Well, it was free for me. And if you had to pay for the wood (depending on type) it should cost less than $10. Most people have some wood leftover from a project, in my case, trim left over from the
Brewing Cabinet. I did a bit of research on materials that people have used for making their own. Most people including myself used Oak, which is a hardwood. And is recommended over Pine, but to be honest the contact time with the mash is pretty short so I doubt it has much effect. Others have used cutting board oil on their paddles (that sounds dirty) to make them look a bit better. I think that is overkill and an unnecessary risk to your beer.
My process was simple, do a
Google Image Search for "Mash Paddle" (you may want to turn on your safe search at work). Start to get an idea of the shape and dimensions. I just have a 5 gal Igloo so I don't need something very big. I liked the look of the oar paddles and the custom images cut in the paddle were also a nice touch.
I ended up with a 30" x 2.5" x .5" starting piece. I drew freehand onto the piece with pencil. Then for the paddle end cut out, I traced through a image I found.
After a few tweaks, I pulled out the jig-saw and started cutting. Some good clamps and a work bench make all the difference. To make it look professional I busted out the router and gave all the edges a nice round.
A final sanding with coarse sandpaper to fix all the corners and then used some fine sandpaper for a nice finish.
And it works great.
My process was simple, do a Google Image Search for "Mash Paddle" (you may want to turn on your safe search at work). Start to get an idea of the shape and dimensions. I just have a 5 gal Igloo so I don't need something very big. I liked the look of the oar paddles and the custom images cut in the paddle were also a nice touch.
After a few tweaks, I pulled out the jig-saw and started cutting. Some good clamps and a work bench make all the difference. To make it look professional I busted out the router and gave all the edges a nice round.
