Storing Grain

[Spiesy]

You rock, thanks mate.

 

[Cocko]

These seem good and cheap to but at 50L, it would not quite fit a full bag.....

$10.

 

[treefiddy]

There's a deli near the corner of Holmes st and Moreland road in Brunswick East that advertises cheap (maybe $15) for big food grade drums. I keep meaning to jump in there but I never do.

If you're in the area it'd be worth checking out.

 

[lukiferj]

I also use the Handi Pails from Bunnings. 2 buckets per sack fits perfectly. Easier to move around too.

 

[TidalPete]

I am keen on getting a few of those white, squarish drums shown in Post 10.
Last ones from my LHBS held 28 Kg of dried malt. Are these the same size?

In a short-of-space brewery square shits over round any time.

 

[Nick JD]

Just a quick point I found - if you put your spent grain in your garden ... and then stop for a while ... the rodent population you've flourished will move inside.

I put spent grain in the wheelie bin now.

 

[Edak]

Just get onto ebay and search for food drum. Plenty about for 20 bucks and under...

 

[QldKev]

Here's how I've converted to store my bulk grain, an old 700L chest freezer. I leave the drain plug open with some flyscreen over it, and then drop a bag over that. Shut the lid and nothing is getting in. When you open the lid the smell is awesome.




QldKev

 

[Nibbo]

Here's how I've converted to store my bulk grain, an old 700L chest freezer. I leave the drain plug open with some flyscreen over it, and then drop a bag over that. Shut the lid and nothing is getting in. When you open the lid the smell is awesome.

grain_storage.jpg


QldKev

I do the same as Qldkev...i also have thrown in a bunch of those moisture absorbing gel sacks in their just to try help the cause. My chesty was my keg fridge til she couldn't cool no more. I also use our green bin (the organic bin) as we don't have any greens to put in it so my extra grain fits in lovley. And yes, its a great smell opening them up.

 

[breakbeer]

Just a quick point I found - if you put your spent grain in your garden ... and then stop for a while ... the rodent population you've flourished will move inside.

Yep, this happened to me & I'm only just rid of the little feckers

 

[Byran]

I had an Issue recently with Sawtooth grain beetle. Lent my mill to a mate who had some old grain....really old grain. He said he had to throw the batch cause it was full of beetles when he milled it.
I got my mill back and it looked clean, but I found that every time I opened the container i stored it in there were hoards of fresh beetles coming out. I stressed out about the grain I had stored and it getting infested but it seemed ok in the containers I had. I ended up pulling down my mill and hopper and scorching the whole thing bit by bit with my map gas torch to kill eggs. And sprayed all around the shed with a pyrethrin spray . Seems to have done the trick but It goes to show that grain cannot be stored for too long as there may be potential for infestation from inside the husks when you buy them or from outside influences. All my grain is stored in airtight containers......... But I think Its good to make sure you rotate your batches If you dont use some grains for a while.

 

[Phoney]

Easiest way to kill beetles, weavels, pantry moths etc is to freeze them to death. If you use a freezer either for your fermentation or a kegerator and you have an infestation, set it to -20C, stick your grain and your mill and all of your other bits and pieces that might be harbouring eggs in there overnight and they'll be all dead as a doornail.

I bought these storage tubs recently from supercheap auto, they were 3 for $20 ($6.66 ea). They fit a 25kg sack of grain inside perfectly and they're quite sturdy in that I can easily stack them 3 or 4 high with 25kgs in each. While not completely air tight, the lid locks down pretty tight and then I have the grain sacks zipped up shut with cable ties. Touch wood no pests have found their way inside yet.

Outside / underneath the shed I keep a little bowl full of wheat laced with Bromadiolone. You can buy it by the kilo from produce store. Shits bright green and rats cant resist it, they eat it, get thirsty and then go searching for water. As soon as they drink they die. It wipes out the entire neighbourhoods population of rats. Just make sure its out of reach from pets.

 

[Byran]

Ha ha I dont have a box freezer but I dont have a rat problem either......yet. Yeh Ive never had a problem with bugs myself until now. Freezing all your grain is a nice friendly way to kill them if you dont like poisons. But the blow torch action seems to have done the trick........ I think the screw top lid wine barrels are pretty hard to fit in the freezer if you get them crawling with bugs? :blink:

 

[Bribie G]

Hate those bugs - join up now and get full citizenship.


On topic, I get my base domestic ale malt from Marks Home Brew and if you buy a "sack" (no affiliation) because he gets his Malteurop ale and lager malts in bulk containers, it comes to you in a really neat 2 sturdy boxes with a very tough plastic 12.5k plastic sausage sack of grian in each box which has been dispensed out of a chute and sealed up at the premises. Awesome way of storing your bulk grain, and proof against even an attack from Klendathu bugs. I'm saving my boxes and bags and will actually be reusing the system to compactly store my MO and other malts as I get them in the conventional sacks.




edit; and you can flush the "sausage bags" with CO2 then crimp off at the top. brill.

 

[Aydos]

I store my grain in a 200l drum. Works great and holds around 5 sacks I reckon. I can get more if anyone is interested.

 

[Desert Brewer]

Hi all , i store my grains in an old esky and or a 200 litre tub within the original bags with their plastic liners. The esky and tub are then placed in what i think will be the coolest part of the shed. Is there a ratio or a % of grain deterioration like there is for hops. Do grains loose the diastic power the longer they are stored?

Fresh is obviously best, but not always achievable and to bulk buy grains really keeps the price down but it is kind of pointless if the last 1/4 of your grain isnt in a suitable condition to hit the OGs we are trying hit because its been stored a month or two too long .

I assume there is a rule of thumb - just not sure what it is.

Cheers,

DB

 

[hea473]

Supercheap auto have those 25lt pails for $10 bucks up here that's all I use. :drinks:

 

[talco92]

In case Anyone was wondering, the 25L water drum from bunnings does have an o-ring. No sure how airtight it'll be, but I'm going to pick one up from them this afternoon and also a sediment reducing tap and a bung+airlock and see if I can't make a very cheap fermenter (total $32)

 

[Lord Raja Goomba I]

In case Anyone was wondering, the 25L water drum from bunnings does have an o-ring. No sure how airtight it'll be, but I'm going to pick one up from them this afternoon and also a sediment reducing tap and a bung+airlock and see if I can't make a very cheap fermenter (total $32)

$16 fermenters from bunnings are standard practice here. Airlocks and bungs are not (tip: do a search for "airlock +kitten" and all will be revealed.

I personally like the 30L ones as I used to brew 25L lots of beer, commensurate with Craftbrewer's $1 per kg discount for ordering 5kg+ of a grain.

 

[QldKev]

Yep, search on here for "bunnings fermenter"