Beginner instructional video and my process for the critiqing!
- Thread starter joywrex
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My only thought is why dunk the bag in the water seven times? Why not just heat up some water and do a mini sparge? You would have to steep with less water in the beginning. This should give you more sugar and flavor from your grains. The rest seems solid to me. Good work!
I had heard to try to mix up the grains in the bag while steeping or you can get some dough balls, and not get good usage from all the grains. An oatmeal stout I made first did that. Now I poke em around with my spoon to make sure it all gets wetted.
i would not use one step as a sanitizer, it's more of a cleaner, a spray bottle of star-san works great for me. i would filter the water to get rid of as much chlorine as possible, do you notice any off flavors in your beer from chlorine? a grain bag is reusable and easier to pour grain into, available at any of our local brew stores.
What kind of thermometer do you have? Looked like you just dumped the probe into the water. I've tried to find one w/a waterproof probe/cable and have been unable to find one.
The one I had leaked into the probe at the junction and it don't work no more.
The one I had leaked into the probe at the junction and it don't work no more.
Looks like you are leaving a bit of LME in the bucket. I would always ladle some hot wort back into the LME container to rinse it out and get all the LME into the brew.
I haven't done an extract in a long time but I think you should boil the entire volume instead of adding water from a garden hose. I used to use a 25-30 quart enamel coated canning pot (pretty cheap) and it would cover 2 stove burners and heat up pretty quick.
At the very least I think I would take the water your adding and boil it or let it sit for
a day to get rid of any chlorine in the water.
At the very least I think I would take the water your adding and boil it or let it sit for
a day to get rid of any chlorine in the water.
Thanks for the input. Yeah, I have done that method before and it worked well. I will try that next time again.
So what should I be using one step for? I have some iostar stuff which i have used in the past. It just stains things...
I dont think I can tell the chlorine taste if there is any. The water comes from the sierra nevada's although Oakland probably puts some chemicals in it for fun.
I should probably buy a reusable grainbag.
Thanks!
hmm its pretty crappy but I don't think i've actually gotten the wire part in the water, just the metal probe. I can look at the brand at home if you want.
Hmm with 8 lbs of LME i wonder how much it matters. If you think that last bit is that important I will do that next time. Usually I have help and get a bit more out. Also, I didn't mix it enough and i actually got some to burn on the bottom of the pot. First time ever, of course its on video
Interesting. I didn't know that chlorine was such a big issue. Part of the reason to have tap water is that it cools down the wort faster. I suppose I could boil it and then let it sit or put it in the freezer for a bit or something....
krduckman
Well-Known Member
joywrex said:
I usually buy 2 gallons of spring water at the store and then let it sit in the fridge all night to help cool it down the wort.
one step is pretty much the same as oxiclean and it's great for cleaning any caked on organic matter with no scrubbing. i fill my caked on krausen carboys with warm water and oxiclean (or one step) and the next day all of the dried on gunk is gone.
iostar works great for sanitizing too, it does stain if you leave it on long enough but the stain is not permanent. i left a bucket filled with an idophor solution for a week and thought the stain would never come out but i left it filled with plain water for a day or two and the stain was gone. filling a spray bottle with a solution of star san or iostar is the way to go since the contact time is short and immersion is no more effective than spraying it on.
i live in oakland too and we have great water for brewing mineral wise but it does contain chlorine and chloramine. chlorine evaporates away but chloramine does not, both can be filtered out with a charcoal filter . i bought an RV filter ($19) and my last two brews were made with filtered water; a blind pig clone and an american wheat.
I see! How were the last 2 brews? Are they done yet?
danorocks17
Well-Known Member
When i did extract my process was very similar to the OPs, I only had a 20qt pot and had to do partial boils. They are pretty common when doing extract because you don't need a huge pot and it takes forever to get 5 plus gallons of water to a boil on a stove top.
one thing i would suggest to the OP is using some Fermcap-s. very cheap but worth every penny! no more (or the less likely hood) boil overs.
GrantH
Well-Known Member
Can you get ferm caps locally if you don't have a brew shop? Are they a normal product only labelled for brewers?
GrantH
Well-Known Member
My mom just told me she used to give us Mylicon for gas and such as kids. I see people mentioned this as an alternative. Any truth or side effects in this?
the blind pig clone is 3 days into dry hopping and the american wheat will be bottled any day now.
