Huge starter

[Chris Craig]

So, Colin and I along with my brother-in-law are planning a brew day in January where we're going to brew 33 gallons of Pilsner.  This seemed like a fun idea until I did the math and realized that we're going to need almost 40 litres of starter if we start with 4 smack packs!!

So, we're going to have to brew a 10 gallon batch of 1.030 - 1.040 beer in order to make 33 gallons of Pilsner at 1.048.  

[Jake]

Can your stir plate balance a sankey keg?  

[jeffsmith]

How about a couple of these bad boys:

http://towercooler.com/index.php?option ... &Itemid=97

[Chris Craig]

Yeah, I saw that a couple of months ago and though it was a terrible idea.  Who would need a stir plate for a whole batch of beer?  Now I know.

[Richard]

Hahaha... nice. That's a lot of lawnmower beer right there.

[jeffsmith]

Yeah, I saw that a couple of months ago and though it was a terrible idea.  Who would need a stir plate for a whole batch of beer?  Now I know.

I'm sure you could DIY one similar to a normal sized stir plate. The principle would be the same, you'd just need a sturdy base to hold the carboy. A 120mm computer fan would likely be strong enough to spin two ½" to ¾" rare earth magnets and a 2" stir bar.

[pliny]

Or you could just have about 1litre of healthy slurry.

[Chris Craig]

Or you could just have about 1litre of healthy slurry.

Yeah, well, since I don't have a slurry of lager yeast, I'll have to make one by doing a hugh-ass starter