Gamma Vittles Vault Stackables

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pipapat

pipapat

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Organizing the brew room and wanted something other than piles of grain bags for all my opened grains.

noticed the Gamma Vittles Vault Stackables on petco.com.

The 40 hold 40 lbs of dog food.
Anyone use these to store grain?
Just wondering if i can get away with the 40 or should i be going 60+?

These would be really nice for my pilsner and 2 row bags if they would work.

:)
:mug:
 
I bought one for the same reason. I was in the process of washing it when I found it would leak water around the seal on the lip of the container. The screw in lid sealed but the gasket on the flanged part would leak water out of it. I called the manufacture, and he said the gasket would seat and become air tight. he also suggested to try taping it down with a rubber mallet. I did that and I could still get air and water to pass between the gasket. I checked some in the store and found that if I screw the lid on tight, and squeezed it, I could hear air escaping around the same gasket. I returned mine and I'm still trying to find a good way to store my 55lb. grain bags. I have been splitting them up in Fermentation buckets, until I find another source. If you find out that its not a problem, or someone else has a suggestion on using these please let me know. I love the way they work, and would love to have something like them for storage.

Steven
 
Steven9026 said:
I bought one for the same reason. I was in the process of washing it when I found it would leak water around the seal on the lip of the container. The screw in lid sealed but the gasket on the flanged part would leak water out of it. I called the manufacture, and he said the gasket would seat and become air tight. he also suggested to try taping it down with a rubber mallet. I did that and I could still get air and water to pass between the gasket. I checked some in the store and found that if I screw the lid on tight, and squeezed it, I could hear air escaping around the same gasket. I returned mine and I'm still trying to find a good way to store my 55lb. grain bags. I have been splitting them up in Fermentation buckets, until I find another source. If you find out that its not a problem, or someone else has a suggestion on using these please let me know. I love the way they work, and would love to have something like them for storage.

Steven
Click to expand...

Why would this be a problem? There is no risk of oxidation with grain and, regardless, unless you are storing them under a blanket of CO2 or Nitrogen there will be air in there anyway?

I just fail to understand the logic of your issue with these vaults. They are designed to keep bugs and rodents from infesting what is stored inside. Chance srae you will find weevils in the grain regardless. Otherwise, the vaults do what they are designed to do. And they are not designed to be hermetically sealed.
 
Mine seals well enough to ferment in, and I do.
For the price, you are likely better off with the home depot buckets for grain storage. If you get the gamma seal lids online (which will fit the homer buckets), you can still have the nice easy open lids. I use one outfitted with the gamma seal lid to store salt for ice melting purposes. It works great.
 
Thanks for the Info Gila.. I guess I'm to over protective of my grains,, LOL,, I store them in the bags they came in after I open them , I use a zip tie to keep them tight. I also have a container of silica gel beads in the container that I put the bags in to keep the moisture away from the too.. Am I being way over the top ???
 
Steven9026 said:
Thanks for the Info Gila.. I guess I'm to over protective of my grains,, LOL,, I store them in the bags they came in after I open them , I use a zip tie to keep them tight. I also have a container of silica gel beads in the container that I put the bags in to keep the moisture away from the too.. Am I being way over the top ???
Click to expand...

A bit. I mean unless you live in the Tropics or in a high humidity area humidity shouldn't be an issue and ideally you'd want the grains used within a year of purchase date regardless.

Also, Silica Gel has it's limits too and eventually needs to be recharged (de-hydrated) to remain effective.

The main thing of importance is keeping the grain from bugs and high moisture levels. Storing oxygen free will extend the useful life of the grain but if it's lasting that long you are buying too much.
 
What about big trash cans? For $20 - $30 at Wal-Mart, Lowes, Home Depot you could get a can that has a lid that snaps on tightly that would keep out pests.

I remember those gamma vittles vaults were kind of spendy.
 
I have a regular one that I use for my 2 row, and it is fine.
I just bought a bunch of grain (6 bags) @ near wholesale, and I think that I will try to use SpaceBags on them to keep the bugs out and minimize the O2 exposure.
 
There are ones called Vittle Vault II at US Plastics (manufactured by Gamma) that are less expensive than the original. Still, they are not cheap, but you can get ones that will hold a full sack of grain. Been thinking about getting some next time I go to Ohio to visit my sister.

Right now I have the big Rubbermaid trash cans with lids that I store grain in. I can fit 2 full sacks or 3 partially used sacks in there at a time, but it is certainly less than ideal storage method since they take up a lot of floor space. and not stackable.
 
mikeysab said:
Do weevils need to be mashed, or can they just be steeped? Or is dry-weeviling good enough?
Click to expand...

They mash beautifully. I made an oatmeal stout that was very buggy and turned out excellent. My friends thought the name (buggy breakfast stout) was a reference to my coding skills when I indulge.

I have found that I can buy dry-ice in pellet form from the local supermarket, so I put all my grain in ferm buckets with a 2 cup scoop of dry ice per bucket. Since CO2 is heavier than air, it stays in the buckets. No more bugs.
 
I use these:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Airtight-Food-C...844?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27b6804bb4

I like them because they're clear so I can keep an eye on my stock and they come with casters. They don't quite fit an entire 55lb sack but almost do. They say they are airtight and appear to be but the seal, as you experienced with the Vittles Vaults, definitely wouldn't hold back water. I think some good points about not needing the thing to be as sealed up as a fallout shelter have been made here though. These get my vote.
 
BoogieBrandBooze said:
I use these:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Airtight-Food-C...844?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27b6804bb4

I like them because they're clear so I can keep an eye on my stock and they come with casters. They don't quite fit an entire 55lb sack but almost do. They say they are airtight and appear to be but the seal, as you experienced with the Vittles Vaults, definitely wouldn't hold back water. I think some good points about not needing the thing to be as sealed up as a fallout shelter have been made here though. These get my vote.
Click to expand...

I use those - but I got them at Walmart (shudder). Go to the dog food aisle and you'll found those containers with wheels. They are airtight and work great - I have 2, one for my 2row and one for my marris otter. And they are the same price. I've never seen em on ebay though, thats a good find.
 
bonsai4tim said:
FWW (first wort weevils) makes for a more delicate flavor. :cross:t
Click to expand...
716686011_icon.gif
 
brrman said:
I use those - but I got them at Walmart (shudder). Go to the dog food aisle and you'll found those containers with wheels. They are airtight and work great - I have 2, one for my 2row and one for my marris otter. And they are the same price. I've never seen em on ebay though, thats a good find.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I looked everywhere but couldn't find a large enough size at any store near me. Hence, the eBay purchase. They do work great though and not really a bad deal at less than $20 each shipped either!
 
Thanks for all the info guys.
I like the vittle valts because they are angled and i can put them on my tool bench racks.

Ill have to look at the vault 2's.

In thne summer when i brew i get lots of dead honey bees that have to be fished out of my boil pot.
 
Thread revival!! This was the cheapest I could find and they work great!! Iris 50 lb container with air tight lid and wheels. FYI, "50 lb" title is for dog food which is apparently much denser than grain. They'll hold about 75 lbs of grain. My photo below shows how full each container is with a 50 lb bag of pale and pilsner (my wheat was less than a full bag). I bought 3 plus a scoop for $65 including shipping from Mills Fleet Farm:

http://www.fleetfarm.com/detail/iris-50-lb-wheeled-airtight-pet-food-container/0000000094435

0000000094435.jpg


photo.jpg
 

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