Batch Sparge...Are Rice Hulls Necessary?

I batch sparge using in a 10 gallon Home Depot cooler. I usually add 8-16 oz when mashing large amounts of wheat, rye, etc. So last week I brewed a dunkelweizen with 51% wheat malt. I forgot the rice hulls but hit 81% efficiency with no stuck sparge or what not. In fact I didn't even realize I had forgot until I though about it a few days later. So I thought I would throw it out to the experts - is there any point using rice hulls when batch sparging? Or did I just dodge a bullet?

Eh, I think it really depends from brew system to brew system. What works for one may not for another so they are just a nice safety net. Out of curiosity what kind of mashtun do you use.

In my experience, batch sparging is less likely to get stuck. I believe it is because you stir after every water add and resettle the bed. Fly sparging, the bed just keeps packing down.

inhousebrew said:

Eh, I think it really depends from brew system to brew system. What works for one may not for another so they are just a nice safety net. Out of curiosity what kind of mashtun do you use.

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^this^

It all depends on your lautering system.

Stauffbier said:

^this^

It all depends on your lautering system.

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Round ten gallon cooler with a braided hose

Tamarlane said:

Round ten gallon cooler with a braided hose

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I've only used rice hulls for a pumpkin beer with pumpkin in the mash. Haven't had any stuck sparges or clarity issues. Cooler and braid here, too.

I rarely use wheat though...

I'm also a braid guy. I've had problems with pumpkin and wheat. I've noticed that I can go without rice hulls on 25% or less wheat, but I have to run-off fast after stirring the sparge. I vourloff really fast (kind of half a$$) and start draining before the grain bed settles. If I let it settle it will run very slow and possibly even stop. I should mention I use a Corona mill and I get a lot of flour in my crush. So, I guess it's safe to say that it also depends on your crush.

I bought a (100#?) bale of rice hulls from a brewery because I brew a lot with Rye Malt. Regarding stuck sparges, it seemed to be hit or miss without the hulls. It kinda got expensive to buy hulls in 1# or 2# bags, so a asked about it at the brewery. $15 for the bale, I will never run out! Hahahahaha!!

somedudefromguam said:

I bought a (100#?) bale of rice hulls from a brewery because I brew a lot with Rye Malt. Regarding stuck sparges, it seemed to be hit or miss without the hulls. It kinda got expensive to buy hulls in 1# or 2# bags, so a asked about it at the brewery. $15 for the bale, I will never run out! Hahahahaha!!

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Wow! How big is that bag? Rice hulls are pretty light. Whatever works I guess.

somedudefromguam said:

I bought a (100#?) bale of rice hulls from a brewery because I brew a lot with Rye Malt. Regarding stuck sparges, it seemed to be hit or miss without the hulls. It kinda got expensive to buy hulls in 1# or 2# bags, so a asked about it at the brewery. $15 for the bale, I will never run out! Hahahahaha!!

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If I'm gonna store something that big, it'd better be fermentable!

I use a 10 gallon cooler/braided hose..the only time I had a stuck sparge is when I had a 24# grain bill. It squished the braided hose and didn't allow liquid to flow through it. I had to blow into the tubing attached to my mash tun to unstick my sparge. I currently have a bazooka screen on the way to try to avoid that problem. The only time I would ever consider rice hulls is with a wheat beer.

I'm only on my 4th AG but I have used rice hulls on my last 2 and have noticed that my mash tons drain easier with them. One was a stout the other a dunkle. The IPA I did before that drained so slow it took forever to get my volume. I do 10gal batches using 2 5gal round coolers to mash in. Rice hulls are so cheap and save me time, I don't see why I wouldn't use them in every batch.

Maybe you dodged a bullet, maybe not. I batch sparge and use a braid, but I have had a few stuck sparges. Mainly with rye. I made a 6 gal batch of roggenbier with around 60% rye and even with a pound of rice hulls, it still took almost 2 hours for the runoff. It's cheap insurance considering how much of a PITA a stuck sparge is. I at least have grain bags from my previous BIAB batches that I can use if I get a stuck mash.

seabass07 said:

I at least have grain bags from my previous BIAB batches that I can use if I get a stuck mash.

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Me too! Once I made a pumpkin ale with a sh*t ton of pumpkin in it, and even with a pound of hulls it wouldn't even drip. I ended up putting my BIAB bag in my 15.5 gal keggel and dumping the MLT in to it. That was a "fun" brew day.

So today I brewed a roggenbier with 50% rye...I actually bought a half pound or rice hulls but forgot them on the scale at the home brew shop. But once again no rice hulls no problem. Hit 80% efficiency no stuck sparge.