Stu’s edited Questions thread #3 alternative grain basket for Maischfest (or similar)

[Rodcx500z]

Why do you need a grain basket to be all mesh, the one on my brewzilla gen3 only has mesh at the bottom and i get really good ifficiency, but the brewzilla does have a pump and a 6.75L dead space, can you not make your dead space bigger using stainless steel bolts and locking nuts

 

[jof]

I'm still trying to get a decent brew from my Maishfest.
I'm comparing my experience & results to BIAB on my Fullhorn.

At the moment I would say the upgrade was pointless. I've already ruled out using the cooling coil as too much faff compared to overnight chill.
I'm not tall enough to lift out the malt pipe. I've tried a ladder, but that required an assistant to put the lid ring in place. I was successful on my most recent brew using rope & pulleys, but again I had to get the ladder out to mount that on the apex of my brewing marquee to get the required height.

I have also tried a pump, but as the wort won't trickle through the malt pipe fast enough to work with my 12v pump running at 6v, with a thumbscrew clamp to further reduce flow.

I can't even reuse my Fullhorn false bottom & bazooka as it's diameter is too small.

 

[Rodcx500z]

How big is the dead space, if i remember right on my fullhorn it was very small and i used to dunk sparge

 

[jof]

How big is the dead space, if i remember right on my fullhorn it was very small and i used to dunk sparge

Fullhorn has about 3l below the false bottom & that's enough to clear the bazooka.

The Maishfest replaces false bottom with a malt pipe & the malt pipe legs are so short and spindly that you can't fit a bazooka filter to the tap. Which is a right bu66er if you prefer to use loose leaf hops.

 

[Rodcx500z]

Fullhorn has about 3l below the false bottom & that's enough to clear the bazooka.

The Maishfest replaces false bottom with a malt pipe & the malt pipe legs are so short and spindly that you can't fit a bazooka filter to the tap. Which is a right bu66er if you prefer to use loose leaf hops.

Ah right i get it now, so even using a pump to recirculate you run the risk of scorching

 

[jof]

Ah right i get it now, so even using a pump to recirculate you run the risk of scorching

No there is still a minimum liquid level in the bottom.
In my attempts to get a working process (because I don't want to be beaten by new kit) I ignored the pump & used a jug (and ladder cus I'm a short ar5e) to recirculate.

 

[Stu]

No there is still a minimum liquid level in the bottom.
In my attempts to get a working process (because I don't want to be beaten by new kit) I ignored the pump & used a jug (and ladder cus I'm a short ar5e) to recirculate.

Yes, that's basically what I'm doing to. It's a pain, and because the only holes are in the bottom, they get clogged easily, so it takes forever for the water to get back through.

Hence why I wondered if you could get one with holes that aren't in the bottom to fit.
Like this kind of thing (this is a 60L one that's designed for a fat tank)

 

[Stu]

Even one like this would be an improvement