Brewing equipment

[nordic man]

Hi all,

I would like some advice regarding what kind of equipment I should get to improve my home brew set. My set now is for brewing a kit, but I am interested in a more involving brewing experience. I would like to know what you wise people think of the best/reasonable priced equipment I should get. I guess I need a good pot/brewing kettle, have seen there is pots with no tap at the bottom(would that be a problem?), should I also get a false bottom for a pot?
Would like to use the full mash method eventually, but thinking it is a good idea to start using malt extract  a while first (or is this easy enough to start straight on the full mash method?) Been reading in the book Home Brew Beer, of Greg Hughes.

Hope to get some brilliant advice here 
I'm based in Clonakilty, so if anyone live close by I'm very interested in meeting up and get some advice!

[ColMack]

Your next bit of kit I would recommend would be a boiler bucket with an element (preferably two) and a tap.
This is ideal for stepping up to extract brewing and can be used as part of your all grain set up.
You can get a good 33L bucket from the homebrewcompany with tap for about €20.  A basic kettle from argos to remove the element is €7.
Drill a hole and fit the element.  It's a lot easier to drill a hole in a plastic bucket too.
A hop strainer is €11 or you could use muslin bags which are cheaper again.

[JD]

Rather than gutting a kettle, which would leave high voltages exposed, you could get a replacement kettle element from Charlie Shiels in Inchicore. There used to be a place on Hanover St in Cork that does household appliance repairs that had them as well. Not sure of their name or even if they're still there. It they are, they would also have a suitable lead as well.

Many brewers are also into making their own brewing kit. What you make depends on how involved you want to get. Those that are really serious about their kit make stuff from stainless steel. Many will re-purpose 'disused' 50L kegs. Many re-purpose various plastic products for their DIY kit.

If we're going down the plastics route, you need be aware of two factors. First, is the plastic food safe? There will usually be a food safety symbol embossed somewhere on the product that will indicate if it is food safe. The second thing to be aware of is the temperature range at which the plastic is stable and safe. Most food safe plastics will work at fermentation temperatures. Boiling wort, however will usually exceed 100^oC so you need to be a bit more careful here.

Assuming your still okay with plastics, the next stage in the brewing firmament is extract brewing. This just requires a vessel that can boil a full 21L batch of wort. Lots of guys do that by getting a 33L plastic fermentation bucket from one of the homebrew supplies, fitting the electric element and wrapping the lot in a bit of insulation (aluminised bubble-wrap and duct tape are available in B+Q and work very well).  This boiler will also need some sort of hop screen to stop hops from getting out of the boiler into the fermenter. Lots of guys use hop socks for this. These are just muslin bags that float around in the boiling wort. Bags work very well if you are using leaf hops. If you are using hop pellets, something finer may be needed like a very fine stainless steel mesh.

After that, you can upgrade to all-grain by following the boil-in-a-bag route, which needs no more vessels, or by going with the separate hot liquor tun and separate mash tun route. A hot liquor tun is a duplicate of your boiler without the hop screen. The mash tun is an insulated vessel that is used to soak grains for an hour or more. They vessel must hold the set temperature (61-69^oC) for the hour with only about a 1^oC loss over the hour. This vessel will need a means to drain as well. A lot of people guys use a picnic cooler for mashing. They make a manifold from perforated copper pipe and fit this on the inside floor of the mash tun. This is connected to a tap from which the mash liquor can be drained. 

Have a look at http://www.howtobrew.com/.  It has sections that deal with extract brewing and sections that deal with all-grain. There are appendices that show how to make a mash tun from a cooler as well.

/J

[belfastboozer]

liked the comment all grain brewing can be like driving a car i took a few attempts to pass hoping brewing isn't like driving a car

[nordic man]

Thanks for advice guys! I just ordered some stuff for my brewing, a 33L stainless steel pot, a immersion chiller and some bits and bobs:-) I'll wait a bit with the mashing tun, but get it later when I get comfortable using malt extrakt. Can't wait to start brewing !!

Frank

[DEMPSEY]

Learning to brew all grain is like learning about sex. Ye read the kama sutra from cover to cover and just when you think you know it all,there's more

[Ciderhead]

Note to diary avoid Mr D's Monkey Nut Brown ale, its has had something dipped in it that shouldn't have been.

[Will_D]

Note to diary avoid Mr D's Monkey Nut Brown ale, its has had something dipped in it that shouldn't have been.

from my knowledge of BJCP styles and "off-flavours":

Fishiness is NOT GOOD