Mashing/BIAB and kettle size

[BigCypress]

Been brewing extracts and mini-mashes for a few years and recently picked up and modded a garage-sale mini-fridge to use as a fermentation chamber with 3-gallon carboys. I figured that was as good an excuse as any to try all-grain with the BIAB method, so I went ahead and bought a 3-gallon AG kit from NB.

I currently own a 5-gallon kettle that I use on the stovetop, which has always been fine for partial-boil extract kits. The kit I bought has has about eight pounds of grain (and a pound of flaked oats). Their instructions call for 5.5 gallons of water in the mash. Clearly that isn't going to work with a five-gallon kettle.

I pose this question to the collective wisdom of the HBT illuminati...

What would the effects be if I used less water to mash? Can you mash and then add water later? Do the initial mash with less water and sparge? Any other workable options? Are you all going to send me on a shopping mission to find a 30-quart turkey fryer tomorrow?

Thanks in advance for helping. Probably should have done this research before hitting the purchase button, but we all know how that goes.

 

[RM-MN]

Do your mash with about 3 1/2 to 3 3/4 gallons of water. The exact ratio of water to grains isn't nearly as critical as many assume. When you pull the bag of grains out, squeeze out all the wort you can and return it to the kettle, then look at the level of wort. If you are short of what you need for pre-boil (you will be, trust me) you can add cold water to the bag of grains and call that a sparge. Squeeze it all out again as you start heating the wort for the boil. If it isn't enough yet, sparge again. Mine usually requires less than 2 quarts but it will depend on how hard you boil as a hard boil will boil off more water. If you do boil off too much, you can top off before you put it in the fermenter.

 

[unionrdr]

I'd just heat some sparge water to 165-168F & sparge up to boil volume in this case. I do PB/PM BIAB in my 5 gallon kettle. 2 gallons water to mash 5-6 pounds of grain & sparge with 1.5 gallons. So maybe mash with 3-3.5 gallons,sparging with 1/2 gallon.

 

[jpr0930]

Been wondering same thing as my setup is identical and looking to make the move. Thanks guys!

 

[BigCypress]

Thanks for the replies! Much appreciated. Brew day coming up soon.

 

[jpr0930]

Thanks for the replies! Much appreciated. Brew day coming up soon.

Keep us posted, curious as to how this works out. Good luck!

 

[jpr0930]

Would you guys go much above this 9 pound grain bill for doing partial mash in a 5 gallon kettle? Or is this about tops for getting the right efficiency with the amount of water you can use for mash and sparge?

 

[Epimetheus]

Would you guys go much above this 9 pound grain bill for doing partial mash in a 5 gallon kettle? Or is this about tops for getting the right efficiency with the amount of water you can use for mash and sparge?

Go to the Green Bay Rackers calculators. (I bookmark useful calculators like this)
Scroll down to the "Can I Mash It?" calculator.
http://www.rackers.org/calcs.shtml

9 lbs at 1.25 gal/lb calculates to 3.35 gallons. It will fit in a 5 gallon kettle.

However, this is BIAB so when you pull the bag the grain ball will hold much of the concentrated wort. Somehow you want to get most of it out of there so you will probably go through some process like that described above, squeezing the bag and sparging with the remaining water.

 

[jpr0930]

Go to the Green Bay Rackers calculators. (I bookmark useful calculators like this)
Scroll down to the "Can I Mash It?" calculator.
http://www.rackers.org/calcs.shtml

9 lbs at 1.25 gal/lb calculates to 3.35 gallons. It will fit in a 5 gallon kettle.

However, this is BIAB so when you pull the bag the grain ball will hold much of the concentrated wort. Somehow you want to get most of it out of there so you will probably go through some process like that described above, squeezing the bag and sparging with the remaining water.

Thanks. Forgot about that website from earlier research. I am comfortable boiling 4 gallons in my pot so would I sparge with what I lacked from mash to achieve the 4? Or is there such thing as too much sparge water. I am assuming not but have to ask.

 

[unionrdr]

I sparge to get to 3.5 gallons boil volume in my 5G kettle.

 

[Epimetheus]

so would I sparge with what I lacked from mash to achieve the 4? Or is there such thing as too much sparge water

More water means more boiling to get it down to the desired volume. Your choice. It is good practice to get close to your desired boil volume as you can, not less but not too much more. Saves time and money.

Measure the specific gravity of the 4 gallons before you begin boiling and see if you are close to your target OG. Pretty close is OK, stop there and congratulate yourself. If way low, then your efficiency is low and you might think of using another method or smaller beer next time.

Brew on.

 

[jpr0930]

More water means more boiling to get it down to the desired volume. Your choice. It is good practice to get close to your desired boil volume as you can, not less but not too much more. Saves time and money.

Measure the specific gravity of the 4 gallons before you begin boiling and see if you are close to your target OG. Pretty close is OK, stop there and congratulate yourself. If way low, then your efficiency is low and you might think of using another method or smaller beer next time.

Brew on.

So if I convert a recipe in BS and tweak it to 4 gallon boil volume as per my equip profile, sparging with enough to reach volume is fine?

Edit: of course it is! Obvious question, my apologies.

 

[BigCypress]

Hey guys! Brewday went relatively well. OK, so I did fudge some things up, but not bad right out of the box with a new method. As I always say (or will after today), it's not a good brewday if you don't have to pull the fridge off the wall to mop!

Anyway, brewed everything up this afternoon and it's gurgling away happily in the minifridge. Man, that Nottingham ale yeast doesn't mess around!

Because I wasn't sure how much water I'd be able to use in my kettle (5 gallons) with the grist, I warmed up two gallons in that vessel while simultaneously warming up another couple of gallons in a stock pot to the same temperature. When everything was at the right temp, I mashed in and used the water from the second pot to top off the primary kettle. Let it sit for 75 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so, then raised it up for a mashout for 10 minutes.

I would have never guessed that the grain bag would be so heavy! I held it out of the wort to drain for a few minutes (that counts as exercise, right?), eventually moving it into a colander over a large bowl, since the colander didn't fit properly on the warm kettle (hence the mopping behind and under the fridge). Used some heated water for sparging into the bowl, then transferring it to the kettle. Did that until I got to about 4.25 gallons of sweet, delicious wort.

Rest of the boil was business as usual. Took for-ev-er to cool it down (next project: wort chiller) to pitching temps, but we got there. All in all, I'm going to chalk it up as a successful day. Even if the beer tastes like paint thinner in a few weeks.

 

[unionrdr]

AG & PM are about like any other brewing style. The more you do it & refine your mistakes,the better 7 easier it'll get. I'm on my 5th partial mash/partial boil biab & it's def getting fun. Easier as time goes on. Especially since I got my new barley crusher grain mill. That'll def speed up brew day.
And 6lbs of wet grains def had some heft to it. Good thing I have a wide BK/MT. The collander fits it well,so no leaks.