Need help with low OG

[ehope411]

Mashed 12 lbs today:

5 Maris Otter
5 Vienna
1 Victory
1 Crystal 80

Single infusion mash for 60 minutes. Started at 154; ended around 150.

Collected 6.5 gallons; around 5.5 post boil (60 min).

Brewers Friend app calculated OG at 1.065. But I only got to 1.045.

What am I doing wrong? Is it the grain bill? Mash temp too low/high? Boil time? Volume?

This is not the first time this has happened, so I'd like to fix it once and for all. Any help in figuring this out would be very much appreciated.


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[Jeremy_N]

Did you sparge? If so, fly sparge or batch sparge? I recommend you take a preboil gravity measurement. Had you done that, you would have known your OG was going to be off and could have adjusted with malt extract or sparged more and boiled down to your desired volume. Also, your crush may not be fine enough. Maybe your system is otherwise not as efficient as your recipe assumes. I that case you would need to adjust your recipes by increasing the malts to reflect your efficiency. Hope this helps.


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[brew_ny]

Brewers Friend app calculated OG at 1.065

with that grain bill to get that number you need 83% efficiency 70% puts you at 1.055

how is your crush ? batch sparge?

please tell use more

S_M

 

[BeerLoverHere]

Also, if you used your hydrometer reading when it was still really hot, that'll throw it off too. Check this out: http://www.clanward.com/brewery_files/pdfs/HydrometerTemperatureConversionChart.pdf

 

[ehope411]

Crush was done at homebrew shop - Keystone in Montgomeryville, PA. No idea on that but trust they know what they're doing.

Batch sparged with 3-gal 165 degree.


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[ehope411]

Also, took hydrometer readings at 80 degrees and again at 72. Adjusted for temp both times.


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[brew_ny]

Crush was done at homebrew shop - Keystone in Montgomeryville, PA. No idea on that but trust they know what they're doing.

that they may, but I have also read many people getting bad crushes from online sources and LHBS

so they end up buying a grain mill, but my point was how did the crush look to you

how you did you mash in a cooler? BIAB ? using a false bottom?

all these thing will change your conversion, also 83 % is a bit high for efficiency

your hydrometer reading correct with water ? your thermometer is accurate ?

all things that will change your numbers

S_M

 

[ehope411]

Hydrometer / thermometer both work fine.

Mashed in a rectangular cooler w/cylindrical braided screen. Prepped it prior to mash with 1 gallon boiling water, which was drained before conducting mash.

Couldn't tell a good crush from a bad one just by looking at it. Maybe I need to pay more attention to that. Trusting Keystone to provide a good crush and have no reason to doubt them. Maybe some fellow Keystoners can comment on the crush.

Agree 83% is crazy efficient. Would love to get 70, personally. Not there yet obviously.


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[brew_ny]

Mashed in a rectangular cooler w/cylindrical braided screen.

mixing your grain and water well? no dough balls

you are closer to 70 then 83 I like to add some water then some grain etc

adding all the grain and the water does not work so well for me, I have never added all the water then grain so I do not know about that

not really sure but dough balls or a bad crush will kill you, I take a sample of my first runnings and my second just to check

all the best

S_M

 

[ehope411]

No dough balls. Added grain, then water. Stirred about every 15 min. Recirculated wort a couple of times between 30 and 60 min. Just can't figure this out. Maybe a longer mash next time?

I'll figure it out by trial and error sooner or later.

Thanks for your help.


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