Ghetto Mash Tun

[noggins]

I have a cooler, I wanna mash in it, I don't wanna permanently convert it to an HLT, and it's really nasty inside. Should I:

a) Just clean and sanitize it the best I can and hope for the best
b) Do brew-in-a-bag with the kettle inside the cooler to maintain temp
c) Line the cooler with a garbage bag, and biab mash inside that
d) Quit being dumb and just keep mashing in the biab kettle until I can afford an HLT

 

[noggins]

By not converting it, I would basically be mashing in-a-bag using my giant cheesecloth grain bag and letting it sit inside the cooler, or inside the garbage bag inside the cooler, or inside the kettle inside the cooler.

 

[HexKrak]

I'd keep biab until you can spend the $40-$60 to build yourself a dedicated tun.

 

[noggins]

That's it huh? Noone else has tried to mash-in-a-bag-in-a-bag-in-a-cooler? or mash-in-a-bag-in-a-kettle-in-a-cooler? I don't buy that.

 

[hillhousesawdustco]

Is there something particularly awesome about this "really nasty" cooler that you'd want to risk messing up your brews for?

Also, i think there are threads somewhere about using garbage bags, you probably know this but be sure they are food grade or they can leach some nasty crap into your wort.

 

[noggins]

Nothing awesome about the cooler, come to think of it I have 2 coolers, but both have frequented fishing trips to the beach..

I really just had such a hard time maintaining temp on my last(first) biab AG attempt, I wanna find a better way then having to constantly adjust heat on the stove, and can't think of any reason why sticking the kettle inside the cooler wouldn't work...as long as it doesn't melt the cooler

 

[strat_thru_marshall]

define "really nasty".

Why not just spend $39 @ home depot for a 10 gallon cooler you can use as a full time mash tun? Do you really need to use "really nasty" to make your beer in?

 

[noggins]

I'll be getting a free hand-me-down mash tun in a few months and have no reason to spend money on one now...just looking for a temporary way to improve my efficiency.

 

[noggins]

...gonna play around with an aluminum pot full of 150° water in the cooler tomorrow to see how well it works, or if anything happens to the cooler or the pot.

 

[Hex]

Just mash in your kettle on the stove top and put it in the oven for the rests...we don't need no stinkin' plastic!

 

[lumpher]

don't mash in a trash bag. they not only contain nasty chemicals, but at sustained high temps, toxins

 

[seabass07]

It seems like the only possible benefit of using this cooler would be to maintain temp. Why not just do what you're doing now but insulate the kettle? I see no reason to put the kettle in the cooler. Seems pointless to me when you could just bring the water to temp then wrap the kettle and shut off the heat.

 

[noggins]

Just mash in your kettle on the stove top and put it in the oven for the rests...we don't need no stinkin' plastic!

k, should I preheat the oven to 150 or just throw it in?

 

[IrregularPulse]

I'd preheat the oven. Check to make sure it fits before the brew day. I know my pots would never fit in my oven.

 

[OsbornBrewing]

and it's really nasty inside.

d) Quit being dumb and just keep mashing in the biab kettle until I can afford an HLT

Sounds like a whole lot problems from the get go.

 

[noggins]

I'm revisiting this topic after another near disaster on my last batch...temp fluctuated from 140-170 while trying to mash at consistent temp on electric stove.

2 of my 3 pots fit fine in the oven, but when the pot is only filled with 3 gallons of water, the oven rack starts to bend downward like it's gonna break so....I didn't even consider putting it in there when it was full of water and grains..

anyone else have a good temporary solution to offer? I don't remember getting an answer on putting the kettle directly in the cooler?

Should I just quit asking and do it, then report back?

 

[Hex]

I guess every oven is different, mine's natural gas. My 9 gal kettle fits on the bottom of my oven, without the racks in, and yes, I pre-heat it to 150f. I have also seen people who take the mash kettle and set it on the floor on some blankets, and then wrap the corners over for the rests. There is a great advantage to direct-fire step-mashing in the kettle, and that is stirring. Constant stirring while ramping between rests seems to be the way to achieve the greatest extract efficiency. Just look to the commercial breweries mash tuns with auto-stir mechanisms. Good luck with your project, I hope you find your own way and develop it to your own satisfaction, like I am trying with mine.

 

[hillhousesawdustco]

that sucks about your oven rack....i mean can you even cook a turkey on a rack that can't support three gallons of water? for all this work i might just keep mashing in the biab on the stove with a decent thermometer and an eye on the heat.

 

[seabass07]

Just wrap the kettle in reflectix after the water is hot enough. That should help. If you don't want to do that, then just keep messing with the burner setting until it's low enough to just maintain the temp. It should be pretty low.