Chrismass Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 Heres a question that I have found almost no documentation on. Disposing of spent mash must have some type of protocol to it instead of just dumping it down the sewer/drain. However my thougts are if there is no protocol that would make sense as well. The spent mash may have only a few %ABV left in it which would quickly dissapate when dumped into the sewer. Also some yeast and left over fermentation would not really destroy wildlife as we know it. Does anyone have any idea of what the proper protocol would be? Or will it vary by county etc? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteB Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 See previous discussions on this forum eg http://adiforums.com...mash and http://adiforums.com...owtopic=1749= There may be more. Use the "search" button near top right corner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coop Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 You will never be allowed to just dump it into a sewer system. It will increase the BOD in the waste stream and if your local sewer company is using a lagoon system it is even worse. You will have to haul it away or give or sell to any local farmer as feed. Coop Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrismass Posted September 21, 2012 Author Share Posted September 21, 2012 There lies why I opened a new topic, I forgot to add this and that is the composition of my mash. My mash is a composition of 50/50 Cane Sugar and Beet Sugar. My spent mash will be worthless to farmers as it only ends up having the yeast in the bottom. Sorry that I neglected to add this. Thanks, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palmetto Coast Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Chris, I have a pig farmer that cannot wait to take my rum stillage. Todd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrismass Posted September 21, 2012 Author Share Posted September 21, 2012 Interesting, I honestly know nothing of farming but if my stillage is of use to a farmer then I will be happy. Nearest farm is about 30 miles away but still thats a start. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Action Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Just call your sewer company. They'll probably charge you a hefty fee based on some $/lb of BOD but if you're doing small batches it could be worth it considering the convenience. In my area, rum stillage would cost about $.03 per gallon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrismass Posted September 21, 2012 Author Share Posted September 21, 2012 That sounds excellent, hopefully they'll allow that. .03 or even double that would be completely justifiable. My time is much better spent doing more important tasks. Thank you very much, with the towns around here scraping for nickles and dimes I'm sure they'll be up for that or something similar. Thanks much, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Scientist Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 One distiller I questioned on this topic said they are allowed to dump there mash down the drain by law. He's in a major city so maybe they can more readily handle it. Everyone else that I've asked said they gave it to farmers. One distiller had a truck and tank, both supplied by the farmer, sitting on site. They put everything from the mash to the rinse from the still in the tank. The farmer picked it up a couple of times a week. Put an ad on Craig's list and see if you get any responses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffw Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 I have been thinking about this a little bit myself. One question I have is does anyone know of breweries in a big city getting together to build a dry house? Craft distillers are too small I would think by themselves to do this, but I think proliferation of craft breweries by themselves or with some craft distillers in a big city could do some sort of co-op to get this done. I saw a mention of this on pro bono thinking (http://www.probonothinking.org/15000lbs-of-free-spent-grain/) as a solution for Half Acre (Chicago craft brewer). My thought is that in a city like Chicago, a dry house could probably be run at break even or better and funded by all the local participants whereas most producers can't really send spent grains to a farmer because they are all too far away. Lots of challenges to this idea, especially for craft distillers potentially having very different and inconsistent grain bills, but it would be a huge environmental benefit and perhaps without much cost. Last time I did the bourbon trail I believe Buffalo Trace said their dry house was making money. You might even be able to do an anaerobic digester as fuel for your heater...In any case, is anyone aware of any cooperatives doing something like this? Cheers, Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flip2spin23 Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 Local farmers pick up all of our stilliage, We have it tested at the university of Tennessee and there is a average of 22-25% protein left in our stillage and less than 1% abv. It makes great feed ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrismass Posted September 23, 2012 Author Share Posted September 23, 2012 Very interesting that it has protein in it. My spent mash would have no protein, because my base is cane sugar and beet sugar. I'll have to have mine analyzed, and building a dry house is something that I would be able to contribute to. However there are no other distilleries within 50 miles of my location so that is out of the question. So far it looks like I should have no problem disposing of it in the normal sewer lines, and I should know for sure come monday. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flip2spin23 Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 Our stilliage is all corn based Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluestar Posted September 24, 2012 Share Posted September 24, 2012 Very interesting that it has protein in it. My spent mash would have no protein, because my base is cane sugar and beet sugar. I'll have to have mine analyzed, and building a dry house is something that I would be able to contribute to. Chris If it has yeast in it, it has protein. Yeast is mostly protein. If your wash is just sugar, you had to add nitrogen in some form as a nutrient for the yeast. You did that because they synthesize proteins from the carbohydrates and the nitrogen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrismass Posted September 24, 2012 Author Share Posted September 24, 2012 I didn't realize that yeast does have protein, then the means it does have worth. Exactly why I am happy I joined this forum, learning things I didn't know before. I haven't yet calculated the left over weight of yeast that will remain. Out of curiosity does anyone know exactly how the farmers use or process it? Feedstock? Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteB Posted September 27, 2012 Share Posted September 27, 2012 This is how I use my spent grain. It is fairly solid because I lauter. I cart it in a trailer and shovel it onto the ground for my cattle to eat. My sheep also get some but I put it into a trough so they can't walk on it http://youtu.be/m0lRgYO7exU 100% 100% I haven't done this before so fingers crossed this youtube link works Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowdery Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 If anyone is looking for farmers to take their spent mash, dairy farmers are generally the most receptive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackheart Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Just finished experimenting with a dairy operation and a laying operation (that's eggs to you and me). Dairy guys were loving it mixed with cut grass (watch that protein, too much and they gets the bloat). The laying operation, on the other hand, loved it even more. Birds went from laying 1 egg every other day (cageless free-roamers) to one a day. Dat's where all the protein goes for them. Amazing. We've been getting more eggs than our crew can eat. Oh, and they're making bread with what's left over. It's freaking good, but dense as hell. Had to be lightened with baking soda, but it made great loaves, pancakes and now french toast! We're in the breakfast business, as it seems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteB Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 I just made a loaf of bread from my spent mash yesterday. Lightened it up with some very finely gristed rye and a bit of white flour. Just had a piece for my lunch. A nearby distillery is using some of their spent mash in pizza bases. As I said in a previous post, I feed spent mash to my livestock. Been fattening some lambs with it. Killed some of the lambs recently to eat, and trimmed the excess fat. Added the fat to the biofuelfuel for the hot water boiler for mashing. That is re-re-cycling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackheart Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 Pete: you win the green-est of the green-ies award forever! Jeeze, glad you're all the way over there or we'd be f-ed trying to keep up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoonshineJane73 Posted July 19, 2013 Share Posted July 19, 2013 Oh, and they're making bread with what's left over. It's freaking good, but dense as hell. Had to be lightened with baking soda, but it made great loaves, pancakes and now french toast! We're in the breakfast business, as it seems. The French toast sounds good. I've mostly made bread for my family to eat out of my spent mash. It's good as bread bowls for soup. Does anybody know about the legalities of doing similar as a menu item for a restaurant? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stillwagon Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 There is a distillery that uses their spent grains for bread and sells it locally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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