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Author Topic: How well do you clean your mash tun?  (Read 6275 times)

Offline reverseapachemaster

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #15 on: January 15, 2015, 08:20:59 am »
If I clean it then how am I supposed to infuse the smell of must into my beer?
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Offline majorvices

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #16 on: January 15, 2015, 08:31:49 am »
If I clean it then how am I supposed to infuse the smell of must into my beer?

Once he cleaned his MT his beer just wasn't ever the same.... :(

Offline Stevie

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #17 on: January 15, 2015, 08:37:34 am »
If I clean it then how am I supposed to infuse the smell of must into my beer?

Once he cleaned his MT his beer just wasn't ever the same.... :(
This is how I treat my smoker. Only thing I clean is the water pan. The grates get a quick brushing when hot.

Offline erockrph

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #18 on: January 15, 2015, 09:22:47 am »
Normally, I just give it a couple of hot water rinses after the mash and call it a day. Once it starts getting grody-looking I'll throw in half a lid of PBW into the hot water and soak my BIAB bag inside as well. That happens every few months or so.
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Offline HoosierBrew

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #19 on: January 15, 2015, 09:30:05 am »

This is how I treat my smoker. Only thing I clean is the water pan. The grates get a quick brushing when hot.

Same here.
Jon H.

Offline dbarber

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #20 on: January 15, 2015, 09:50:34 am »
Mash, dump spent grains, rinse, repeat.  I never use soap or chemicals, ever.

+1.  I wouldn't want to remove that nice patina by scrubbing.
Dave Barber
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Offline denny

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #21 on: January 15, 2015, 10:20:14 am »
Reading the recent Teflon and PBW thread got me thinking.  I am meticulous about cleaning my kettle, immersion chiller, pump and lines, and fermenter.  But, when it comes to my cooler style mash tun, I just rinse it out, dry it and store it. I guess I feel that everything that comes out of it gets boiled anyway so I'm not that meticulous about cleaning the cooler or soaking it with cleanser. Am I making a big mistake here that I'm not thinking about?

I hose it out after use and let it air dry.  Once every 3-5 years, I fill it with hot Oxiclean, whether it needs it or not!  ;)
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Offline AmandaK

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #22 on: January 15, 2015, 10:31:38 am »
Since mine is a stainless keggle on a hard plumbed CIP system, it receives the same treatment as my HLT and BK.

Vacuum out MLT, disconnect from hard plumbing and take off stand, wash out extra particles, put back on stand and connect to hard plumbing. Transfer hot PBW from HLT into MT via pump, then recirc PBW and hold it at 122F (no reason other than it's warm and usually what the hot water is coming out of the HLT) via the RIMS tube. Then transfer that hot PBW into the rinsed/wiped BK. Clean water from the HLT is pumped to the MT, receirc'd, then sent to the BK. All kettles are stored with the lids off and all valves are open.

Every now and again, I run Acid #5 through the plumbing and kettles. Makes me feel better about not being able to see inside the stainless plumbing.

Seems like a lot, but since it's mostly CIP it's just pushing buttons and opening/closing valves.
Amanda Burkemper
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Offline The Professor

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #23 on: January 15, 2015, 05:36:48 pm »
I hose it out after use and let it air dry.  Once every 3-5 years, I fill it with hot Oxiclean, whether it needs it or not!  ;)

Pretty much the same here.  Hot water rinse and then letting it air dry seems sufficient.
AL
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Offline fmader

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #24 on: January 15, 2015, 06:51:49 pm »
Hmmmm... I must be the over achiever here. I scoop out the grains and feed to the neighbor's horses and give a rinse. Then I just wait until I'm done brewing. I toss a scoop of oxickean in and run my runoff from my wiry chiller into it. It serves a dual purpose as a sink too. I'll wash my other small equipment in it. Dump, rinse and air dry.
Frank

Offline Stevie

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #25 on: January 15, 2015, 07:01:08 pm »
I used mine as a sink at one time. That changed when I began to fill buckets with my chiller water. It's a great dual use.

Offline Pinski

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #26 on: January 15, 2015, 11:31:58 pm »
I spray it out with hot water and use one of those, one side is sponge/one side is plastic scrubby thingamajigs. Just enough to knock off loose dried on grains and sticky mash. Towel dry and store valves open.

Once a year disassemble, BKF the pot, soak the valves and fittings in PBW and reassemble.

Brew. Repeat.
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Offline flbrewer

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #27 on: January 16, 2015, 07:56:17 pm »
Sounds like a lot of folks here are using PBW with teflon tape...deadly!  ;D

Offline BrewBama

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #28 on: January 17, 2015, 10:00:15 am »
I simply wash the Mash Tun with the hot water that is a result of the wort cooling process.

Offline etbrew

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Re: How well do you clean your mash tun?
« Reply #29 on: January 17, 2015, 05:54:45 pm »
Hot water rinse, clean with a little dish soap and rinse.  Leave ball valve open and leave cover open until completely dry.