Horizontal tanks usually show up in a brewery for one reason: ceiling height. A cellar with 2.8 m clearance will not accept a 3,000 L vertical bright beer tank, but a horizontal unit of the same working volume fits without excavation. That is the conversation we have most often with production managers.

We build these vessels from 100 L to 50,000 L working volume. The shell is SUS304 as standard, SUS316L where the product is acidic, fruit-based, or the CIP program runs caustic at high concentration and temperature. Sheet thickness starts at 3 mm on small units and reaches 5–6 mm on large diameters so the shell keeps its roundness after rolling. Heads are dished on anything above 500 L.

Single-layer means no cooling jacket is welded to the shell. Insulation is 80–100 mm polyurethane under 1.5 mm stainless cladding. These tanks hold temperature rather than change it. For crash-cooling or long storage at 1 °C, order the dimple-jacketed version instead — adding a jacket later is not practical.

Weld quality decides how a tank behaves after five years. We TIG weld the shell seams, pickle and passivate them, and hold internal roughness at Ra ≤ 0.8 µm on product contact surfaces. Each unit is hydro-tested at 1.5 times working pressure before shipment.

Where these tanks are used

Bright beer and carbonated storage in craft breweries, bulk holding in cideries and wineries, kombucha and soda production, and contract packaging lines that need buffer capacity between filtration and filling.

Typical specifications

Questions we get before quoting

How do I size the tank? Take your largest single batch, add 20–25% headspace for foam and carbonation. A 2,000 L batch belongs in a 2,500 L tank.

What pressure do I need? Carbonated storage at 2.5 vol CO₂ generally needs 0.15–0.2 MPa working pressure. The safety valve is set at the design pressure, not above it.

Can I CIP it in place? Yes, with a spray ball sized to the tank diameter and a pump delivering enough flow to wet the full circumference. Undersized CIP pumps are the most common cause of dirty tank walls.

Tell us your batch size, beer type, number of tanks and available space. We can recommend the tank volume, cooling area and configuration for your brewery.