Draining MLT, there must be a better way

[mendozer]

I have a cooler MLT with a bulkhead on it. Over the years I've had a manifolds on the bottom, then just the 90 elbow, and now I use the 90 elbow with a grain bag. I use to do gravity draining which requires two buckets and some timing. Now I use a pump but I swear I've had volume issues ever since I started using a pump. Some gets lost in the hoses, sometimes the pump doesn't suck it all out of the cooler so I'm having to drain the grain bag with gravity then pour that into the kettle.

I feel like every improvement I've made took a step forward at first only to find flaws in it later.

Is there a new or better way to drain that I've been missing out on?

 

[JLeuck64]

I've run through 2 versions of a Mash Tun Cooler. The first was just a simple mesh screen for a filter and I tipped the cooler to get as much out as possible. The second one I went with a larger volume and built a manifold for and I don't tip it. I was and still am happy with the small loss of liquid in both designs, literally just a few quarts. I am curious what losses you were experiencing with the manifold version of your MT cooler?

 

[mendozer]

Maybe half a quart. But the speed bothers me. I drain with the pump then air bubbles get in with 2 quarts are left. Gravity had less dead space then pump

 

[wilserbrewer]

Maybe half a quart. But the speed bothers me. I drain with the pump then air bubbles get in with 2 quarts are left. Gravity had less dead space then pump

Your pump is draining the tun quicker, such that there is more wort still draining through the grain when the pump sucks air through the grain bed.

A few brews ago I tipped my tun and allowed it to drip for about a half hour and was amazed how much more wort was produced.

I suggest just let gravity work and ignore it for a half hour, then add to kettle.

 

[dmcman73]

As wilsbrewer stated, you're pumping faster than your TUN can drain. Some home brewers get through this by putting a Lauter Grant in place. They basically get a small pot (usually an asparagus steamer pot), punch a hole at the base of it and add a fitting to hook their pump too and then and let the Mash drain into that from the top. Once the grant is filled, start pumping slowly and you can keep a visual on the grant to see where the level is at so you can adjust throttle the pump accordingly.

Some brewers had really gone all out by adding a high / low float switches to turn the pump and and off. Once the wort trips the high float, the pump kicks on and starts pumping. Once the wort in the Grant trips the low float switch, the pump goes off.

 

[mendozer]

My pump is rigged with a PWM too, but it's not sensitive enough for adjustments for low or high. I guess I'll just pump then gravity drain afterwards. Sooner or later I'm gonna rebuild my stand into a tree design to allow for this to be more efficient. So much for automation!!

 

[wilserbrewer]

Sooner or later I'm gonna rebuild my stand into a tree design to allow for this to be more efficient. So much for automation!!

Yea ok...I built a 3 tier a few years ago, wasn't long until I hacked it down to a two tier and used a simple one gallon pitcher to transfer the sparge water.

IMO 3 tier or tree design takes the HLT inconveniently high....ymmv.

I think a 2 tier, w the MLT gravity draining the to the kettle, and either manually moving or pumping (optional, moving a few gallons sparge water manually is as easier than dealing w a pump IMO) is the friendliest / easiest set up IMO.

 

[kh54s10]

Yea ok...I built a 3 tier a few years ago, wasn't long until I hacked it down to a two tier and used a simple one gallon pitcher to transfer the sparge water.

IMO 3 tier or tree design takes the HLT inconveniently high....ymmv.

I use a 3 tier. I have added a water line through a charcoal filter across the ceiling of my porch to fill the HLT. The HLT is on a turkey fryer burner and has a sight glass. Open a valve to fill, heat the water, open a valve to drain = easy peasy!

For my mash tun I have a round 10 gallon water cooler with a water heater braid. I vorlauf and start the drain with the valve 1/4 open. After a few seconds I open it all the way. I takes at most 15 minutes to drain to a trickle. I tip it and only have wet grain left when done.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Ok I concede you have overcome the typical shortcomings of a 3 tier. With a proper water supply to the HLT , a sight glass, and a large out flow valve, I could see it being a pleasure to brew on. I never took it to that level. Cheers

 

[mendozer]

I have a sight glass on mine. I did come across a plan online about staggering the pots so the valves are just barely above the one below This allowed for the HLT to be about 6'2" I think which is doable for me. I use the hose to fill it up anyhow. Or since I have a pump, I could pump water from HLT into MLT. But then I don't solve my other issue of water being lost in the line. eh, IDK. Gravity was always easier.

 

[dmcman73]

Since you already have a pump, you can do a "hybrid 3 tier" (not sure what else to call it). I have my HLT way down at the bottom and the Mashtun just above my BK to do a gravity drain into it. I then pump sparge water up to my MT.

 

[mendozer]

do you have a set amount of liquid you know is in your lines to account for that?