Loosing the will!!

[phill71]

Help Please!!

I started all grain brewing last year and used to use one fermenting bucket inside another, with holes drilled in the bottom for my mash tun.

It was pretty lo-tech stuff but worked a treat.

The thing is I've now 'upgraded' to a 30ltr coolbox, which I've added a valve-tap and a stainless braided hose for the filter.

As far as I can tell it's the same (or similar) design as I've seen hundreds of times on this forum, aswell as youtube etc...but everytime I've used it (last 4 brews) I have had a stuck sparge!

On opening the valve it stops running within 2 or 3 ltrs of run-off.

The only way I've been able to get it unstuck is to top up with the sparge water,stir it all up and work the braided filter back and forth with a stick, but this disturbs the grain bed badly and the runnings are as cloudy as dishwater and full of tiny bits, which must be having a bad effect on final product.

It's an absolute nightmare...What am I doing wrong? Why does it keep sticking? How does your braided filter work?

 

[Maxxyjazz]

Hello,

A mate of mine had the same problem. He seemed to think that the grains were crushing the hose and therefore stopping the flow. He simply changed the hose for a piece of copper pipe with slits in.


M

 

[jonnymorris]

Either that or the grains are blocking the braid. I have copper pipe with slits on the underside and it works a treat.

 

[WelshPaul]

I used to have a braided steel filter on my previous mashtun. They really need to have a spiral of thick wire inside them to prevent the hose from being squashed by the grain and water. Even then they can still clog up from time to time.
If they do become clogged, just blow hard into the hose (make sure that it is elevated above the level of the wort when you do this!) to dislodge anything that has gathered around the braided hose inside the mashtun - that will get things going again.

 

[BIGJIM72]

False bottom & a mash bag.Job done

 

[loady]

or the twelve in false bottom from the sponsor above....I get no trub with 50ltr brews using it... sucks the bottom of boiler

 

[BrewBilly]

I have seen a couple of videos on youtube that use a braided hose as a filter, each one used thick wire that had been wrapped around a pen/pencil and then the coiled wire was inserted into the braided hose. This technique seemed to serve two functions: 1-give you the ability to better shape the braided hose inside the mash tun and 2-prevent the weight of the grain collapsing the hose.

Its worth a go since you already have the braided hose.

 

[Buster]

Could I ask what size braided hose are you using and what length ??