This caught my eye at the NHC expo. It’s expensive, I don’t need it, it won’t improve my beer or make my brewday easier or faster, but I want it all the same.
http://www.ssbrewtech.com/collections/mash-tuns/products/infussion-mash-tun
I have one of their conical fermenters. Its Amazing!
That thing looks pretty nice. Looks well made. Like you say, I don’t need it. But I do like it, alot.
[quote]Ever worry about putting very hot water in plastic?
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Nope. And I don’t see a reason to use stainless pre-boil when it doesn’t matter and in a form where you can’t direct fire it.
Seriously, buy a cooler. There are so many other places to spend money in homebrewing.
Nope. And I don’t see a reason to use stainless pre-boil when it doesn’t matter and in a form where you can’t direct fire it.
Seriously, buy a cooler. There are so many other places to spend money in homebrewing.
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FWIW, I’m not switching off of coolers any time soon. Probably never will. It’s just a cool shiny object that I won’t buy.
I agree that coolers are fine; I’ve been mashing in one for almost 10 years.
The only thing that I do not like about the SSBT mash tun is the EPDM (it looks like EPDM) gasket around the false bottom. However, it is made in China, and I have yet to encounter a Chinese-made stockpot that is as close to being perfectly round as a Vollrath or Polar Brew stockpot. The gasket is more than likely there to accommodate less precise manufacturing tolerances.
With that said, if they are close to being perfectly round, More Beer’s new BrewBuilt kettles are an amazing deal. They have the nicest non-robotic TIG welds that I have ever seen on a brewing kettle. They have a rolled edge at the top. The weld on the inside of the kettle is perfectly flush. I have loved every Polar Ware Brew Pot that I have owned. They were the first home brewing kettles to ship from the factory with welded fittings, but the lid handle design was made with stacking in mind, not removing when hot.
I actually liked the gasket. It gave the false bottom a very snug fit. According to the website, it is silicone (though I admit that I do not yet know the difference between silicone and EDPM).
Those new More Beer kettles do like nice. I’m just not in the market for a new kettle.
I just can’t get my head around using a cooler for full contact with what I am going to drink. I know, it is perhaps an OCD type thing but I would imagine plastic chemicals leaching into my beer, and could never enjoy it.
As a consequence of that and the need to insulate because in the winter my Blichmann MT does NOT hold temperature. I bought one of these: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/958078058/chapman-homebrew-equipment-mash-tuns-fermenters-ke/description in a 15 gallon size.
The problem I saw with the SSBT and the other (More Beer?) Stainless insulate MT are that they are too small.
Steve, I know you…you’re an intelligent guy. Trust science. Do some research for yourself.
Its not about science Denny. Like I said its an OCD thing. Call it imagination or emotional. But no, I just couldn’t.
Coolers are lined with polypropylene. Polypropylene is good to 240F. It has a melting point that is above 300F.
The false bottom does not have to fit snugly against the walls because the largest pieces are usually on the bottom of the mash bed. The false bottom can be up to a 1/16th of a inch smaller than the inside diameter of the tun without any major problems. The problem with Chinese products is that they are usually more than a 1/16th of an inch out of round.