False Bottom and its benefit??

[Rhine]

So I am steeping into all grain finally. I got a 32qt kettle with a bazooka tube bottom as a gift. Anyway, I am watching and reading on all grain brewing and am wondering why everyone uses a cooler for a mash-tun. Cant i use the false bottom kettle as a mash tun, after my mash. Cant i sparge my grains in the kettle itself too?? What is the best way to utilize this thing? I fell like a retard asking this but I am all ears. Thanks to any who can give me some insight.

 

[SKMO]

Cant i use the false bottom kettle as a mash tun, after my mash ?

Huh?

After you have mashed, you don't need a mash-tun. You need a lauter (rinse) tun.

A cooler is used as a combination "mash-lauter tun" (MLT)

Coolers are used because they hold the mash at proper heat very well for the 60-90 minutes during the mash.

 

[MalFet]

Sure. I mash in my boil kettle using a false bottom. Temperature control might be an issue, though your results may vary. Deathbrewer says he wasn't losing much temperature over the hour mash, but others (including myself) have had more trouble keeping a steady temperature.

If you do have trouble with that, you will likely need to insulate the heck out of your kettle/tun or use some kind of heated recirculation system.

I have both batch and fly sparged in this sytem. Works fine.

 

[Rhine]

your right skmo. excuse my terminology. All grain is still new to me. So most people use their false bottom kettle for draining wort?

 

[MalFet]

your right skmo. excuse my terminology. All grain is still new to me. So most people use their false bottom kettle for draining wort?

Now you've got me confused...I don't understand your question. Are you asking what most people have for mashing or what most people who have false bottoms use them for?

I don't have any numbers to back this up or anything, but my hunch is that a cooler with a stainless braid is the most common mashing vessel (at least around these parts).

A false bottom is used to keep things off of the bottom of the pot. This is important for draining the wort, among other things.

 

[stat]

I've got the 42qt polarware with a false bottom. I use it as my mashtun and it keeps its heat just fine covered in a couple blankets over an hour.

Then I drain the runnings into a bucket or 2 while I sparge. Once thats all done I dump the grain into the compost pile and transfer the wort back into the kettle to boil after I remove the false bottom. The immersion chiller doesn't sit deep enough otherwise.

The only thing is you'll need a separate pot to heat your sparge water, I use the 20qt pot that came with my extract kit from when I first started brewing.

 

[SKMO]

your right skmo. excuse my terminology. All grain is still new to me. So most people use their false bottom kettle for draining wort?

Not trying to be a wiener here, but still don't get your exact question.

Generally a "kettle" (in my way of thinking) is a big pot you do your final boiling in. My boil kettle does not have a false bottom or a braid, it's just a boil kettle. (BUT some people use a false bottom or braid in a boil kettle to filter out hops and break material, assuming they have a low valve on the kettle to draw everything through.)

 

[Rhine]

thanks for your description stat. The method you described is what I will probably do with my kettle/brew pot/mast tun. The thing has a built in temp gauge too so I really want to utilize that in my process. Thanks again for all your guys help. Cheers!

 

[Hex]

I put mine (32 qt mash/boil kettle) in the oven for the long rest.