1500L (15HL) Brewhouse System for Micro Breweries

A 15HL brewhouse sits at the practical center of craft brewing. It\’s large enough to sustain a taproom and small distribution, yet compact enough to fit into a leased industrial unit without demanding a dedicated steam boiler or a three-phase power upgrade in every case. Most of the 1500L systems we build go into breweries producing 300–800 HL per year, running 3–5 brews per week.

The brewhouse is the heart. We build ours with a two-vessel or three-vessel configuration depending on your batch rhythm. Two-vessel systems (mash/lauter tun combined with kettle/whirlpool) work well if you brew once or twice a day and can tolerate a longer turn. Three-vessel setups separate the lauter tun, kettle, and whirlpool, cutting total brew day by 60–90 minutes. That extra vessel often pays for itself within a year if you\’re selling volume.

Materials and Fabrication

We use SUS304 as standard for all product-contact surfaces. For breweries producing sour or high-chloride beers, or where the water chemistry is aggressive, we switch the kettle and whirlpool to SUS316L. The price difference is real, but so is pitting corrosion on 304 after a few years of acidified wort. The jacket external shell is 304 in both cases.

Inner tank surfaces are pickled and passivated, then mechanically polished to Ra ≤ 0.6 μm. Welds are full-penetration TIG, ground flush, and inspected. We don\’t leave stepped welds or unfinished seams in the kettle — those are nucleation points for boilover and organic buildup. All seals are food-grade EPDM or silicone, with PTFE options on request.

Heating and Cooling

We offer direct-fire, steam, and electric heating. Steam jackets are the most common for 15HL because they give even heat flux across the kettle bottom and wall. Electric immersion elements are simpler to install but create localized hot spots that can scorch wort if the element surface temperature isn\’t controlled. Direct fire is rarely the right answer at this size unless you\’re in a region with extremely cheap gas.

Cooling on the whirlpool side is handled by a plate heat exchanger sized to your groundwater temperature and target knockout time. If your groundwater runs above 20°C in summer, we add a pre-chiller or a glycol loop. This is one of the most common oversights in 1500L brewery planning — the HX gets sized for winter water and then underperforms in July.

Controls and Integration

Manual, semi-automatic, and PLC-based control panels are available. For a 15HL system, semi-automatic control (pneumatic valves, temperature PID, flow meter feedback) is usually the sweet spot. Full PLC with recipe logging makes sense if you\’re planning multiple locations or need batch traceability for distribution accounts. We wire panels to local voltage and phase standards — 380V/50Hz, 415V/50Hz, 480V/60Hz, and others on request.

CIP is integrated into the brewhouse loop. We use rotating spray balls in the mash tun and kettle, with a dedicated CIP pump and caustic/acid dosing station. The piping is designed so you can CIP the HX and transfer lines without disassembly. Sanitary clamp fittings throughout.

Applications

These systems suit craft breweries, brewpubs with on-site taprooms, contract brewing operations, and beverage producers running kombucha or non-alcoholic wort-based products. We\’ve also supplied 1500L brewhouses to distilleries using the wash for whiskey and rum production.

Specifications

FAQ

Can I run a 15HL brewhouse on a single brew per day? Yes, but you\’ll need more fermenter capacity relative to your brewhouse size. Plan fermentation space for 4–6 brews in parallel.

Do I need a steam boiler? If you choose steam heating, yes. A 500kg/hr low-pressure boiler is typically sufficient. Electric heating avoids the boiler but increases your electrical demand significantly.

What floor space does a 1500L brewhouse need? A two-vessel system with platform typically occupies 6m × 4m. Three-vessel adds about 2m in one direction.

How long is lead time? Standard 12–16 weeks from deposit, depending on configuration and control level.

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