• Welcome to the new forum! We upgraded our forum software with a host of new boards, capabilities and features. It is also more secure.
    Jump in and join the conversation! You can learn more about the upgrade and new features here.

My first stuck Sparge!

PetenNewburg

Grandmaster Brewer
Joined
Feb 1, 2011
Messages
148
Reaction score
0
Location
Newburg, PA
I had my first stuck Sparge yesterday.  I think it was in part due to 1 year old, very dry grain.  After grinding 14 lb. of grain, everything within 6 feet had a layer of very fine barley flour.  Q:  Should I have run the grain through a coarse sifter to remove the fine dust.
  At my first decoction, I needed to draw out 7.5 liter; it stopped flowing out of the mash tun at 4 liter.  A layer of flour about an inch thick and a inch below the surface of the grist was broken up with some vigorous stirring.  All went well the next 2 decoctions.  At Mash out I needed 25.5 liter of Wort, first 5 came out fine then nothing.  It took 2 hours of gently scraping the manifold through the grain to get the required amount.  Q:  Should I have not stirred so vigorously?
  I did use rice hulls, about half a cup.  Should I have used more due to the “flour”?
  Is there a proper sequence in adding the rice hulls, water,  grain to the mash tun?  Is there a grain to rice hull ratio?
 
Back
Top