Comments on: 5 Ways to Improve your All Grain Beer Efficiency http://www.beersmith.com/blog/2008/07/04/5-ways-to-improve-your-all-grain-beer-efficiency/ Get weekly articles on home brewing, beer styles, and making beer recipes Fri, 12 Mar 2010 05:04:52 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Brad Smith http://www.beersmith.com/blog/2008/07/04/5-ways-to-improve-your-all-grain-beer-efficiency/comment-page-1/#comment-2305 Brad Smith Thu, 11 Sep 2008 02:27:50 +0000 http://www.beersmith.com/blog/?p=93#comment-2305 You are correct - I should have said 168 and not 178F. I will edit the post and make it 168F. Brad You are correct – I should have said 168 and not 178F. I will edit the post and make it 168F.

Brad

]]> By: 7 http://www.beersmith.com/blog/2008/07/04/5-ways-to-improve-your-all-grain-beer-efficiency/comment-page-1/#comment-2300 7 Wed, 10 Sep 2008 19:01:49 +0000 http://www.beersmith.com/blog/?p=93#comment-2300 Aren't you going to start extracting tannins above 170? Aren’t you going to start extracting tannins above 170?

]]> By: BadKarma http://www.beersmith.com/blog/2008/07/04/5-ways-to-improve-your-all-grain-beer-efficiency/comment-page-1/#comment-2056 BadKarma Wed, 03 Sep 2008 12:22:49 +0000 http://www.beersmith.com/blog/?p=93#comment-2056 Another suggestion to aid in preventing a stuck sparge, I always toss in a handful rice hulls. Never had a stuck sparge and always get great results. Great site and articles Brad, keep it up. Another suggestion to aid in preventing a stuck sparge, I always toss in a handful rice hulls. Never had a stuck sparge and always get great results.

Great site and articles Brad, keep it up.

]]> By: Sean http://www.beersmith.com/blog/2008/07/04/5-ways-to-improve-your-all-grain-beer-efficiency/comment-page-1/#comment-1240 Sean Fri, 11 Jul 2008 08:39:15 +0000 http://www.beersmith.com/blog/?p=93#comment-1240 I have a cylindrical mash tun and have a developed technique to increase efficiency. All of your 5 points are very valid though I would suggest one more: establish a consistent grain bed. This is essential to ensure that sparge water flows evenly through the grain bed. Too fast of a flow can create water channels. Too slow can compact the grain bed and also create water channels to form. The goal is to rinse the grain column evenly. For me, this takes attention over 40-60 minutes but dramatically increases my efficiency. If I'm not in the mood for this, I just add more grain initially to compensate for the lack of efficiency! I keep my hot liquor tank at 180'F and start my sparge with adding 1/2 gallon of sparge water to the mash tun. I then collect about a 1/2 to 3/4 gallons from the mash tun and bring it up to a boil. After, I pour the boil back into the mash tun and stir to distribute the heat. For my 5 gallon batches, I do this once more to bring the grain bed up to about 170'F. VERY IMPORTANT, each time I pour the hot mash liquid back to the tun, I stir the grain bed to circulate the heat and to establish a consistent grain bed. When you pour out of the mash tun, the grain becomes compressed. Ideally, you want the grain bed consistently in solution so the sparge water flows through it rather than re-routing through compressed areas. After stirring each time, I allow about 10 minutes for heat transfer and grain bed settling. Patience and attention to the grain bed is a huge factor for efficiency! Keep posting, I enjoy reading your blog! I have a cylindrical mash tun and have a developed technique to increase efficiency. All of your 5 points are very valid though I would suggest one more: establish a consistent grain bed. This is essential to ensure that sparge water flows evenly through the grain bed. Too fast of a flow can create water channels. Too slow can compact the grain bed and also create water channels to form. The goal is to rinse the grain column evenly. For me, this takes attention over 40-60 minutes but dramatically increases my efficiency. If I’m not in the mood for this, I just add more grain initially to compensate for the lack of efficiency!
I keep my hot liquor tank at 180′F and start my sparge with adding 1/2 gallon of sparge water to the mash tun.
I then collect about a 1/2 to 3/4 gallons from the mash tun and bring it up to a boil.
After, I pour the boil back into the mash tun and stir to distribute the heat. For my 5 gallon batches, I do this once more to bring the grain bed up to about 170′F. VERY IMPORTANT, each time I pour the hot mash liquid back to the tun, I stir the grain bed to circulate the heat and to establish a consistent grain bed.
When you pour out of the mash tun, the grain becomes compressed. Ideally, you want the grain bed consistently in solution so the sparge water flows through it rather than re-routing through compressed areas.
After stirring each time, I allow about 10 minutes for heat transfer and grain bed settling.
Patience and attention to the grain bed is a huge factor for efficiency!
Keep posting, I enjoy reading your blog!

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