Mash tun question

[TromboneGuy]

I've been using a 52qt rectangular Igloo cooler as my mash run on my last few batches. Converted it myself with a ball valve, some fittings, and a bazooka type screen from AHS.

The problem is the drain hole in the cooler is a good 2 or 3 inches above the bottom of the cooler. I've been getting horrible efficiency just from the fact that the bottom gallon or two of the cooler won't drain during sparging.

So I'm looking for suggestions. Should I put the stock plastic stopper back in the cooler and drill a new drain hole lower down on the other end? Or should I ditch it and get a round cooler? Or should I just pick up a big brew kettle from brewhemoth and a false bottom and go from there?

 

[day_trippr]

Why not just fit a dip tube to your ball valve, extend down to the bottom of the tun, and connect your bazooka screen to that?

As long as you hook a couple/few feet of tubing to the ball valve to drain into your kettle, the siphon will pull beer up from below the height of the ball valve...

Cheers!

 

[TromboneGuy]

Hmmm. Not a bad idea. I'll see what I can find. Right now the screen connects to a 1/2" NPT fitting. (Not that I'm not still eyeing that brew kettle. I've been meaning to upgrade to a SS kettle anyway...)

 

[wilserbrewer]

Simple approach would be to just tip the cooler...even a large dead space would not kill efficiency...might want to look elsewhere as well...

 

[TromboneGuy]

Simple approach would be to just tip the cooler...even a large dead space would not kill efficiency...might want to look elsewhere as well...

I've been doing that too. Batch sparging, getting a good crush on the grains, nailing temps and volumes, but my last batch should have hit around 1.070 OG with just 70% efficiency and I only got 1.052.

 

[wilserbrewer]

So I'm looking for suggestions. Should I put the stock plastic stopper back in the cooler and drill a new drain hole lower down on the other end?

This is a good idea. However, I find it hard to believe that the MT is the source of your problem. Crush??? Temps??? Procedure???

I know you said your crush and temps were good, but I had to ask! Doublecheck everything

 

[Nashbrewer]

Measure out 4 gallons of water and add those to MLT with no grain. Drain it as normal and see how much is left behind.

Then tip it and compare how much more you are able to drain out. Try to calculate that extra liquid into your next brew and see if tipping the MLT will really help(two cups of wort, half a gallon, etc). Also when you calculate your sparge water are you including the dead space estimate? (4 gallons to sparge to hit volume, add 1 gallon for dead space).

This will dilute what is left behind and should decrease the loss of the dead space.

With those things if you can't get a good efficiency I would check other things as suggested by wilserbrewer.