OK. Please explain the difference, if any, when making your own mash tun? Specifically the filter. PVC pipe, copper, washer hose, bazooka tube, false bopttom and so on. Is there a difference? Or rather is there a BIG difference?
By filter, I think you mean manifold. To start to answer that question, you need to know a couple of things first.. 1) Are you planning to build a rectangular tun or cylindrical? 2) Are you planning to batch sparge or fly sparge?
There doesn't have to be. If you plan on batch sparging, a rectangle cooler is great. Easy to stir. You can use a washer hose/ bazooka and get 80% eff. with the right crush on your grain. It sounds like people are happy with the PVC/copper pipes, but don't do much better on efficiency. Batch sparging is batch sparging. Maybe this is a better way to go for fly sparging. If you fly sparge/continuously sparge, you'd probably do better with a round cooler. Channeling is less likely. If you do it right you get an extra 5-8% eff. IMO, on a homebrew scale it's not worth the time, equipment, effort.
Rectangular Batch sparge Thanks! I'm leaning that way. Rectangular cooler with a washer hose. Thanks!
In that case I'd make life easy and simple and use a braided stainless steel toilet supply line. Similar to a bazooka but way cheaper. Some people have reported their braids collapsing, but it has never happened to me, so YMMV.
I've just stuffed it with CPVC, and seen a few videos of people making a steel coil out of SS wire that they insert into the inside to help it from collapsing. I don't see a decrease in flow.
Agreed- And if the braid is collapsing they are using the wrong braid or an inferior stainless braid. I've see a few people using the grey plastic ones instead of the stainless hose by mistake. On another note, I've done batches with over 40 lbs of grain and have never had my hose braid collapse. It looks like I've ran it through a grinder but it still works like new and I think I've run over 100 batches through that one. I've purchased a spare but it sits there new and unused.
14awg copper or ss coiled around a pen and fed into the braid has worked perfectly in my system. The guy at Lowe's didn't even want to bother with the figuring how much this 2' stretch would cost so he just let me walk with it. Used my savings on a jawbreaker on the way out the door.
Great info and thanks! How about a false bottom for a converted rectangular cooler? Possible? Better efficiancy?
If you are batch sparging, a false bottom won't be any more efficient than a braid. Not even sure how you would build a FB for a rectagular tun.
