how to prevent channeling in the mash pipe

[fluketamer]

my return tube doesnt reach the top pan on my mash pipe. its about .5 inches above the pan. theres a lot of splashing and it leaves a channel in the center of the grain bed. not sure if this is bad ? i want to distribute the water better on wort recirculation during mash so theres no channel in my grain bed.

2 questions,

1) what would you reccomend for dispersion.
some options i have seen that interest me are :

and 2) is it better to just extended the tubing so it lays flat against the wall to circulate the wort over the top of the bed so theres less spraying/ oxygenation during the mash

like this :

is it better to do something like this to keep the return under / at the level of the liquid so it doesnt splah as much.

i guess im asking a hot side oxygen question also .

thanks

 

[Whisky River]

Does your system have a “top plate”? A lot of the AIO systems come with a perforated top plate to help distribute the recirculation. Lots of people choose not to use them so I bet you could find o e for cheep/free if your system is the same diameter as most others are.

 

[Broken Crow]

Maybe something here can work for you;
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/mash-caps-let-me-see-what-you-got.729507/

 

[fluketamer]

Does your system have a “top plate”? A lot of the AIO systems come with a perforated top plate to help distribute the recirculation. Lots of people choose not to use them so I bet you could find o e for cheep/free if your system is the same diameter as most others are.

yeah i have that pan but it still made a channel in the bed. im thinking if i just extend the tube to the pan it should disperse it better. i was wondering if i get a dispersing arm like on eof the ones in the pictures if its a bad idea to increase the splashing. on my first batch it splashed around alot during recirc and im drinkin the beer now so i guess it didint make a noticeable difference to me.

im going to prolly get this thing.

i saw people use them for wort recirc and also for wort aeration on transfer to FV

i was just thinking if a bunch or you responded "no dont aerate the wort during mash infusion " than i would have shied away from one of these and just extended the tube to lay flat on top of the pan

thanks

 

[Whisky River]

yeah i have that pan but it still made a channel in the bed. im thinking if i just extend the tube to the pan it should disperse it better. i was wondering if i get a dispersing arm like on eof the ones in the pictures if its a bad idea to increase the splashing. on my first batch it splashed around alot during recirc and im drinkin the beer now so i guess it didint make a noticeable difference to me.

im going to prolly get this thing.

View attachment 839194

i saw people use them for wort recirc and also for wort aeration on transfer to FV

i was just thinking if a bunch or you responded "no dont aerate the wort during mash infusion " than i would have shied away from one of these and just extended the tube to lay flat on top of the pan

thanks

What you’re asking sounds dangerously close to…do you believe in damage from hot side aeration?
No way I’m going to touch that with the proverbial 10 foot mash paddle!

Look up the controversy on hot side aeration and see what you think. For me, I think there are bigger things to worry about, at least until I get everything else in the process perfected.

 

[Stikius]

yeah i have that pan but it still made a channel in the bed. im thinking if i just extend the tube to the pan it should disperse it better. i was wondering if i get a dispersing arm like on eof the ones in the pictures if its a bad idea to increase the splashing. on my first batch it splashed around alot during recirc and im drinkin the beer now so i guess it didint make a noticeable difference to me.

im going to prolly get this thing.

View attachment 839194

i saw people use them for wort recirc and also for wort aeration on transfer to FV

i was just thinking if a bunch or you responded "no dont aerate the wort during mash infusion " than i would have shied away from one of these and just extended the tube to lay flat on top of the pan

thanks

My AIO came with one of these but I've not used it for some time. Just extended the tubing as you suggested instead

 

[JohnDBrewer]

I don't have an aio, but a 3 vessel RIMS, keggles. I mash (and fly sparge) just like the last picture, hose laying on top of the grain bed, whirlpooling. The key I found on my system was keeping at least 2 inches of water above the grain bed for recirculating. I don't believe I have much channeling, as my mash efficiency consistently runs in the 80's for 5g batches.