BIAC Package Contents

The BIAC is comprised of just two vessels—a conical fermenter (3-in-1 conical fermentor or 4-in-1 conical fermentor) and an insert (Mash Colander) to hold grain for mashing. (To expand a brewery, one just needs to add additional BIAC fermenters, the one Mash Colander can be used in each fermenter on brew day.) The 'Microbrewery BIAC' is available in all sizes. The 'Homebrewery' BIAC is only available in the three smallest sizes.

There are just two differences between the Homebrewery and the Microbrewery BIAC.

all in one complete brewery

First, for the Homebrewery BIACs, the conical fermenter is the '3-in-1' (can handle pressures up to 3psi internally—enough for using CO2 to push beer into kegs—and 5psi in the jacket for chilling water) whereas for the Microbrewery BIACs, the conical fermenter is the '5-in-1'(can handle up to 14.9psi internally in the vessel—the jacket is rated for 7psi).

Second, for the Homebrewery BIACs the 'Mash Colander' (the removable insert that holds the grain) has a perforated bottom (1/8" diameter holes) whereas for the Microbrewery BIACs, the 'Mash Colander' has a wedge wire bottom (which is made of inverted 2mm triangle-shaped wire with 0.75mm spacing; it has about 30% more open area than a perforated bottom and is more common on commercial systems).

The vessels come with clamps, gaskets, hose barb fittings, high-quality sanitary valves and casters (three 100kg load rated galvanized casters for fermenters up to 100L/25gal and four 600kg stainless steel casters for the larger fermenters). Additional supporting hardware and accessories can be purchased either as part of the 'Basic' or 'Complete' pre-assembled kits on the BIAC Package page or added to your cart individually from the Brewing Accessories page. 



The 'Basic Accessories Kit' and 'Complete Accessories Kit' include the following:

 

  1. A Power Control Box controller provides safe, accurate and variable output control of 240V power for heating. The Small 5 Gallon 20L BIAC (120V) does not come with a power output controller and has on/off control only provided by the ETC. A 240V/30A Aluminum Tabletop Controller is included with the Small 5 Gallon 20L BIAC (240V) and it is standard with the Medium and Large BIAC system. Two Aluminum Tabletop Power Control Boxes are included with the 1.5BBL 'Basic Accessories' package. A single large splash-proof, fan-cooled, wall-mounted, programmable touch screen controller is included with the 1.5BBL 'Complete' brewhouse brewery, and 3BBL brewhouse brewery, 5BBL brewhouse brewery and 7BBL brewhouse brewery systems. Customers can purchase individual power controllers for independent heating of multiple fermenters (this setup can be useful for providing a heating source during fermentation for warm fermenting beers, whereas one single controller will not independently control multiple fermenters at the same time; keep power output below 3% during fermentation to ensure yeast is not scorched).  
  2. Heating element assembly for heating. A1500W/120V with Small; 2000W/240V with the Small (240V); 4500W/240V with Medium; 5500W/240V with Large; two 5500W (208 or 240V) with the 1.5BBL system; four 5500W (208 or 240V) with the 3BBL BIAC, six 5500W (208 or 240V) with the 5BBL BIAC and five 9500W/208V with the 7BBL BIAC; all 208-240V assemblies have a short power cord attached to the element and a 12' extension.
  3. Pump System for circulating water and wort. Includes a USA made March centrifugal pump and high quality braided silicone hoses and fittings that will provide fantastic performance, longevity and easy disassembly for cleaning (Small, Medium and Large systems include the March 815-SS-C; the larger systems all come with the TE-7S-MD pump).
  4. Electronic Temperature Controller for precise regulation of fermentation temperature through control of the Temperature Control Valve, Heating Element via the Aluminum Tabletop Controller, or a pump connected to a chilling source such as the Water, Beer and Wort Chiller; includes the sensor and sensor cable for use with the Power Control Box.
  5. Hop Baskets make adding pelletized hops or containing and removing whole leaf boil hops super easy as well as providing an easy means for sanitary dry hopping (added to fermenter after primary fermentation is complete for improving the hop aroma in beer); the 1.5BBL and larger systems include a Hop Spider
  6. Water Pressure Regulator can help protect your investment from damage due to overpressure by limiting water pressure into the jacket to 5psi; needs to be adjusted to 5psi; never restrict jacket exit in any way (Note: The 1/4" regulator is limited to about 10L/minute and 5BBL and 7BBL customers may want faster flow rate when chilling exclusively with tap water for reduced chilling time in which case a low pressure 1/2" (or larger) regulator could be purchased (from plumbing supplier) and installed on the wall on the main feed line for jackets) 
  7. Pressure and Vacuum Safety Relief Valve is attached to one of the two lid ports on the fermentor and relieves pressure when it gets too high and breaks a vacuum inside the main portion of the vessel preventing damage (Warning: DO NOT use in place of a blow off hose as krausen may plug the vent)

