20HL Conical Beer Fermenting Vessel – Built for Real Brewery Conditions

Most brewery engineers searching for a 20HL fermenter are not looking for a generic tank. They need a vessel that fits a specific batch size, available floor space, and cooling strategy. This 5000L cylindrical-conical pressure vessel is a practical fit for production breweries and larger brewpubs running consistent 20-hectoliter batches.

Materials and Fabrication

We build these tanks in SUS304 as standard. For heavily hopped beers or aggressive cleaning regimes, SUS316L is available. The internal shell is typically 3mm, with a dimpled cooling jacket on the cone and lower cylinder. Welds are fully penetrated and passivated. Internal surface finishes range from 2B mill finish to 320-grit polished, depending on how much yeast adhesion and cleaning effort you want to manage.

Each tank gets a top manway, dry-hop port, CIP spray ball, racking arm, sample valve, and pressure relief valve. Working pressure is normally 15–30 psi, but we confirm the design pressure against your carbonation and transfer requirements before cutting steel.

Cooling and Temperature Control

The cone jacket handles the heaviest heat load during active fermentation. If you are crashing or fermenting lagers, we may increase jacket coverage or add a second zone. Glycol inlet and outlet connections are sized to your chiller loop. No two breweries run the same glycol temperature or flow rate, so we match the jacket surface area to your actual cooling demand rather than a catalog number.

Who This Tank Suits

This 20HL size works for craft breweries packaging 20–40 barrels per week, contract brewing setups, and beverage producers fermenting non-beer products. Small brewpubs should consider whether a 20HL batch matches their sales velocity. Over-sized tanks tie up capital and floor space.

Technical Specifications

Common Questions from Buyers

Can I CIP without opening the tank? Yes. The spray ball and manway design allow full CIP. We can pre-pipe CIP and blow-off arms if your layout needs it.

What about pressure safety? A relief valve is sized to the tank\’s maximum allowable working pressure. Never rely on a single valve. We can supply dual relief setups for high-carbonation beers.

How do I connect glycol and beer lines? We provide drawings with port locations before shipment. Tri-clamp connections are standard. Confirm your glycol supply temperature and flow rate so we can size the jacket correctly.

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.