gifty74
Well-Known Member
Long time batch sparger. Setup is a direct fired 20g Spike mash tun with false bottom and March pump for recirculation. My usual process for say a 1.070 OG beer is to follow Beersmith to get around 1.3 qt/lb of grain into the mash tun, add my grains, stir and let settle, and then begin the recirculation on top of the grain bed with a controller firing the burner, as needed, to maintain the temp I set. So with round numbers to make it simple, I'd add 5 gal of water to dough in the mash tun. After an hr I'd drain it completely, ending up with ~3.5 or so gal in the BK. Then add in the sparge water of say 4 gal. Stir like crazy, let that sit, recirculate a little, and then run that off into the BK for about 7.5 gal pre-boil.
Now, switching to fly sparging, assume the water amounts are going to pretty much be the same? Are the water calculations basically the same, with the difference being you fly sparge until the HLT is drained, and then just run out all the liquid in the MT (drain it dry)? Also, do you sparge with 190F water to raise the bed up as close to 170F as possible, or do you sparge with 170F water?
The reason I'm looking to switch is because I'm brewing a big imp stout of around 1.115 OG, so the grain bill is massive and requires ~80% of the total water for the mash due to the large size of the grist. Wouldn't really work so well I'm thinking to us 10.5 gal in the mash, and then batch sparge with 2 gal. Fly sparging seems to make sense, and been wanting to try it.
Let me know of any other tips from those that have switched, or go back and forth between the two. Thanks!
Now, switching to fly sparging, assume the water amounts are going to pretty much be the same? Are the water calculations basically the same, with the difference being you fly sparge until the HLT is drained, and then just run out all the liquid in the MT (drain it dry)? Also, do you sparge with 190F water to raise the bed up as close to 170F as possible, or do you sparge with 170F water?
The reason I'm looking to switch is because I'm brewing a big imp stout of around 1.115 OG, so the grain bill is massive and requires ~80% of the total water for the mash due to the large size of the grist. Wouldn't really work so well I'm thinking to us 10.5 gal in the mash, and then batch sparge with 2 gal. Fly sparging seems to make sense, and been wanting to try it.
Let me know of any other tips from those that have switched, or go back and forth between the two. Thanks!
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