 

The 'Complete Accessories Kit' also includes the following (additional items can be added to the cart from the 'Accessories' page, or a complete kit assembled on the 'Build Your Own' page):

  1. A splash-proof, fan-cooled, wall-mounted, programmable, Touch Screen controller is included with all Complete systems (other than the Small 120V BIAC).
  2. Aluminum Pump Cart provides easy portability and positioning for your pump, as well as offering a convenient location for fitting, hose and cord storage.
  3. CIP Cleaning Assembly can be inserted in a vessel lid port for cleaning. It has a rotating self-cleaning spray ball through which hot water with cleaner can be pumped to wash down the inside walls. (Adjustment of stem length may be required to achieve proper spray radius.)
  4. Flow Meter (measures in Liters) automatically calculates how much water you are adding. This can be especially useful for calculating sparge volume. 
  5. Hose Float helps the hose returning wort into the Mash Colander to stay floating at the top and not sink down into the grain bed
  6. Keg Racking Transfer Hose for racking beer from the fermenter to a keg (includes a 1/4" hose and ball lock connector for Small, Medium and Large systems, and a 1/2" hose and Sanke D coupler and stainless shutoff with 1.5BBL, 3BBL, 5BBL and 7BBL systems)
  7. Fermenter Gas in Post with ball lock gas connector to add CO2 to the fermenter
  8. Kink-Resistant High-Temperature Food-Grade Braided Silicone Hose for taking water away from the jacket. If a hose kinks, it can cause pressure to build up in the jacket, deforming the vessel (2m/6' of 0.25" and 0.5"ID hose is included and useful for any number of applications).
  9. Mash Colander Lifting Cables when used with an overhead hoist facilitates removing the Mash Colander from the 3-in-1 and 4-in-1; the 1.5BBL, 3BBL, 5BBL and 7BBL BIACs come with a stainless steel Lifting Beam, stainless shackles and hooks.
  10. Temperature Control Valve for regulating flow of chilling/warming water into the fermenter jacket to control fermenter temperature (it is recommended to have a high quality Kink-Resistant Hose attached to the jacket exit port, and a Water Pressure Regulator attached to the hose on jacket inlet, so that pressure does not build up in the jacket and damage the vessel. Care still needs to be taken to ensure pressure does not exceed 3psi in the vessel body or 5psi in the 3-in-1 vessel jacket and 14.9psi in body and 7.5psi in the 4-in-1 vessel jacket.)
  11. Mash Mixer attaches to an electric drill (drill not included) for easy mixing of mash 
  12. Wort Aeration Stone when used with an air pump or oxygen cylinder to add oxygen to wort prior to pitching yeast
  13. Valve Upgrade provides a larger valve for the bottom of the Medium and Large fermenters for easier dumping of yeast and hops 
  14. Grain Bag for easy loading of grain into the Colander using an overhead hoist (included with 1.5BBL, 3BBL, 5BBL and 7BBL packages only; can be purchased separately on the Accessories page for other sizes)

 

The following items are not included in either kit but can be added to the cart separately:

