stuck thermometer? boil started with grain in kettle.

[gregfreemyer]

I did my second biab over the weekend.

I use the thermometer that came with my turkey fryer. (Mechanical with about a 12 inch stem.)

After the mash, I turned the propane back on to heat the kettle to 170 for mashout. I checked the thermometer every couple minutes and it just wasn't moving. After a while my pot started a slow boil. As soon as I realized I pulled the bag. Once the grains were out of the pot, the thermometer worked fine.

Any idea what is going on? Do I have a broken thermometer, or did my mash possibly have a dough ball which my thermometer was in?

I went ahead and did the 60 min boil. The wort smelled really good and primary fermentation is ongoing. I plan to finish the ferment and bottle it unless I'm told it will be horrible.

Fyi: I hit the OG almost exactly! I hope it was good sugars not a bunch of tannins

 

[wilserbrewer]

My guess is the wort outside the bag began to boil, and the mash that your thermometer was in was not nearly as hot.

My advice would be to get a digital stick thermometer, I have found even the inexpensive 10-20 dollar ones to be pretty accurate. The mechanical thermometers that come with turkey fryers don't appear to be great quality or that accurate. A second thermometer is always a good check, and I would tend to trust an electronic digital more so than a cheap mechanical thermometer

I would not bother doing a mash out either...JMO.

My guess is your beer will be fine...rdwhahb and cheers!


Wilserbrewer
Http://biabbags.webs.com/

 

[Frige]

You made beer! Yaaa dont throw it away it may be the best you ever made. You might want to move the thermometer to the other side of the pot away from the bag so it gets a good flow from the wort.

 

[grittanomyces]

I just did my first BIAB, and forgot to mash out entirely. Searched some old threads here, and mashing out is not necessary, it just helps with efficiency. It's very possible your efficiency is just fine without it.

(I hit my expected OG at 75% efficiency right on the nose)

I'm about to get a digital thermometer too, because I don't trust my analog thermometer at all, and a few degrees can make a difference when mashing.

 

[poptarts]

stir then take a temp, always.

 

[grittanomyces]

Oops I see your issue now, that the grain was still in the kettle. I guess it could release some tannins, it may just fine, but nothing you can do about it now.

I've made a number of mistakes in brewing, but time is the only way you'll find out if it makes it undrinkable or not.

 

[wilserbrewer]

.... mashing out is not necessary, it just helps with efficiency.

This concept has been discussed in detail by people much more knowledgeable than I, and I have to to agree with them that a mashout likely does not increase efficiency.

Thread linked below....you can decide for yourself.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/biab-why-mashout-309533/

 

[gregfreemyer]

This concept has been discussed in detail by people much more knowledgeable than I, and I have to to agree with them that a mashout likely does not increase efficiency.

Thread linked below....you can decide for yourself.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/biab-why-mashout-309533/

I see a lot of confusion in that thread.

As I understand mashout in biab:

- Heat the water to strike temp (160 or so)
- turn off heat and add grains
- wait 60 or so minutes for mash
- turn heat back on
- when mash hits 170, pull the bag and squeeze

Because the mash continues during the last portion while heating the mash, you actually need a shorter mash so it saves time to mash out. And it is no more work.