|
This is the first version I tried. It is an aluminum "AirBake" pizza pan with some of the outside edge removedso that it would fit into the mash/lauter tun. The riser sticking up from the pan worked to prevent the pump from cavitating on a stuck mash and it also worked as a handle as the pan would often get stuck in the bottom of the tun. This version of the bottom was quite structurally sound but I didnt feel as though I was getting enough flow through the grain bed, evenly and it would plug up frequently. So I had a "brilliant" idea... |
|
In the second incarnation I removed 4 wedge shaped pieces from the pizza pan leaving a 1 1/4" X in the pan with about the same width around the outside edge. The riser stayed in place. The whole pan was covered with plain ol' hardware store variety aluminum window screen and pop riveted in place. Looked good, but even at this point I had reservations about the structural stability of the bottom. This worked fine on a light (9 pound) test batch. On the following batch, 23 pounds, I could hear the screen tearing loose from the pan and my pump was having a tough time pumping all the grain that went through. Now, granted I might have milled the grain a little tight, but the riser should have prevented the pump from compacting the grain bed too much. After finishing the batch as best I could, I dumped the grain out of the tun and saw the damage. The screen was almost totally ripped out and the pizza pan was totally collapsed. Most of my plumbing was plugged up with grain. This really bugged the hell out of me. I actually laid awake at night thinking about what to try next. Then the idea for the next false bottom hit me. My present false bottom should be strong enough to hold a very large grain load and flow enough liquid to allow good recirculation. |
Use your browsers BACK button to return.