thoughts on 5 gallon igloo/false bottom for 3 gallon batches

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by king_harvest, Mar 23, 2014.

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  1. king_harvest

    king_harvest Initiate (0) Mar 23, 2014

    Hi, guys. I am returning to the world of homebrewing after a 3 year hiatus, and I am reacquiring the equipment I need. Since I won't be brewing with a partner and won't have a dedicated person to be sharing the beer with (and I will be starting a PhD in the fall and won't have as much time to drink anyway...), I am planning on solely brewing 3 gallon batches for the near future (i.e. next few years). In my past brewing life, I never did any AG batches at 3 gallons, so I am curious whether people have generally found a 5 gallon igloo to be large enough for mashing 3 gallons of even very large beers. Thanks in advance. Cheers.
     
  2. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    Not enough info to answer your question. But it all boils down to how much grain and what water to grist ratio.
    See the Can I Mash It calculator at this link...

    http://www.rackers.org/calcs.shtml
     
  3. AlCaponeJunior

    AlCaponeJunior Grand Pooh-Bah (3,452) May 21, 2010 Texas
    Society Pooh-Bah

    I do five gallon batches with a five gallon cylindrical water cooler. No false bottom, just a bazooka tube. Works like a champ. Some limitation on how big a beer can be made without lowering overall batch size (generally anything 7.5% or higher needs either adjustment to ratios and sparge technique, or lowering of batch size). So a five gallon cooler should work like a champ for three gallon batches. If you are making beers so big that a five gallon cooler can't mash them, NASA would like to speak with you about a job in their rocket fuel division. :rolling_eyes:
     
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  4. king_harvest

    king_harvest Initiate (0) Mar 23, 2014

    Thanks guys. Very helpful.
     
  5. Applecrew135

    Applecrew135 Crusader (431) Jul 18, 2012 Pennsylvania

    Assuming an efficiency or 75%, it's possible you could reach 1.110 OG for a 3-gallon batch with 12 lbs of grain. Is that big enough?:wink:

    YMMV, but the point is, you could do a pretty big beer!
     
  6. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    I wonder how many people could get 75% mash efficiency with a 1.110 wort without oversparging the bejesus out of it.
     
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  7. Applecrew135

    Applecrew135 Crusader (431) Jul 18, 2012 Pennsylvania

    No arguments here. Just pointing out that a big beer is possible. There are a number of factors that would affect the actual yield. I agree that a 1.110 would be pretty optimistic in the real world. But how big does the OP want to go?
     
  8. jncastillo87

    jncastillo87 Initiate (0) Jan 27, 2013 Texas

    I have made a few 1.075 4 gallon batches and the sparge was at the top of the cooler but it worked. 5 gallon recipes for 1.055 or so are easy without cramming. I love the 5 gallon cooler I have but it wouldnt be a bad idea to get the 10 gallon if OP wants to make high gravity or obviously 6 gallon or bigger batches.
     
  9. Xul

    Xul Pooh-Bah (2,139) May 18, 2008 California
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    I use a 9 gallon Coleman Extreme cooler for 3 gallon batches (3.5 gallons into fermenter and ~3 gallons into kegs/bottles) and I've been quite happy with it. You'll be fine with a 5 gallon cooler for most beers, but the few times I've done high gravity brews, I've been quite happy to have the extra space. Low gravity beers don't really suffer with the extra headspace (I might lose an extra degree per hour), but the thing holds temperature so well that extra space isn't really an issue.
     
  10. king_harvest

    king_harvest Initiate (0) Mar 23, 2014

    1.110 is well above what I was thinking of making, haha.
     
  11. HerbMeowing

    HerbMeowing Maven (1,295) Nov 10, 2010 Virginia
    Trader

    My batch size is 2.5G.
    My mash tun with a SS braid is 5G.

    I brew a 13% ABV barleywine every year.
     
  12. HerbMeowing

    HerbMeowing Maven (1,295) Nov 10, 2010 Virginia
    Trader

    Depends on what efficiency is being measured...right?

    75% extract efficiency...no problem (actually a little low)
    75% brewhouse...not so much. More like 60% (65% with a tail wind).
     
  13. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    I was actually talking about Mash Efficiency, which is neither of those (but generally closer to brewhouse), but I agree.
     
  14. telejunkie

    telejunkie Savant (1,107) Sep 14, 2007 Vermont

    i'd say it's perfect. What are fermenting in? 5 gallon carboys?
     
  15. king_harvest

    king_harvest Initiate (0) Mar 23, 2014

    I have one 3-gallon carboy and a 5-gallon carboy.
     
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