Hi from Wellington, New Zealand

Hi all!
Magnus from Wellington, New Zealand. I'm brand new to All-Grain brewing - did my first brew yesterday.

I'm using a Robobrew from Keg King in Australia. It's essentially a mash tun and electric kettle in one, like a Grainfather but without the circulation pump. And half the price.

All went well apart from a stuck mash... so I'm on the hunt for a solution to that for my next brew day. One that does't involve rice hulls as these are impossible to come by in New Zealand. :-(

Anyway - hope to benefit from the collected wisdom of the forum and of course sharing what little I know.

My wife built me a brewery space in the laundry for my 50th while I was away on a business trip. It's not huge but perfect for the Robobrew setup - just need another level built for the hot liquor tank:

All went well apart from a stuck mash... so I'm on the hunt for a solution to that for my next brew day. One that does't involve rice hulls as these are impossible to come by in New Zealand. :-(

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Could be that your grind was a bit too tight. You need the barley hulls to be mostly intact while crushing the grain inside.

Thanks, my local home brew store suggested double milling the grain might be beneficial but I'll put forward your suggestion as well. They mill it for me. I'm also investing in a better paddle for my next brew as someone suggested what I had wasn't appropriate.

Live and learn.

I'd agree with @Maine; it's your grind, not your mash paddle. Double grinding can help ensure you're getting the most efficiency out of a home-brew setup, but chew the husks up too much and you'll gum up the works. Try grinding your whole grain bill, then grinding 50% of it a second time. Mix the grist well before it goes in the tun. If is gets stuck again, next time re-grind only 25% or your grain.

I use a Corona mill, and it took some trial and error to find a good setting. I could tighten it a bit more for better efficiency, but like Mofo said it may gum up the works. Last Saturday I made a wheat ale and used rice hulls, but you said that is not an option for you.  I definitely think the double-grind was the culprit. Personally I'd take the opposite route that Mofo suggests and go with grinding the whole thing once. Then if that doesn't gum things up dry grinding a portion twice and see what happens. I prefer to err on the side of caution, but that's just me. Let us know what you do for your next batch and how it comes out.