use this or throw it away

I store my grains and equipment in an empty bedroom upstairs. I have a 50# bag of 2 row with maybe 15 # out of it with the top rolled down. I just went up to grab some malt to do a brew and there is mouse crap on the top of the grain and some has been eaten. NO IDEA how a mouse got in it as there are no holes and the top is rolled down pretty tight. ANYWAY would you just toss the whole bag or take a good layer off of the top and use what is underneath..... wife says pitch it and go buy more ( I agree) BUT I just bought a 40 dollar pump and hoses for brewing today.

Mice have no bladder control...

Zamial said:

Mice have no bladder control...

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ugh.. that is where my thinkin was also

Wife is insisting that I go buy more stuff so I can make more beer types anyway ( she is great about my hobbies.. 25 year anniversary tomorrow and she wants to go to the brew store lol) So I guess I will just throw this stuff away and buy another 50# bag along with some extras.

You're seriously considering brewing using grain tainted with mice piss and poo? Yikes.

GO and get yourself 2 homer buckets with lids, they each hold 25 # of grain, the lids are tight and no mouse will be able to poo in your NEW bag of grain.

That other 5 pounds will fit in a 1 gallon ziplock baggie. Or you can do some roasting experiments with it.

tasq said:

You're seriously considering brewing using grain tainted with mice piss and poo? Yikes.

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actually no... just hoping someone would give me a reason why I didn't have to throw it away.

Revvy said:

GO and get yourself 2 homerb buckets with lids, they each holds 25 of grain, the lids are tight and no mouse will be able to poo in your NEW bag of grain.

That other 5 pounds will fit in a 1 gallon ziplock baggie. Or you can do some roasting experiments with it.

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wife is heading to walmart to pick up some buckets tonight. Luckily my specialty grains are untouched.

Looks like the mouse is a critic.

Before I read any of the responses my first thought was: "mouse pee is not good eats". Nasty little buggers that leave a nasty little trail.

However....you COULD have a little fun with a nice lemony wheat beer and a casual mention to friends that you found mouse "sign" in your grains.

You know you're going to boil it for an hour, right??

Hundreds of gallons of MACRO beer is drank every day, and I suspect that their volume of grain usage makes pest avoidance impossible...

Don't think I could ever enjoy the beer KNOWING what happened and that possibly I brewed it with mouse waste.

So just to be clear, if the mice realize there's food in the buckets they can chew through a homer bucket in no time.

Homercidal said:

You know you're going to boil it for an hour, right??

Hundreds of gallons of MACRO beer is drank every day, and I suspect that their volume of grain usage makes pest avoidance impossible...

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Yes but MACRO beer already tastes like wizz.

You have to toss it. Mice carry nasty bugs like salmonella, leptosis, hanta virus, etc that are transmitted through urine and feces. They also have fleas that carry other nasty stuff. If you see feces, you are guaranteed to have urine. You can see the feces, but you won't be able to see the urine. Remember the peanut salmonella scare a year or so ago? That was mice.

And, by the way, mice can easily chew through your grain bag.

If you use 5 gallon buckets you'll need 3, and maybe a big ziploc... I can't remember if it is 2 and a bit left over or 3.

WAdamC said:

If you use 5 gallon buckets you'll need 3, and maybe a big ziploc... I can't remember if it is 2 and a bit left over or 3.

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I already answered that earlier in the thread, it's 25#/bucket, so two buckets and 1 1 gallon zippy will hold the remaining 5 pounds.

Revvy said:

I already answered that earlier in the thread, it's 25#/bucket, so two buckets and 1 1 gallon zippy will hold the remaining 5 pounds.

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I just thought I remembered homer buckets being bigger than a standard 5 gallon.

tossed it... good excuse to make the drive to the brew store today.. 130 bucks just on grains and hops.

Revvy said:

I already answered that earlier in the thread, it's 25#/bucket, so two buckets and 1 1 gallon zippy will hold the remaining 5 pounds.

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I am pretty sure I got a sack of 2-row Breiss malt and was able to put the whole thing in 2 Homers. It's possible that I simply used the leftover in a brew that day, but I thought I just poured the bag in and it all fit. They are excellent at holding the grain.