Stuck Sparge

[jason]

Hi

I had another stuck sparge. So that makes two from my first two AGers. Its becoming abit frustrating. If the brew that I put down yesturday comes out ok, then I can say that the ill effects arising from aeration of hot wort is not true, as I filtered a cup of mash through a strainer (All 22Litres of it) and the wort got very aerated during the process.
I have read some posts that suggest reasons for stuck sparges including:
1) grain crush too fine
2) running lautering too fast
These things I can do something about in my next brew. But, I just wanted ask people out there that use a false bottom set up, if there false bottom sits flush with the bottom of the esky or pot. Mine seems to have a slight gap due to a plastic ridge running through the middle where they probably joined the to two halves of the esky. Im guessing that when I begin to drain off the wort following mashing, that the grains go through this gap and block my outlet tube. I thought about putting a lining of aluminium foil along the bottom of the esky onto which i place the false bottom directly on top, which would hopefully fill any gaps between the false bottom and the esky bottom. So does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks
J

 

[tangent]

I know how you feel. They give me the sh!ts.
Can you post a photo of your mash tun?

 

[Stuster]

It sounds like a real pain. Another thing you may want to do to avoid stuck sparges is to make sure you get the mash hot enough. Getting it into the low-mid 70s can help in some cases, and should up your efficiency as well.

Sounds like the false bottom is the problem here though. :unsure:

 

[jason]

I know how you feel. They give me the sh!ts.
Can you post a photo of your mash tun?

Sorry i cant seem to upload the pictures as theyre too large in size and i dont know how to reduce them, so I will have to describe it. I hope this helps. Its a 36 Litre cosmoplast "Keep cold" cylindrical cooler with stainless steel false bottom. I was going to mention who i bought it off, however untill i find out the problem i dont wont to say anything bad. For all I know it could be the operators fault. The false bottem when placed on a level surface is flat, however the surface of the cooler has a ridge in the middle so its not completely flat. Its noticeable when you push down on the edges of the falsebottom that it begins to rock very slightly.

The first time I did a mash, i had a grain bill of about 5Kg. So i added about 15L at to the mashtun first and then added the grain. After 90min I drained the mashtun with little problems. When I then batch sparged with i think it was 10L of water at about 77C (cant remember details) but i poured it on top of the grains waited 10min for it to settle and tried to drain the mashtun and got a stuck sparge.

The second time a did a mash, i had a grain bill of 4.2kg. I put 11L of water into the mash tun and then added the grains and gave it a mix. After 90min I did a mash out with about 6L of water at 93C. I let it settle for about 10min before i decided to drain the mashtun and got another stuck sparge. So im now thinking it may also be the way i add the sparge or mashout water ontop of the grains. I just pour it in, with no thought of being gentle. So the grains must force there way under the false bottom causing a stuck sparge. But surely the false bottoms should be more robust, and be able to withstanding sparge or mashout water being pored straight onto the grain bed, without the grains being forced under the falsebottom.

I hope my description makes sense. Its very difficult to explain whats happening. I just hope someone out there has an idea on what to do as I wouldnt have spent so much money buying a lemon.

 

[tangent]

is the grind fine?
are you using wheat?
http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...hl=mash+tun+101
If it helps here's Ken's excellent job on my mash tun.
I get a little grain under the false bottom but it's not a problem.
Randy Mosher had a small piece in Radical Brewing about a small tube connected to the false bottom to avoid getting negative pressure or something. I couldn't really get a grasp of it to tell the truth.
Anyone...?

 

[jason]

is the grind fine?
are you using wheat?
http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...hl=mash+tun+101
If it helps here's Ken's excellent job on my mash tun.
I get a little grain under the false bottom but it's not a problem.
Randy Mosher had a small piece in Radical Brewing about a small tube connected to the false bottom to avoid getting negative pressure or something. I couldn't really get a grasp of it to tell the truth.
Anyone...?

I get my grains precrushed as i dont have a grain mill so that is something i cannot control at the moment. Until i get my crankenstein . But the crush looks ok. And my grain bill for my last brew was 3.5Kg JW pale malt, 400gm JW light munich and 200gm JW light crystal. I did not use any wheat. Ive also heard that wheat can cause stuck sparges when used in large amounts. So that its something i will stay away from until i get my problem sorted.

btw, your mash tun looks really good

 

[tangent]

thanks, Ken's a champ.
ever since i supercharged my mill i'm getting too much flour (and completely uncrushed grain), so I've actually been getting a few stuck or really slow sparges lately, even with a few handfulls of rice hulls. And my efficiency dropped by about 10% which adds to the suck factor. (c'mon Brizzybrew, Papa needs a new roller mill)

The whole point with a good crush is that you almost don't need a false bottom. The grain filters itself thanks to chunks and husks and the heat helps the sugars to stay soft.
When I get a stuck sparge, I turn the tap off, add more water if needed and give everything a stir, while everything is still suspended, I turn on the tap a little bit and return anything that's not clear.
If that doesn't work then there's usually something like an airbubble kinda thing that stops everything from flowing, once you get it going it's ok. Last weekend, the ******* wouldn't flow but when I tilted the tun slightly, away she went. Dunno why. Ken did a damn fine job but I wouldn't mind getting a grasp of what Mr.Mosher was talking about.