Max grain bill question

[jonboygentry]

Quick question, anyone know the max grain bill would be for one of those 5 gallon paint strainer bags from menards be? Can it hold 10 plus pounds? Thanks for all your input!


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[Rootski]

I know they can hold 10# of wet grain because I've done it with one. I haven't tried more so I'm not sure. It felt somewhat sturdy though.

 

[TexasWine]

I use paint strainer bags from Amazon. My grain bills are usually around 14-15 pounds.

 

[Magnus314]

You could always use 2 if one isn't big enough.

 

[Komocabo]

You could always use 2 if one isn't big enough.

That's what she said... sorry, couldn't help myself

 

[JohnSand]

I've put over 16# in a nylon strainer, then lifted it out wet and much heavier. No problem (for the strainer! )

 

[william_shakes_beer]

There are also steam and boil baskets that fit within kettles for that purpose which could make lifting the bag easier. Wish I had known that when I bought my first kettle!!!

 

[rlonardo]

I'm brewing a Russian Imperial Stout tomorrow with a 19 lb grain bill. Hopefully I don't end up with a split bag...

 

[JohnSand]

Please report either way.

 

[jonboygentry]

I will report back as soon as I brew again. Should be a couple of weeks. Thanks for the insight. Cheers.


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[rlonardo]

Well, I finally got around to brewing (sorta) my RIS. I mashed/sparged tonight and will boil first thing in the morning.

19.75 lbs went into the bag - and nothing split! I was able to pick it up no problem (well, other than the fact that it was heavy to say the least). I do a batch sparge with my BIAB and hit almost 70% efficiency. I usually get about 75%, so was thinking I'd be closer to 60-65% on this brew (1.115 OG).

Anyway, I don't think my current setup could handle much more grain. I mashed with a 1.333 water/grain ratio and my pot looked like this before I added the roasted grains:

 

[JohnSand]

Nice. How big is your pot?

 

[rlonardo]

It's 10 gallons

 

[jonboygentry]

Can you take a pic of the bag when you are done? Or tell us how big the bag is.

 

[barleywhore69]

Well, I finally got around to brewing (sorta) my RIS. I mashed/sparged tonight and will boil first thing in the morning.

19.75 lbs went into the bag - and nothing split! I was able to pick it up no problem (well, other than the fact that it was heavy to say the least). I do a batch sparge with my BIAB and hit almost 70% efficiency. I usually get about 75%, so was thinking I'd be closer to 60-65% on this brew (1.115 OG).

Anyway, I don't think my current setup could handle much more grain. I mashed with a 1.333 water/grain ratio and my pot looked like this before I added the roasted grains:

View attachment 240087

So you can fit almost 20 lbs of grain and 6.5 gallons of water in a 10 gallon pot? Interesting.... Is there a good calculator or formula for figuring out what volume of water your grain will displace?

 

[rlonardo]

Can you take a pic of the bag when you are done? Or tell us how big the bag is.

I got the bag from my LHBS - I believe it was 18"x32". From LD Carlson I believe.

 

[doug293cz]

So you can fit almost 20 lbs of grain and 6.5 gallons of water in a 10 gallon pot? Interesting.... Is there a good calculator or formula for figuring out what volume of water your grain will displace?

http://pricelessbrewing.github.io/BiabCalc/

Brew on

 

[jtratcliff]

I often use the Greenbay Rackers "can I mash it" calculator http://www.rackers.org/calcs.shtml

 

[william_shakes_beer]

I believe the OP was referring to a 5 gallon paint strainer bag. I have a voile bag I made from a slider panel that has held up to 27 LBS ( dry) grains, but it is far larger than a 5 gallon paint bag. To the OP: If you're ready to obtain a purpose built bag, it should be big enough to put your brew kettle inside.