A 500L jacketed conical fermenter sits in a practical middle ground. It is large enough to carry a small commercial brewery through consistent weekly production, yet compact enough to fit a modest brewhouse footprint without demanding a dedicated utilities room. Most customers who contact us about this size are either stepping up from 200–300L pilot systems or standardizing a small production floor around a single vessel size.

We build these tanks from SUS304 as standard, with 316L available for the product contact surfaces when the brewery runs high-acid sours, fruit additions, or aggressive CIP cycles. The inner shell is typically 3mm, the outer cladding 2mm, and the cooling jacket is dimple-pressed on the cone and lower cylinder. That jacket placement matters more than the total cooling area on paper. If the cone is not jacketed, yeast dump temperature and cone fermentation can drift, especially on lagers.

The conical bottom angle is usually 60 degrees for this volume. A shallower cone saves height but slows yeast collection. We machine the discharge port with a 1.5in or 2in tri-clamp butterfly valve and a separate racking arm above it, so you can pull clear beer without disturbing the yeast bed. The top manway is sized for dry hopping and manual inspection. For pressure, we test the tank at 1.5 times the working pressure and fit a mechanical safety valve. Do not confuse the safety valve setting with the operating pressure. The tank should never run at the relief set point.

CIP is handled through a rotating spray ball in the top and a dedicated return port. If you plan to clean multiple tanks from one skid, tell us the pump curve and line length, because the spray ball needs a specific flow and pressure to work. Temperature control runs through the jacket with glycol. We can supply the tank with a single-zone or dual-zone jacket, depending on whether you need independent cone and cylinder control.

For a micro brewery, the most common mistake is ordering the tank before confirming ceiling height, door width, and glycol chiller capacity. A 500L tank with a 60-degree cone and legs can exceed 2.4 meters in total height. We can adjust leg length and cone angle within limits, but not without affecting yeast collection and drainage.

Typical specs: 500L nominal volume, 600–650L gross, SUS304 or 316L, 60-degree cone, dimple jacket, 1.5–2 bar working pressure, tri-clamp fittings, CIP spray ball, racking arm, sample valve, and adjustable legs. Let us know your batch size, beer type, number of tanks, and available space. We can recommend the tank volume, cooling area, and configuration for your brewery.