Floating lid?

[jpitts38]

Has anyone used a floating lid in their (drinking water cooler) mash tun? I'm gathering stuff to start all grain brewing. I was thinking of buying a thick plastic cutting board and cutting it to fit the cooler, drilling a hole for digital temp probe and maybe putting a handle on it. You know to make a floating lid. I got a 10 gallon cooler and was thinking it may cut out the head space and retain heat better. Has anyone tried this and is it worth the trouble?

Thanks

 

[zachattack]

There have been a few posts here asking similar questions. I have not tried it, so I can't answer your first question, but IMO it's not worth the trouble. I've never lost more than 1 degree during my mash in a 10 gallon round cooler tun, even going up to a 90 minute mash. I see no need to put a "floating lid" over the mash or use a temperature probe, although of course this is a hobby so if you enjoy spending the time tinkering with these things, go ahead

IME as long as the cooler is preheated (I just heat my strike water 5 degrees hotter and wait a few minutes to dough in) and you hit your mash temp initially, you can walk away for at least 90 minutes and not worry about heat loss.