Mash/Lauter Tun

I finally got around to brewing another batch. Basically, I've been trying to figure out the best way to switch to all grain. I decided on converting a cooler into a mash/lauter tun. I went to the brew shop hoping to get some advice and find some parts.

The basic concept of the mash/lauter tun is to "mash" the grains in hot water for an hour. After mashing the grain in the mash tun, you drain (or lauter) the wort into the brewpot. Commercial breweries do this with a separate mash tun and lauter tun. With a modified cooler, you can do both.

I was prepared to spend about $50 on a cooler and $50 on the modifications. Luckily, the guy at the brewshop showed me an easy way to do the modification for $1.50.

I bought a 58 gallon Coleman rectangular cooler. Then put 3/8" tubing through the drain with a stopcock on the outside - then another length of tubing long enough to get to your kettle. On the inside you take a copper or stainless scouring pad and wrap it around the end of the tube - affixed with a rubberband. This is basically going to keep the grain out of the tube and allow only the wort to drain.

It took about 15 minutes to get the cooler set up. Surprisingly it passed the leak test without a drop. I will probably upgrade this after another batch or two - but for $1.50 - its a cheap way to get started in all grain.