False Bottom

[jackfire57]

Looking to make a false bottom for my 30 gal mega pot ,was thinking of useing 1/4 Plex glass . Any advice would be appreaitiated

[shadylane]

Looking to make a false bottom for my 30 gal mega pot ,was thinking of useing 1/4 Plex glass . Any advice would be appreaitiated

Good thing the question is in the "what not to use/do section".
Perforated copper or stainless steel would work for a false bottom.
Plexiglass and hot alcohol are not compatible.

Read Uncle Jessies rule #9
viewtopic.php?t=5090

[jackfire57]

What about polycarbonate

[NZChris]

Google Polycarbonate Chemical Compatibility.

Note that there are many chemicals besides ethanol in the boiler.

It releases BPA into food when above 70C.

[SaltyStaves]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/cu ... or.651970/

I created a custom bottom for my 20gl pot with the above software and then went out looking for quotes for having it laser cut. It wasn't nearly as expensive as I anticipated.

[jackfire57]

Thank you

[jackfire57]

Looking to craft a false bottom for my Megapot 2.1 calls for a fairly expensive manufactured version. Was thinking polycarbonate as I posted before but as another member pointed out that , thank you. that heating the poly might add chemicals to my mash . So what of a hardwood alternative ?

[NZChris]

I would expect that any of the timbers used to make liquor barrels or submarine stills would be suitable.

[Bushman]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/cu ... or.651970/

I created a custom bottom for my 20gl pot with the above software and then went out looking for quotes for having it laser cut. It wasn't nearly as expensive as I anticipated.

false bottom.jpg

Nice link Salty, hope other members find it useful.

[jonnys_spirit]

I'd consider using white oak staves and maybe even charring or toasting it - see how it goes. Replace as needed. Barrel chips/sawdust are often used in home winemaking during the fermentation process to replicate barrel fermentation and I've been known to throw some into my mash if I have some on-hand.

Cheers,
jonny

[Homebrewer11777]

What is purpose for this false bottom? How do you imagine using it?

I don't subscribe to the absolute avoidance of plastics for low and no ABV solutions but I can imagine all sorts of issues with plastic at the bottom of a pot that is being heated.

[jackfire57]

I will use an oversized brewing bag to cook the mash , want to get away from temp probe and drain valve and possibly if I design it correctly the use of the bag .

[Homebrewer11777]

Guess I'm still not understanding.
How big is your pot?
What grains are you mashing?
Describe your process...

[jackfire57]

30 gal. And corn

[SW_Shiner]

If it is just to keep a brew bag off the bottom of the pot, what about some stainless mesh on a couple of posts to raise it up.

https://beequip.nz/products/stainless-s ... 0188074062 Something like this, you may be able to find cheaper near you.

Im sure there is a thread around here somewhere that i cant seem to find of someone making a false bottom, or possibly something for steam injection using a copper pipe to form a ring that fits in the bottom.

[shadylane]

I will use an oversized brewing bag to cook the mash , want to get away from temp probe and drain valve and possibly if I design it correctly the use of the bag .

If that's what's needed.
Maybe a layer of stainless scrubbies to keep the brew bag off the bottom.
And wrap a wad of scrubbies around the probe to keep it from poking the bag.

[Homebrewer11777]

There is another thread asking pretty much same question right now assume you are watching that one...

Anyway with a 30 gallon kettle you probably do not need to be heating the mash at all after adding the corn. I started out adding heat and coming up with stirring systems etc and was able to fire the kettle with corn in there (no bag, no false bottom) without scorching if I was careful. But then I read SCD's "Easy Large Batch Mashing" technique on the mashing and fermenting forum and decided to try without adding heat after adding the corn. With a 30 gallon pot I've had no issues. Get your water to a rolling boil and then kill the heat and add your corn. If you are brewing in cold or windy area you could insulate the kettle after the heat is off. SCD does insulate his pot but I've not needed to in my shed so far. I did find getting a good fine grind on the corn was important for good conversion. SCD uses corn meal, I buy cracked feed corn and then run it through a medium screen on the "50L Grain Mill Electric Grinder Machine" from Amazon.

About the bag. Sure you could put in some sort of false bottom to get it over the thermometer probe--if you put it in after killing the heat you could probably make it out of whatever you have handy. Or just protect the probe with a long spoon or mash paddle slid between the bag and the probe when you are removing the bag. Or get rid of the threaded thermometer and use a hand held probe to check temps. Or skip the bag.

[jonnys_spirit]

Just to add a note that if you're mashing corn it's going to be thick and goopy and will 100% clog a false bottom. You might be able to do a more coarse grind and get less conversion but you'll probably still fight the clogging of the false bottom.

Cheers,
jonny