SPARGING! BEST WAY TO DO IT?
Right then, here we go. I have read just about every article on this forum regarding the different techniques and thier pro's and con's. I fully understand fly and batch methods. However, I have read this article on an american website and it seems a great way to sparge.
This is the article starting at the end of the mash.The mash/lauter tun in this case is a cool box fitted with a tap and strainer manifold:
8. Drain off the first runnings into a quart pitcher. The wort will be cloudy with bits of grain. Slowly pour the wort back into the grainbed, recirculating the wort. Repeat this procedure until the wort exiting the tun is pretty clear (like unfiltered apple cider). It will be amber colored, but not cloudy. It should only take a couple quarts.
9. Once the wort has cleared, drain the wort carefully into your boiling pot. Fill the pot slowly at first and allow the level to cover the outlet tube. Be sure to have a long enough tube so that the wort enters below the surface and does not splash. The splashing of hot wort before the boil can cause long term oxidation damage to the flavor of the beer.
10. Watch the outflow of wort, you do not want to lauter too fast, as this could compact the grainbed and you would get a stuck sparge. A rate of 1 quart/minute is the most common. Allow the wort level in the Tun to drop until it is about an inch above the level of the grain. Now start adding the sparge water, either from the hot water tun or by pouring in a couple quarts at a time, onto the coffee can lid, maintaining at least an inch of free water above the grainbed.
(the coffee can lid is to prevent the sparge water disturbing the grain bed)
11. If the wort stops flowing, even with water above the grainbed, then you have a stuck sparge. There are 2 ways to fix it: (a) Blow back into the outlet hose to clear an obstruction of the manifold; or (b) Close the valve and add some more water, stirring to re-suspend the mash. You will need to re-circulate again. Stuck sparges are an annoyance, but usually not a major problem.
12. Continue adding sparge water and draining the wort into your pot. At no time should you attempt to lift the pot with only one hand, especially if you are attempting to grab a stool with the other. The wort will spill.
13. Depending on how fast you sparge, you may see a change in the color of the runoff wort as the sparge water moves through the grainbed. It will probably have been getting gradually lighter in color, but if you have lautered slow enough, the lighter sparge water will stay on top of the heavier wort and you may see an abrupt change in color. In most other cases, you will collect more than enough wort before the lauter runs clear. In any event, you should stop lautering when the gravity of the runoff falls below 1.008. If you have lautered too fast, you will not rinse the grains effectively and you will get poor extraction.
What do you reckon to that then? I would appreciate comments from you experienced chaps out there.
Guilty 
