SS false bottom or SS braid

[DReimerMT]

I am looking into building myself a mash tun so that I can start all grain brewing. I am wondering if buying a false bottom would do a better job than using the SS braid method. Has any one on here had experience with both?

 

[mfraier]

As long as you use something in the ss braid to keep it from colapsing it works great. You can use wire wound around a pen for that. Make sure the wire is stainless.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftY_HZAFJFc]How to make a Mash Tun from a cooler - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Zamial]

I use both lol.

I have a home made false bottom in my keggle MLT and braids in my 2 round 5 - 10 gallon round rubbermaid coolers. The end result is pretty much the same.

With a false bottom it is easier to get a stuck sparge, once stuck it becomes a major PITA to deal with. With a braid you can just stick your mash paddle in and move the grain bed a little to unstick it in most cases.

The false bottom is more durable for sure. I replace the braid in the small cooler 1 time per year and the big cooler I think would do better with a FB than the braid. For whatever reason my braid in my larger cooler gets the %#*)@ kicked out of it and looks in bad shape pretty quickly.

Starting out I would say go with a braid. You can always change it over at a later time. This will also open up some extra cash for other equipment as FB are not exactly cheap to buy.

FWIW there are also manifolds. These are normally pipes with slits in the bottom. I always forget about these but these also will work great and are inbetween the cost of a braid and a FB. Search for it I am sure you will find a bunch of DIY ones here on HBT.

 

[jetmac]

I have never had my braided line collapse using it in a 36qt Coleman xtreme cooler.
If my sparge were to ever stick I would blow compressed air back through the ball lock valve

 

[Zamial]

As long as you use something in the ss braid to keep it from colapsing it works great. You can use wire wound around a pen for that. Make sure the wire is stainless or at least galvanized.

I do not suggest stuffing things into the braid and anything galvinized will almost instantly corrode when exposed to the wort. I have never had one colapse.

 

[ajf]

Braid is much cheaper than false bottom, but won't last as long.
Braid works fine for batch sparging, but not for fly sparging.
Braid fits round, square or rectangular coolers. False bottom only fits round.
I tried both while playing with batch sparging, and they both worked equally well; but I found fly sparging to be easier (because I'm used to it) so I use the false bottom.

-a.

 

[DReimerMT]

Braid is much cheaper than false bottom, but won't last as long.
Braid works fine for batch sparging, but not for fly sparging.
Braid fits round, square or rectangular coolers. False bottom only fits round.
I tried both while playing with batch sparging, and they both worked equally well; but I found fly sparging to be easier (because I'm used to it) so I use the false bottom.

-a.

Why will a braid not work for fly sparging?

 

[ajf]

Channeling. (Uneven flow of the sparge water through the grain bed, where some parts of the grain bed get rinsed well, and other parts hardly get rinsed at all.)
See How to Brew - By John Palmer - Appendix D - Building a Mash/Lauter Tun for details.
Palmer is talking about manifolds, but a braid can be thought of as a manifold consisting of a single pipe.

-a.

 

[jbwebst]

Why will a braid not work for fly sparging?

FWIW, I used a SS braid in my 5 gallon Rubbermaid MLT and on my very first all grain I hit 76% efficiency right off the bat (with 11 pounds of grain and fly sparging).

I'm not about to argue "which is better" - it's really up to you to decide what works best for you. Most of the topics in any of the hobby forums can be likened to the ole "Ford -vs- Chevy -vs- Dodge" debate....

 

[Reno_eNVy]

I've had the same ss braid in my 12 gallon mlt for 4 years, hitting 75-80% efficiency. Never did it get crushed or compressed (and that mlt has been filled to the brim) and the only time it ever gets stuck is when I use pumpkin.

 

[Hebby5]

I had similar questions about choosing a FB, Braid, or Manifold for MLT.

Part of the answer (IMO) will be your selection for the MLT. I ended up with a rectangular cooler (48QT Coleman) and that pointed me more in the direction of a SS Braid or Manifold. I do know some folks that make a FB for Square Picnic Cooler/MLT. If you have a Boil Kettle or Round Cooler for you MLT. I probably would have chosen a FB.

My SS Braid is for a Hot Water Heater and have a copper coil of wire inside it to prevent stuck sparges. So far, so good.

Hope these 2 cents have helped.

Good luck with AG.

Chris

 

[hmmmbeer]

I've had the same ss braid in my 12 gallon mlt for 4 years, hitting 75-80% efficiency. Never did it get crushed or compressed (and that mlt has been filled to the brim) and the only time it ever gets stuck is when I use pumpkin.

Damn pumkin brews... They get everyone!

I used that youtube vid. that was already posted but changed it a bit... Works amazing for me (I've only done a few AG batches though).

PS. I thought I was addicted to brewing before I started AG brewing... Now its all I read about, all I research (stir plate for yeast farming next) and all wife and co-workers hear about... They don't mind as long as i share.

 

[DReimerMT]

Thank you guys so much for the information.

 

[Rowdy]

As long as you use something in the ss braid to keep it from colapsing it works great. You can use wire wound around a pen for that. Make sure the wire is stainless or at least galvanized.

Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftY_HZAFJFc

Please do not DO NOT use anything galvanized anywhere that touches your wort or water. It can brake down and release zinc and in high enough concentration will really ruin your day.

 

[weirdboy]

As long as you use something in the ss braid to keep it from colapsing it works great.

As a counterpoint I have been using a SS braid for years, and never had to stick anything in it to keep it from collapsing. Also, as mentioned above, DO NOT USE GALVANIZED METAL IN BREWING.

 

[Reno_eNVy]

As a counterpoint I have been using a SS braid for years, and never had to stick anything in it to keep it from collapsing. Also, as mentioned above, DO NOT USE GALVANIZED METAL IN BREWING.

This

 

[AleFred]

This

Yup

 

[brew2enjoy]

I just did my first all grain last weekend using a 10gal rubbermaid cooler with s/s braid. Grain bill was 17 lbs (IIPA) and it works flawlessly. I inspected it while cleaning and it looks fine.

 

[hmmmbeer]

So I've been using the video's way for my MLT but couldn't for the life of me find any SS wire to put into the braid. After many stores and deep searching I finally decided to use 10 gage copper wire ($.36 a foot) to make a "spring".

 

[Bobby_M]

Copper is ok but just make sure you do a little starsan soak once in a while to get the green patina off it. You can get stainless wire at Mcmaster. It's commonly called lock wire as it's used to lock fasteners on vibrating equipment and aircraft.

 

[Jdm5209]

So, like dreimer, I'm also planning to build an MLT to start doing AG. I've been trying to do a lot of research (mostly flyguy's DIY here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/cheap-easy-10-gallon-rubbermaid-mlt-conversion-23008/).

Also wondering about ss braid vs false bottom. Would likely be doing batch sparge. I was planning on just getting a ss water heater braid, but the original flyguy thread had issues with stuck sparges and having to insert tubing. So question is: can I get by with ss water heater braid (nothing inserted) vs inserting a "spring" (ss or copper, no galvanized, I know) vs using a false bottom. I plan on doing a variety of beers, but including big IIPAs and RIS. Thanks.

EDIT: just reread the original flyguy thread. The tubing insertion was more related to corrosion of hose clamps. Curiou what others experience/solutions have been.

 

[Komodo]

FWIW-I had a SS braid i my MT and it worked perfectly. I started using a bag in there, and moved the braid over to the kettle because I was having some kettle draining probs. It was horrible and stuck with pellets. I've just built a manifold for the kettle to see if that helps.