WileECoyote

Recipes 

Nice Thread!

Thanks

Cheers

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WileECoyote
Naked Brew

Bartender Ill have what the gentleman on the floor is drinking.

I have spent more $ on brewing equipment than my truck cost!

loball

Recipes 

Have done about 15 BIAB batches over the past 6 months; I recently acquired a good deal on a 3vessel gravity feed system and tested it out.

Biggest pro for 3v system is easier to do party gyle type brew sessions, to do equivalent anything over 10gal on a BIAB becomes a little trick and requires a ~20gal pot...
Side note: i loved the coolio sparge arm on my system =); water pressure from HLT moves a metal propeller

Biggest pro for BIAB, less gear and storage needs.

Surprising things; I felt I lifted more heavy items- brew stand, grains, and keggles with 3v than I ever do with biab. Maybe I need to learn other ppl's methods for emptying a mash tun...If my buddy hadn't been there to help i would have had to go up and down a ladder several times just to get enough grain out to lift the keggle off the brew stand (30+lbs of grain).

Those considering BIAB- the key is a simple hook/hoist system and a steam basket to ensure bag tears aren't an issue.

Efficiencies for both BIAB and 3v were close. With 3v coming out slightly ahead; did a 11 gal batch of arrogant bastard w/3v and hit ~80% while i typically range 72-76% on BIAB.

Can't go wrong with either system; 3v definitely has a bling factor and has much more info on the internet for calculating water ratios, etc. BIAB can be a little tougher to get info on brewing calc's but BIABrewer.com has some great calculators. If you consistently do 10+gal batches I could see 3v being a bigger draw, assuming you have space to leave your brew stand in the same place your going to brew.

I will likely do one or 2 more batches on this system and sell it as I'm struggling with the space and pain of moving heavy equipment.

One last side note to future brewers- Keggles are damn heavy! Compared to my alternate 15 gal aluminum pot which can be lifted with a pink and is still quite sturdy.

Good luck hope this helps someone out there!

ghpeel

Recipes 

Just throwing this out there, you don't have to decide between traditional mashing techniques and the all-in-one BIAB method. I do a hybrid and it works great.

To stick your toe into the BIAB world, use normal mashing volumes, but instead of using a mashtun with a manifold, just use a 5gal cooler lined with a 5gal paint strainer. When the mash is over, you can recirculate for a minute and drain, or just lift the bag out. This way, you get the benefit of the traditional mash volumes, but you get the benefit of mashing in a bag (no stuck sparge EVER).

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Kegged: Mr. Hyde's Dark Hearted English Ale, Pumpkin Lager, Bro'Hemian Pilsner
Lagering:
Primary:
Resting: Stinky Pete's Midnight Wheat
No-Chill: Graham's Cracker Brown Ale
Bottled: Lowland Oatmeal Porter, Adieu Travail Belgian Sour, Golden Blossom Braggot

chalkdust41485

Recipes 

That is a strong positive for BIAB. I don't gave to worry about a stuck sparge. I can use as much wheat as I want without using rice hulls or worrying about run off rate.

Again, for batches above 5 gallons, BIAB is probably not the best option. If I have to get a pulley system just to lift a 25 pound bag of wet grain, then I'd rather get a wheeled cooler and a manifold. Basically, the approach to larger than 5 gallon batches leans towards the traditional system.

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"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” -- Ben Franklin

Primary: Rye Amber, Traditional Mead (Fresh Blackberries after first transfer)
Keg 1: Rub My Belly (EdWort's Pale Ale)
Keg 2: Dog House (Strong Ale)
Bottled: Dog Haus (Pale Ale), Wagging Tail (Sam Adams Boston Ale-ish), Muddy Paws (Oatmeal Stout), Raging Rabies 2.0 (11.0% IIPA)

Brewsam

Recipes 

Interesting thread. Has anybody used High gravity brew's BIAB automated system? http://www.highgravitybrew.com/productcart/pc/BIAB-Electric-Brewing-System-269p3987.htm


I have been brewing AG with two igloo coolers and a 10 gallon BK. I am looking to upgrade to simplify and to automate for ease and to develop better consistency with my temperatures (also to go to 10 gallon batches). At first I was thinking of a HERMS or RIMS with a three vessel system, either build my own or something like MORE BEER's tippy brew sculpture. Of course an electric system would be a big plus.
The brewmeister system looks nice but seems very expensive ($3000) and I read somewhere you can't get much above 1.060
I don't think you would get the clarity of your beer from High gravity's system since you don't create a purifying filter grain bed as you do in a mash tun that is recirculating.
Any thoughts and advice will be much appreciated!

AnthonyCB

Recipes 

There are lots of problems with the Brewmeister (limited gravity, clogged pump is unrecoverable, dough balls, lifting the incredibly heavy grain column out of the wort, weak boils...), but the wort is very clear since the mashing mechanism is like a nonstop vorlauf. The pumps push the water/wort upwards through the grain bed bracketed on top and bottom by metal screens and cloth filters during the mash.

Dirty25

Recipes 

For some reason I don't care about BIAB systems. I think it's just cause the acronym not sure thought. I really don't care how you make beer extract, biab, 3 vessel, or some other way just make beer and bee happy. I use a Janky 3 vessel system, nothing fancy here.

45_70sharps

Recipes 

I've never done it, never seen it done and I enjoy the way that I do it.
I don't have anything against it, and I know it's a good way to make very good beer but in the end when changing from extract you pick what you are going to invest in in terms of money, equipment, learning and space and I just chose to start with a good mash tun.

If I saw some advantage to brewing in a bag, I might think about doing it. As it is, I have room and the equipment so I'm happy the way I do it.

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Let's see if I keep this updated!

On tap
Black Butte clone

In secondary
Pumpkin ale

In primary
Honey wit

Up next.. Firestone Union Jack clone

gizmodog51

Recipes 

bag it you'll like it ...a simple rinse after turning the bag inside out....what could be more simpler......the aussies know how to simply the complicated

GD51

gizmodog51

Recipes 

hear , hear! well said!

GD51