[jimmykx250]

I brew via biab and battle heat loss when mashing with my alum kettle. I am wondering am i better off going to a keg conversion or just build a mash tun? Would stainless hold the heat better?

[yso191]

The easiest, cheapest way which really holds temperature is a cooler mash tun.  Check here: http://hbd.org/cascade/dennybrew/

[hopfenundmalz]

I brew via biab and battle heat loss when mashing with my alum kettle. I am wondering am i better off going to a keg conversion or just build a mash tun? Would stainless hold the heat better?

Stainless won't give you a noticeable difference.

[jimmykx250]

So if i go to a cooler I can still use a bag to hold the grains just use the cooler to hold temp and the liquid. With
BIAB i dont sparge and i like the beer i produce. Am i missing out on something with the whole sparge process?
Thanks

[klickitat jim]

So if i go to a cooler I can still use a bag to hold the grains just use the cooler to hold temp and the liquid. With
BIAB i dont sparge and i like the beer i produce. Am i missing out on something with the whole sparge process?
Thanks

You could get one with a false bottom, ditch the bag, do everything else the same.

[Stevie]

...or a hose braid

[klickitat jim]

Even better

[hopfenundmalz]

Got an old sleeping bag? Put it around the Aluminum Kettle while you mash.

[HoosierBrew]

Got an old sleeping bag? Put it around the Aluminum Kettle while you mash.

Yep, I still put a sleeping bag around my cooler even.

[jimmykx250]

I have tried wrapping the Alum pot with a blanket during mash but still seem to fight temp loss big time. I really like the simplicity of the BIAB way but it seems that if i get a cooler I may as well jump in the three vessel way.

[Jimmy K]

How much heat are you loosing? Since you have more water than needed for mashing, you could hold some water back and add it as boiling water to maintain temperature. Heat the water up in a electric pot or a kitchen pan.

[jimmykx250]

How much heat are you loosing? Since you have more water than needed for mashing, you could hold some water back and add it as boiling water to maintain temperature. Heat the water up in a electric pot or a kitchen pan.

It drops around 5 to 8 degrees then i hit the burner usually around 4 times during the one hour mash

[denny]

So if i go to a cooler I can still use a bag to hold the grains just use the cooler to hold temp and the liquid. With
BIAB i dont sparge and i like the beer i produce. Am i missing out on something with the whole sparge process?
Thanks

You're missing out on some efficiency by not sparging.  But if you don't want to sparge, you can build a cooler mash tun and still do no sparge.

[pete b]

What's your batch size? If its 5 gallons or more I would just go with batch sparging in a cooler. I do <5 gallons biab (usually 2.5 gal) and anything 5 gallons+ batch sparging with a converted cooler.

[jimmykx250]

What's your batch size? If its 5 gallons or more I would just go with batch sparging in a cooler. I do <5 gallons biab (usually 2.5 gal) and anything 5 gallons+ batch sparging with a converted cooler.

Batch size is 5 gallons but im starting to think of going to a mash tun and possibly doing larger batches. Ive been brewing via BIAB since may and have learned so much and have made some pretty decent beers as well but time isn't on my side. Brew days are pretty hard to get an am thinking 10 gal batches might make more sense. Still trying to figure it all out. I will need a new kettle and cooler and most likely a new burner. Look for another post on this forum regarding the dark star burner i bought.