So I am currently using a 5 gallon blue cylindrical cooler with a waterproof fitting and SS braid hose.

I'm not really happy with it becausefor a couple reasons. Capacity does not let me mash as much grains as I want. I get stuck mashes, and when batch sparging I have managed to knock the SS braid off of the fitting causing it to get stuck. This makes me consider a false bottom but I hear people complain about these as well. I'm not beyond just buying the whole shebang but I don't want to throw money away needlessly if I can put something together cheaper.

I was looking at TBN's fantastic sponsor Northern Brewer and was a little suprised at the price of the cooler they're using mainly. The false bottom I have no problem paying for.

Is there any difference in this cooler and this one? Besides $30.

Well, yeah. The first one has a real sweet cup holder.....DUH!
Just kidding. Probably the same thing. I have a rectangular coleman with a braid in it, 55qt, I think, no stuck mashes yet(knocking on wood). Mine is a white one. Works waaaay better thatn the red or blue ones!

There is a guy in my local club that uses a 55 gallon kettle to mash in too. He says if he can't mash enough in it, he needs to brew a slightly smaller batch

Agreed that both are the same for our purposes. I use a 52 quart rectangular cooler with braid. If you keep the braid short you won't have problems with it. I use a 12-14'" piece with both ends hooked to a tee fitting so I have a fairly small loop of braid. One of the causes of stuck sparges with the round coolers during batch sparging is that your grain bed is too deep. This compacts the grain too much at the bottom. The rectangular cooler gives you a shallower bed and less compaction. The use of a couple handfuls of rice hulls in the mash will also help.

As far as color goes, white is definitely the wrong color. Anyone with any sense knows that red is the only one that works worth a shit!

Wayne

so it begins, Bugeater, so it begins.....

haha assholes I said blue thinking maybe that would identify the brand or something. Kind of dumb in hindsight.

I guess I'm just wondering if maybe the spout comes out differently in those two or if the dimensions are slightly different that would make it difficult to get the false bottom from NB to work.

[edit] actually I just found the exact cooler on Amazon.

I use a BLUE 48 quart Igloo Ice Cube Deluxe, with stainless steel false bottom. I think I've mashed up to 28 pounds of grain in it. You might be able to go a tiny bit higher. Photos can be found here and here. I used to use a round 5 gallon orange cooler with a plastic false bottom and that worked fine. I had one stuck mash with that, when I ran a pump out of the bottom too quickly and compacted the grain bed. I've not had a stuck mash with the Igloo, but I've quite running a pump on the drain side too. If I ever use a pump again for the drain, I might consider adding a grant.

You can also get those 10 gallon round coolers at the big box home improvement stores (orange or blue), which might save you some shipping.

Nice.

and from now on us blue cooler guys will be known as the Crips.