting brewery specific fermenters- i will spend the money there.

would a custom false buttom be needed as well? can't really tell what is possible until i see the bottom of the tank when they send me pictures later. another bonus is that this rectangular tank is insulated- i'm a little worried about the lid(s) and seeing if i have enough room for stirring.

for the kettle, i was planning on adding a tri clamp sight glass, possibly a whirlpool inlet, and some sort of dip tube... but i need to see how this thing drains with a sloped bottom. any other mods suggested?

[callmetim]

You're on the right track - save money on teh hot side spend money on the cool side. the only commern I would have on your pictures is teh upright vessel doesn't have an ideal height to width ratio. I have used "recycled" vessels and my kettle is over twice as tall as it is wide and its not insulated. so the wort actually loses temperature becasue all the heat is concentrated at teh bottom. I did add a heating element about 1/3 of the wya up so that helps but I still have less surface area so that the evaporation rate is lower than I would like. If I were to be looking for a suitable boil kettle I would look for soemthing where the wide and height are pretty close.

I ams ure there are other people who have formuals for this.

[defenestrate]

You're on the right track - save money on teh hot side spend money on the cool side. the only commern I would have on your pictures is teh upright vessel doesn't have an ideal height to width ratio. I have used "recycled" vessels and my kettle is over twice as tall as it is wide and its not insulated. so the wort actually loses temperature becasue all the heat is concentrated at teh bottom. I did add a heating element about 1/3 of the wya up so that helps but I still have less surface area so that the evaporation rate is lower than I would like. If I were to be looking for a suitable boil kettle I would look for soemthing where the wide and height are pretty close.

I ams ure there are other people who have formuals for this.

i did compare the vessel to 3 bbl kettles i see for sale; this is 44" high and 34" wide vs 61" height x 31" width of a brewery specific kettle... so this is actually fairly "square" compared to the one i see from stout tanks. i would like to have 2 elements in the tank, one above the other to help with a problem like this though.

for the mash tun, i found this link on you tube- almost identical to what i'm thinking. for hte false bottom, i like the simplicity and $ of the copper manifold- but i was kind of shocked to see it just "dropped' into the outlet? i would like you would be bypassing the actual manifold, even if only a little, by not having it physically connected to the outlet? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zt1OXoDbqGs

[kyle.carbaugh]

i would like you would be bypassing the actual manifold, even if only a little, by not having it physically connected to the outlet?

Since they're using the grant with the strainer in the video, it seems like there would only be a marginal amount of grist particulates that could pass through/by the manifold. I would think this wouldn't be too big of an issue so long as the manifold doesn't get displaced when stirring during mash in.

That being said, I have heard horror stories of a brewday at a local pub when the manifold in their mash tun got knocked out of position. Sounded like it created some problems and headaches, but it also sounded like it doesn't happen that frequently either.

Are you thinking of going with electric elements in the boil kettle?

[defenestrate]

Since they're using the grant with the strainer in the video, it seems like there would only be a marginal amount of grist particulates that could pass through/by the manifold. I would think this wouldn't be too big of an issue so long as the manifold doesn't get displaced when stirring during mash in.

That being said, I have heard horror stories of a brewday at a local pub when the manifold in their mash tun got knocked out of position. Sounded like it created some problems and headaches, but it also sounded like it doesn't happen that frequently either.

Are you thinking of going with electric elements in the boil kettle?

that make sense since its only gravity pulling out the mash... i see they are simply using a homebrew size kettle for their grant with a tri clamp fitting- i wouldn't mind rigging one of them up if it meant more peace of mind for draining the mash- i can't even think about a stuck mash @ 3 bbl as far as knocking it out of place, i can still make it a snug fit against the walls so i would really have to knock it to get it out of place.

yes electric elements in the kettle, i've been in contact with the Kevin @ brewmation for building a controller (out of my relm). i originally wanted to use bottom drains with the electric element to make cleaning/draining a breeze, but for the $ i'll make it work.

[kyle.carbaugh]

I've thought about constructing a brew system out of used dairy equipment just like what you're describing, but I can't settle on electric vs. gas with the sizing. If I was going to build something, I'd want to go upwards of 7 BBLs but I don't know if you could reasonably get to that level with electric elements -- I've seen somewhere that for a 7BBL kettle, you'd want 4 5500 watt elements to bring to a boil. That's a requirement of over 100 amps!

Curious if there's a specific reason why you're going for 3 BBLs as opposed to larger, and if anyone has any thoughts on max BK size for electric.

[defenestrate]

I've thought about constructing a brew system out of used dairy equipment just like what you're describing, but I can't settle on electric vs. gas with the sizing. If I was going to build something, I'd want to go upwards of 7 BBLs but I don't know if you could reasonably get to that level with electric elements -- I've seen somewhere that for a 7BBL kettle, you'd want 4 5500 watt elements to bring to a boil. That's a requirement of over 100 amps!

Curious if there's a specific reason why you're going for 3 BBLs as opposed to larger, and if anyone has any thoughts on max BK size for electric.

3 bbl is where i'm feeling comfortable for a nano opperation right now- its a fair compromise between batch size and output for the production i'm looking for. we may end up using 6 bbl fermenters and double batching (the price difference between the 2 is pretty un-rediculous).

[defenestrate]

hey guys... just found a 100 gallon insulated tank that would make a great MT for a killer deal- do you think this is too small for 3 bbl?

[defenestrate]

whats you're opinion on slant bottom tanks? i feel like this would make whirlpooling impossible (in regards to forming the hops in the center of the kettle for draining)... even at a 1 inch slope.

[froptus]

hey guys... just found a 100 gallon insulated tank that would make a great MT for a killer deal- do you think this is too small for 3 bbl?

Should definitely be large enough except for your high gravity brews but there are ways around that i.e. double mash, filling kettle lower, adding DME/candy sugar, etc. to kettle

[BonedaleBeer]

Does anyone have a good rule of thumb for height/width ratios for both Kettle and Mash Tun? I am looking into dairy tanks to retro-fit, or possibly getting them custom made locally. Looking to upgrade to 10BBL at least.

Also, what about perforated screen for the mash tun? Any good numbers for size of holes/offset/open area% and thickness?

Thanks for any info!

[roc-craven]

Does anyone have a good rule of thumb for height/width ratios for both Kettle and Mash Tun? I am looking into dairy tanks to retro-fit, or possibly getting them custom made locally. Looking to upgrade to 10BBL at least.

Also, what about perforated screen for the mash tun? Any good numbers for size of holes/offset/open area% and thickness?

Thanks for any info!

For a mash tun a 1:1 ratio would be best. 1:1.5 would be OK also. The shorter the grain bed the less chance you will get to much compaction. The boil kettle diameter will effect boil off. The larger the diam the more surface area for steam to boil off. I would think 1:1.5 to 1:2 would be a good range for sizing.

I'm no expert, but through my experience I found these to be good ratios.