Techniice mash tun questions

[Pickaxe]

I just got a great esky with brass ball tap for $116, 50l, ready to smash biab, but can expand to manifold when ready. With patience, you will find what you need, wouldn't rush into buying name brand, etc. Read and be flexible, the equipment will find you.


pickaxe

 

[Pickaxe]

Bunnings. $99 50l esky.

pickaxe

 

[Pickaxe]

http://aussiehomebrewer.com/index.php?/topic/null-50-l-bunnings-mash-tun---$99.

pickaxe

 

[Yob]

One more question... do you need to silicon up the old bung hole? Can I just leave it as is with the plug still in? I could always still use the plug/hole if I use the esky on a camping trip.

As Bum pointed out, that area requires extra cleaning if not sealed up, conversely to Bum being too lazy to silicone it up, I'm too lazy to give it extra cleaning every time I Brew so I siliconed mine up (food grade silicone naturally)

I don't think that plugging the bung hole (smirks) should affect if it can be used on a camping weekend, 2 reasons.

1. It's got a replacement tap.
2. You could man up and tip it over

If you really wantedd to, you could always remove the silicone plug pretty easily.

 

[donald_trub]

Got it thanks guys. You get dirty bung holes and are too lazy to clean it.

 

[bum]

It's just gonna get dirty again soon anyway.

 

[mxd]

pre-boil she'll be fine

 

[Yob]

Got it thanks guys. You get dirty bung holes and are too lazy to clean it.

I find a gentle sponging with a warm cloth to be quite relaxing, however Im just as likely to just hit it with a jet of water and smile in the knowledge that Im unlikely to get an infection from a slightly dirty bung hole...

h34r:

 

[DU99]

i had a esky surplus to my need's(got a few small ones).took out the bung and got a kit from connor breware.

 

[petesbrew]

Bumping up and old post - no point starting a new thread for this.
I'm upgrading to a bigger better mashtun at the moment, one of these techni ices we bought in a combo buy.
As far as eskies go, they're fantastic, but for these 40 & 70L jobs, you can't stand a bottle of coke or wine up in. Seriously major design flaw IMO.
Temp wise they're great at holding temps, but you have to pre chill (or heat) them to get the best use.

Anyway, here's a few pics of my copper setup at the moment. Still have to connect it up and try it out.

Initial cutting of pipe - old 25L job is now in the bin.


Pieces all cut


Cutting heaps of slots. Cheap hacksaw blades snap teeth easily. Meh.


All polished up and ready to rock!

 

[JDW81]

Looks good Pete. I had an identical setup a few years ago, and it was great.

I'd recommend doing a "wet" run to work out what your dead space is so you can what that into your calculations (mine had a couple of litres IIRC). Not an issue, just helpful to know when working out mash/sparge volumes.

JD

 

[petesbrew]

Thanks JDW,
Yep, I gave it a fill today to look for leaks, and there's a bit of deadspace there, which was to be expected. Thanks for the tip - I'll measure it up.

I haven't done any soldering on the joints - I just compressed them.

 

[petesbrew]

Maiden brewday was yesterday. The new mashtun was the shiz! Strained beautifully. Deadspace would be no more than a schooner.
First brew was an Oyster Stot. Following this up today with an AIPA.