Hey,
Just started brewing. Got a couple of 25L FVs, and the basic kit, plus bottle washing equipment. I want to move to extract and eventually AG, have some questions:
Why are some FVs 33L, are they for 25L brew lengths? Is a 25L FV only for 19L brew length?
My confusion stems from, I have been told from a friend doing AG, the boil is quite large (and can boil over), so you want something like a 50L pot if possible. Why then, are all electric boilers (electrim, brupak) only 25L, not something like 35L-50L?
I'm reading "How to Brew", and for extracts he recommends a 4+ gallon stockpot. Of course, big stockpots like that, especially stainless, can run upwards of £100, so it seems like a waste if I am going to move to AG, why not just get an electric boiler for £75 (if I can use for both extract and AG, that is), then just sort out cooling coils and mash tun when I decide to do AG.
Hopefully that makes sense.
I guess I'm just confused about what I need to get, when going from kit->extract->AG, and what can be re-used by each process (other than basic kit).
Cheers.
Wanting to move to extract/AG, have kit questions
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staplefordbill
Re: Wanting to move to extract/AG, have kit questions
I'd say yes. My boiler is 33L which is perfect for 25L brew lengths. After sparging I have just over 30 litres of wort; after boiling around or just under 25. The boil can be very vigorous, especially near the beginning, so headroom reduces the risk of a boilover.Why are some FVs 33L, are they for 25L brew lengths? Is a 25L FV only for 19L brew length?
Lot of people here use electric boilers, whether bought from a shop or home made. They're a good bet. Eventually you could get a stainless steel pot although I haven't bothered. The boiler will work fine for extract and AG brewing - just remember to fit a hop strainer.why not just get an electric boiler for £75 (if I can use for both extract and AG, that is), then just sort out cooling coils and mash tun when I decide to do AG.
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Kev888
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Re: Wanting to move to extract/AG, have kit questions
Yes, smaller boilers can be a pain, for AG you would normally boil vigorously for an hour or an hour and a half and really I don't want to be watching it every second to catch boil-overs.
Ideally you need to allow room for the final brew length that you want, any dead space in the bottom of the boiler, the amount of liquid that the hops can take up and retain (sometimes quite significant on hoppy recipies), losses of say 15% to evaporation during the boil, shrinkage of say 4% when the hot wort cools and contracts and then some headroom to stop the vigorous boil escaping out the top. (EDIT: if you use an immersion chiller that can displace volume too, but unless you've been topping up during the boil enough space will typically have been created due to evaporation).
There are ways around having smaller boilers, like topping up during the boil or brewing stronger and diluting in the FV but if you have the choice then its simpler to just get a big enough boiler. You could easily need over 30L + some headroom at the start of the boil to end up with 23L in the FV.
Electric boilers work well for extract brews as they do for AG brews, as do gas boilers/pots in fact, people do boil AG brews in big pots on their hobbs - spanning all four burners for example. Its more a scale thing really, within whats practicable the gas hob vs gas burner vs electric choice is largely a separate issue. Extract brews can manage more easily with smaller pots which is why you often see them recomended for extract, but bigger ones are fine if you have the space so in my view there's no harm planning ahead. The IC is normally a separate affair thats just dunked in, so there's no reason why you need one now if you're only stepping up to extract for the mo - indeed many people don't use them in AG but rely on natural cooling. Conversely it can be used in extract brewing too, so there's no reason to wait for AG to get one if you don't want to.
Cheers,
Kev
Ideally you need to allow room for the final brew length that you want, any dead space in the bottom of the boiler, the amount of liquid that the hops can take up and retain (sometimes quite significant on hoppy recipies), losses of say 15% to evaporation during the boil, shrinkage of say 4% when the hot wort cools and contracts and then some headroom to stop the vigorous boil escaping out the top. (EDIT: if you use an immersion chiller that can displace volume too, but unless you've been topping up during the boil enough space will typically have been created due to evaporation).
There are ways around having smaller boilers, like topping up during the boil or brewing stronger and diluting in the FV but if you have the choice then its simpler to just get a big enough boiler. You could easily need over 30L + some headroom at the start of the boil to end up with 23L in the FV.
Electric boilers work well for extract brews as they do for AG brews, as do gas boilers/pots in fact, people do boil AG brews in big pots on their hobbs - spanning all four burners for example. Its more a scale thing really, within whats practicable the gas hob vs gas burner vs electric choice is largely a separate issue. Extract brews can manage more easily with smaller pots which is why you often see them recomended for extract, but bigger ones are fine if you have the space so in my view there's no harm planning ahead. The IC is normally a separate affair thats just dunked in, so there's no reason why you need one now if you're only stepping up to extract for the mo - indeed many people don't use them in AG but rely on natural cooling. Conversely it can be used in extract brewing too, so there's no reason to wait for AG to get one if you don't want to.
Cheers,
Kev
Kev