Inductor Tank - Non Full Drain Okay?

So I found a local supplier for the Ace Roto Mold Inductor Tanks. Problem is that they only stock the IN0030-24 which is not the full drain model.

Not only is their base price a bit cheaper than ruralking.com, but I could pick up today if I wanted and obviously save on shipping costs.

Total savings for me would be $32.00

Wondering if the full drain is really the only safe way to go on these things or if the standard non full drain models are just as suitable for fermentation.

Thanks for the info!

should be fine your not going to fully drain them anyway your racking port will be up on the slope anyway. The only problem with non fully draining is with cleaning, you will have to vacume or wipe out the last bit of moisture.

I have the NORWESCO brand Inductor Tank that is not full drain. I've never reached inside of it other than to assemble the racking tube. I've brewed over 300 gallons of beer in it so far. I just hose it out real good with hot water and store it with 3 gallons of starsan mixture. I'll shake the whole thing up real good to make sure the starsan hits all the surfaces. Once in a while I'll fill it full with an Oxyclean mixture but I doubt it really matters. Additionally, I've never disassembled the valves to clean them. I just cycle them open/closed many times with hot water/Oxyclean/Starsan and call it good. YMMV. Cheers!!!

excellent news. thanks gents!!!

i guess as a follow up would be regarding yeast harvest. does the non full drain impede that process, or is it about the same as well?

Apoxbrew said:

excellent news. thanks gents!!!

i guess as a follow up would be regarding yeast harvest. does the non full drain impede that process, or is it about the same as well?

Click to expand...

There's so much yeast in there you'll have no problem harvesting it. I quit dumping trub after a few days of fermentation and just do it right before racking. Once the beer is racked off I'll open the dump valve one more time for the remaining beer (< 1 pint) to run out and then place a pint canning jar on an upside down bucket to catch the yeast. For most Ales you only need 1/2 pint and Lagers 1 pint of thick slurry. Here are some pics. Cheers!!!

Inside the conical all cleaned up:


Yeast in the conical:


Catching the yeast:

awesome... thanks a ton!!!!