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Author Topic: HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?  (Read 6482 times)

Offline Jeff M

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HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?
« on: June 14, 2014, 06:56:41 am »
Anyone out there have a formula to estimate how much a gallon of wort weights?  I understand it will vary depending on density of sugars per gallon.  Id like a base line of 1.060 but can always scale it up with the formula.

People may wonder why i need to know how much a gallon of wort weighs.  Im building a coldroom for the 1BBL fermenter i have coming from Bru-gear.  Id like it to not break the floor of the cold room when filled with 31 gallons of 1.095 beer.

Cheers,
Jeff
« Last Edit: June 14, 2014, 07:12:22 am by Jeff M »
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Offline klickitat jim

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Re: HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?
« Reply #1 on: June 14, 2014, 07:14:08 am »
Its not different enough from water that it would break a normal concrete floor where that amount of regular water would not.

Offline tommymorris

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HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?
« Reply #2 on: June 14, 2014, 07:26:42 am »
According to Beersmith Mobile, 1 gallon of wort at 1060 SG weighs 8.85 pounds.

Offline Jeff M

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Re: HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?
« Reply #3 on: June 14, 2014, 07:27:33 am »
That makes a certain amount of sense Jim since 2 lbs of dme in a gallon of water will make a little over a gallon of 1.070ish wort.  I had assumed about 10lbs per G and another 100lb for the conical.

The coldroom floor will be built out of 2x4 and plywood since the concrete slab it will be built on is not insulated.  The conical has 3 legs(maybe 4) and has a diameter of 20 inches.  So it sounds like i need to use 5/8ths plywood and probably 15inch spaced studs to ensure an even load.  Even with that ill probably put a 2x2 square of plywood under each conical just to make sure nothing happens.  Probably over engineered, but id rather not have a catastrophic failure with 30G of labor and love inside.

Cheers,
Jeff
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Offline duboman

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Re: HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?
« Reply #4 on: June 14, 2014, 07:47:38 am »
Personally I would construct using 3/4" plywood with 12" centered studs. I would also do the square piece with an additional 3/4" . Wood, over time will expand and contract with the seasons and will most likely begin to sag with the weight. A near 400# full vessel in a concentrated space is a petty hefty load
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Offline klickitat jim

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Re: HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?
« Reply #5 on: June 14, 2014, 07:49:37 am »
Think PSI too. (Not psi in the vessel but on the floor) Meaning, How big are the feet on the conical legs?

Offline gmac

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Re: HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?
« Reply #6 on: June 14, 2014, 08:18:06 am »
1/4 inch plywood on 36 inch centres so that you have a story to tell.

If my freezer, (on rollers so the weight isnt that spread out )with a half beef isn't going through my regular floor, I'm sure that this won't either. Or a bath tub full of water and my fat arse. If you are really concerned, put a square of 1/2 inch plywood under it to spread the weight out but I expect you will be fine with regular construction specs.

Offline duboman

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Offline AmandaK

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Re: HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?
« Reply #8 on: June 14, 2014, 09:10:01 am »
From Wikipedia: A US liquid gallon of water weighs about 8.34 pounds or 3.78 kilograms at 62 °F (17 °C).

Water is 1.000, so if you have a 1.060 wort you will need to multiply 8.34 by 1.060 to get your weight.

Alternatively, if you just need a quick and dirty estimate, 8.5 ppg would be easy for mental math.
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Offline Jimmy K

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Re: HOw much does a gallon of wort weigh?
« Reply #9 on: June 14, 2014, 09:33:34 pm »
I would use 10ppg. You won't be wanting to cut it close anyway and it's super easy.

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