Weevils: Will Vacuum Bags Keep Them Out?

[cooperplace]

Bad news: I was about to start a brew and found some tiny crawling things in the crystal malt bag. I chucked that lot out, and after carefully looking in the other malts they seemed OK. Luckily I had a new bag of crystal malt on hand.

But this got me thinking: could the new vacuum bags that my wife bought to store blankets, pillows, etc, be used to store malt?

I managed to put 2 x 25kg malt bags in the jumbo size vacuum bag, and single 25kg bags just fit in the large. Then you apply the vacuum cleaner and suck all the air out.

I'll report on the long-term outcome but if anyone has any experience with this I'd be interested to hear it. Tomorrow I'll buy new storage bags before my wife finds out what I did with hers.

 

[Ross]

In a word - no.

you need to fumigate or store as cold as possible.

cheers Ross

 

[absinthe]

i would have just used it, but i know i have had a problem with weevils (not in my malts though) and they will get inside seal containers they are amazing in that respect... but for a beer i wouldn't really worry about them unless it is totally infested

 

[Spartan 117]

Why not just guy some of those food grade drums. That's what my LHBS uses to store their grain and have never seen anything out the ordinary, you could probably get some of those 15 or so litre mayonnaise containers from a restraunt or somewhere else for free and them things seal airtight.

Aaron

 

[katzke]

Like Ross said, no.

As I understnad it they do not get in the grain, the eggs are there and they hatch.

So if you put your grain in one of those bags they will still hatch as you can not get all the air out with just a vacuum cleaner.

 

[Screwtop]

Like Ross said, no.

As I understnad it they do not get in the grain, the eggs are there and they hatch.

So if you put your grain in one of those bags they will still hatch as you can not get all the air out with just a vacuum cleaner.

Katzke is correct. Doubt if you would get enough air out to stop them hatching and living for some time. You can microwave the grain for a minute to kill the weevils but then have to remove them somewhow.

Screwy

 

[MHB]

Domestic vacuum definitely not, tho thats how I store slower selling specialty malt, like Torrefied Wheat that weevils love, enough vacuum will explode both mealy moth, weevils and their eggs.
I got onto some 400 x 800 mm, 200um thick bags that have a 100um nylon layer, they hold a third of a 25Kg bag of malt. By vacuum sealing at very low pressure (better than -0.9 bar) I find I can keep specialty malt fresh and bug free, virtually indefinitely.
Any thinner bags and there was trouble with the pointy ends of the grain being forced through the bag and puncturing it under high vacuum
High enough vacuum is a great chemical free way to store produce, but you need industrial equipment rather than domestic.

 

[Tony]

I just mash em

 

[redbeard]

I would have just mashed them too.... just a bit more protein & natural caramel colouring

 

[dr K]

I would have just mashed them too.... just a bit more protein & natural caramel colouring

dole grain makes bitter beer
bitter beer and sour
there's grief in the taste of it
there's weevils in the flour

 

[troopa]

Mash em.. its extra protein

Tom