How do you handle 8 gallon batches

[MAK]

Hello fellow cheese makers,

How would you handle 8 gallon batches? I typically only make cheddar.   I currently only make 4 gallon batches.  I have a stainless pan that I put in a large canning pot as a double boiler and this works great.  But I'm fortunate enough to have an endless supply of Raw Milk for free.  (A friend of mine gives me the end of his milk after bottling).  Its not going to take any longer to make a 8 gallon batch then a 4 gallon, so why not.  The only problem is the cooking vessel. I found a nice 10 gallon stainless steel pot.  But now I have to get a larger pot to fit that in it.  Plus I'm starting to run out of space between the top of my stove and the hood.  I have also thought about making two 4 gallon batches at the same time. 

I would love to get your thoughts and see some of your creative solutions.

Thanks
Dave

[Al Lewis]

Do two 4s.  The ten gallon pot will make handling the curd and separating the whey very difficult.

[qdog1955]

Have to agree with Al. When I went from 4 gal. to 6 gal.----the difference in size of equipment and weight was more then I anticipated----didn't seem like much on paper, but it all adds up----10 gallons in a home environment might be a bit much-----but you could buy a commercial type induction cooker that can handle the extra weight---but you would probably have to pump the whey and scoop curds----that's a lot of weight to pick up and carry around.
  Wish I had the problem of to much free milk
Qdog

  When I got my induction cooker (Which I love for making cheese) found out after the fact, that it was only rated for 50 lbs.

[Al Lewis]

A gallon of milk weighs 8.6 pounds.  An 86 pound pot might just damage your cooktop and be nearly impossible to move.

[awakephd]

Take a look at the rectangular pan setups used by John at Perfect Cheese (www.perfect-cheese.com). What he sells only goes up to 5 gallons (? if I read it right), but I'm pretty sure I've heard others using rectangular pans that go up to larger quantities. And if I understand correctly, he heats the pan directly on an electric griddle -- no double boiler.

By the way -- free, unlimited, raw milk? I hate you.

[Al Lewis]

Take a look at the rectangular pan setups used by John at Perfect Cheese (www.perfect-cheese.com). What he sells only goes up to 5 gallons (? if I read it right), but I'm pretty sure I've heard others using rectangular pans that go up to larger quantities. And if I understand correctly, he heats the pan directly on an electric griddle -- no double boiler.

By the way -- free, unlimited, raw milk? I hate you.

I use a pan directly on a glass cooktop and just bought an induction heater to sit a pot on.  Never used a double boiler.  BTW I hate you too, I pay $7.00 a gallon for my raw milk.  LOL

[WovenMeadows]

I use two 20 quart (5 gallon) pots, can do 6 to 9 gallon makes. I usually bring to temp on the stove, then move the pots to a large cooler filled with warm water. I actually have an electric bucket heater (basically a plug-in heating element like those that go in a domestic electric hot water heater) for heating or maintaining the water bath temp in the cooler, and actually have a plug-in thermostat that I hook that up to for convenience in controlling the temperature. I occasionally have the two pots vary in pH by maybe 0.15 (due e.g. to slight differences in the amount of freeze-dried starter culture added), but nothing much to worry about IMO. I make sure to mix the curds together well in one pot after draining some or all of the whey (depending on type of make) so that any differences between the two are mitigated. The only shortfall with my setup that I have found, is that my water heater doesn't raise things fast enough to do a good "scald" on Alpine and hard Italian cheeses - it takes a little longer than it should, so I think I get a bit more acid than I should.

[MAK]

Very good info.  I actually didn't think much about the weight.  I guess 8 gallons is actually pretty heavy.  I'm still not ready to give up on the 8 gallon batch....YET.  Maybe I should try a 6 gallon batch first.   My goal is to make a 10" wheel about 4" tall.  My next move is to go from a modified fridge to a cheese room. 

I'm thinking about taking a welding class so I can make my own vessel.  I have a few ideas.

By the way....I wasn't tiring to gloat about my free milk.  I'm very lucky.  The milk is from jersey cows.

[awakephd]

I'm thinking about taking a welding class so I can make my own vessel.  I have a few ideas.

By the way....I wasn't tiring to gloat about my free milk.  I'm very lucky.  The milk is from jersey cows.

MAK, I didn't take it as gloating ... just expressing admiration for your luck in a back-handed way.

As for welding ... have you done any welding before? To do sanitary-grade welding on stainless, you are presumably looking at TIG with a back-purge. If the class you are taking is a beginning class, it is highly unlikely you will get quite that far. On the other hand, I have a TIG machine, and for a small payment of, say, 100 gallons of raw milk (not all at once, mind), I could be persuaded to put it to use ...

[MAK]

I'm thinking about taking a welding class so I can make my own vessel.  I have a few ideas.

By the way....I wasn't tiring to gloat about my free milk.  I'm very lucky.  The milk is from jersey cows.

MAK, I didn't take it as gloating ... just expressing admiration for your luck in a back-handed way.

As for welding ... have you done any welding before? To do sanitary-grade welding on stainless, you are presumably looking at TIG with a back-purge. If the class you are taking is a beginning class, it is highly unlikely you will get quite that far. On the other hand, I have a TIG machine, and for a small payment of, say, 100 gallons of raw milk (not all at once, mind), I could be persuaded to put it to use ...

I have done a lot of different things but welding isn't one of them.   I don't think milk bartering from Massachusetts to North Carolina will work.  I have some friends that weld.  I will be enlisting them for some help.

[awakephd]

I have done a lot of different things but welding isn't one of them.   I don't think milk bartering from Massachusetts to North Carolina will work.  I have some friends that weld.  I will be enlisting them for some help.

Ah, well. I had grand visions of rivers of raw milk running my way, but I guess I'll have to face up to my no-raw-milk reality.

Be sure your friends have experience with sanitary grade stainless welding -- even if they are professional weldors, but especially if they are (like me) amateurs, they may not have experience with the exacting requirements needed to keep things food-safe. (E.g., you don't want to introduce little micro-cavities that will harbor bacteria!)