  1. Keg Washer/Cleaner can be used in a sink, or placed inside a Large BREWHA fermenter and use the heating element in the fermenter to heat sanitize kegs (chemical-free sanitation)
  2. Water Chiller is a very versatile 120V chiller that can finish chilling wort after boil if municipal water is too warm to get temperature low enough (in larger systems where a larger volume of cold water is needed a cold-liquor tank may be required), regulate fermentation temperature by pumping chilling water through the jacket of the BIAC (3-in-1 or 4-in-1 fermenters), as well as chill the beer lines when serving beer from a keg (AS110 model only). There are two models to choose from—the AS110 has a single circulation pump, 3000BTU chilling capacity, and two stainless beer coils. The AS200 has two circulation pumps (two ETC temperature controllers monitoring the temperature on two separate fermenters can turn on each pump when necessary; ETC not included), and 6500BTU chilling capacity. Customers are encouraged to consider the AS200 for 1.5BBL and larger systems, with multiple fermenters, or in environments where there may be slightly higher ambient temperatures. A convenient utility cart can also be purchased with the Chiller, facilitating easy positioning and operation of the Chiller and providing a convenient cart for storage and ready access of brewing hardware such as clamps and fittings.
  3. Distillation Assembly will allow you to recover the ethanol from a bad batch of beer (or wine...or whatever else you might be fermenting). Purchase by itself, or as a complete package with a Reducing Tee Assembly for monitoring temperature, and high temperature Chilling Water Hoses for connecting chilling water to the condenser jacket.
  4. Neoprene Jacket helps insulate the vessel; especially useful for fermenters stored in garages or other uninsulated buildings, or for use during cold crashing to get your beer close to freezing temperature (without the jacket the chillers fight your room temperature which keeps the beer temperature a few degrees warmer).
  5. Yeast Harvester provides an easy, sanitary means to capture and safely store 300mL/10oz of yeast until next brew day; or can be used with a valve on the lid for purging before injecting late addition/dry hops or adjuncts.
  6. Side Blow Off Hose Assembly particularly helpful with the 1.5BBL and larger tanks, this assembly allows the brewer to have easier access to the blow-off port by bring it closer to the ground. 
  7. Portable, Insulated Hot Liquor Tank with heater ports (great for pre-heating sparge water and being able to add salts). 585L/160USG recommended for 3-7BBL, 1170L/320USG recommended for 15BBL
  8. Portable, Insulated, Stratifying Hot or Cold Liquor Tank is recommended when the brewery tap water temperature is too warm for effective chilling. If your tap water is not at least 10°C/20°F below your yeast pitching temperature, connect up to two of our 6500BTU chiller(s) to this insulated, jacketed tank overnight to produce a large reservoir of near freezing water to complete the entire chill with the Plate Chiller, or to finish the chill if using the fermentor jacket. (For example, if you want to pitch yeast at 20°C/70°F and your tap water is 20°C/70°F (which is too warm to bring the wort down to 20°C/70°F in a reasonable time), first run tap water through your fermenter jacket to bring your wort down to around 30°C/90°F and then connect this tank to your fermenter jacket to bring the wort the rest of the way down to 20°C/70°F). Two liquid-tight temperature sensors are included (but ETC temperature controllers are not included as customers generally will ‘borrow’ one from a fermenter; if additional ETCs are desired they can be added, just let us know It has two independent, vertical jacket zones to which two of our Water Chillers can be connected for chilling overnight. A removable temperature stratification screen beneath the water return port at the top minimizes movement and mixing of water inside the tank when cooling so that you get the most fermenter chilling power out of the cold liquor. The 585L/160USG is recommended for 1.5-3BBL, the 1170/320USG is recommended for the 5-7BBL and the 2808L/760USG is recommended for the 15BBL.
  9. Non-Mixing Steam Condensor is a heat exchanger for knocking down vapor produced during the boil (is handy if one cannot vent exhaust outside)
  10. Single Stage Plate Chiller and hose assembly for tap water (if using the Cold Liquor Tank and needing a second pump, select that product option) uses pre-chilled water either from one of our cold liquor storage tanks, or tap water if cold enough, to knock down the temperature of wort post-boil. This chiller is capable of knocking down even our 15BBL brewing systems in under an hour. (See our Two Stage Plate Chiller and Tap water Hose Assembly here if one wants to use a mix of tap and pre-chilled water; this is useful where tap water is not cold enough and/or one's cold liquor tank is not large enough.)
  11. Extras Kit includes spare fittings and hoses for connecting tap water, making other hoses etc.; to help you meet your random needs around the brewer

 

What else is needed for my brewery?

BIAC specifications