CLT and HLT for 1 or 2bbl brewery

[mwears77]

Hello,

I had a question about whether or not I really need CLT and HLT tanks for brewery water storage for a brewery as small as 1 or 2 bbls? I'm thinking I can get away, without an HLT if I'm able to use a tankless hot water heater for "on demand" hot water. However I'm wondering if i'll still need the tanks in order to CIP the fermenters and brite tanks.

thanks

Matt Wears

[liljohn]

The HLT is great for capturing the water from your HX. I can’t imagine dumping 75 gallons of water down the drain with every batch. CLT -> HX -> HLT -> Mashin/Sparge You maybe be able to forgo the CLT and use house cold water depending on its temp.

[augiedoggy]

I agree with liljohn plus its easier to treat the water and add minerals and salts in the HLT... during the summer we use all our water from chilling for cleaning and still have extra to use for the next brew session after the chorimine dissapates. in the long run I think the HLT might make more sense financially depending on water costs

[UnFermentable]

My suggestion would be to skip both the HLT & CLT in the beginning. Go with hot water on demand (Noritz or other commercial quality), skip CLT for another fermenter (that can double as a CLT when empty). You will probably only really need CLT for lagers anyhow. You can almost always CIP the fermenters and brewhouse without a secondary tank. Use the conical or kettle as the reservoir.

You will have low enough flow demands on an on-demand system that you can mash in and sparge directly. Salts can be pre-dissolved in a pitcher or corney keg and added to mash, boil, sparge etc.

Capture your KO water for reuse by filling an empty fermenter, or maybe consider a non-jacketed 1-2bbl open top CIP liquid holding vessel for CIP loops. This type of vessel is great for CIP/SIP, but also could be potentially used as a hop-back, or grant, among other things. It’s also typically much cheaper than a jacketed or closed top vessel.

Yes, in a perfect world I would opt for both an HLT and a CLT, however at your size I would not consider it a wise financial investment yet.

Just my $0.02.

[murmsk]

we use all RO water due to really high mineral content of our water. We run the ro into a tank in the basement then pump thru an on demand WH that has the ability to produce 180deg water into the MT where minerals are added. It has worked well for 10 years. We dont have to wait for water to warm up flow is plenty to sparge.

steve

[murmsk]

we use all RO water due to really high mineral content of our water. We run the ro into a tank in the basement then pump thru an on demand WH that has the ability to produce 180deg water into the MT where minerals are added. It has worked well for 10 years. We dont have to wait for water to warm up flow is plenty to sparge.

steve