I'm a long way off ready to buy a 50L cheese vat but am possibly ready to be a bit less Heath Robinson than currently.
Anyone got any tips for techniques or can recommend any useful equipment for pastuerising / cheese making on this scale?
At the moment I put the milk in either a big plastic bowl (3L) or a large stainless steel bucket (up to 8L comfortably), stand that on top of an upturned pyrex shallow bowl in a large stewpot containing a couple of inches of water and heat on the stove top as required. It can take a very long time... and I can't reliably maintain a temperature within a few degrees except by being on hand and checking and adjusting as needed.
I use the upturned-bowl-in-simmering-water technique to ensure that I don't burn the milk / curds at the bottom of the pan (without having to be constantly stirring to ensure the same.)
My 'thermostatically controlled incubator / oven' is an insulated food box with a plastic bottle or two full of hot water, the hot water being changed every few hours or so to maintain the temperature I am after. Not accurate, fine for rough-and-ready yoghurt or curd cheese.
I suspect there are techniques and/or equipment that are simple / not too expensive that I simply haven't come across or thought of.
Your thoughts welcomed, please! Thanks folks