My buddy and I did our first all-grain batch last weekend using a 10G Rubbermaid cooler with a 12" stainless false bottom as our tun.
Well, the drain spigot became clogged with grain during the sparge. We ended up having to dump the mash into the boil pot, unclog the tubbing and spigot, then return the mash to the tun. There was A LOT of grain under the false bottom
Thankfully, everything came out ok, but we obviously don't want this to happen again.
We think it happened because the metal false bottom was slightly warped, raising some of the edge off of the bottom of the cooler. Stirring the grist forced some grain under the false bottom, and up into spigot tubing and ball valve.
Any ideas on how to prevent this? I was thinking we could place some stainless steel balls (think pin-balls) around the outer edge of the false bottom. The inverted cone shape should help keep them on the outer edge, which should be enough to weigh it down.
Thanks
Well, the drain spigot became clogged with grain during the sparge. We ended up having to dump the mash into the boil pot, unclog the tubbing and spigot, then return the mash to the tun. There was A LOT of grain under the false bottom
Thankfully, everything came out ok, but we obviously don't want this to happen again.
We think it happened because the metal false bottom was slightly warped, raising some of the edge off of the bottom of the cooler. Stirring the grist forced some grain under the false bottom, and up into spigot tubing and ball valve.
Any ideas on how to prevent this? I was thinking we could place some stainless steel balls (think pin-balls) around the outer edge of the false bottom. The inverted cone shape should help keep them on the outer edge, which should be enough to weigh it down.
Thanks