my first AG in a cooler Mash Tun didn't go so well

ApolloSpeed · 03-23-2009, 07:31 PM

Well....I got some pretty bad effieciency once again. This time I was even using a Rubbermaid 5 gallon cooler for the Mash.

My bill was...

6 gallon boil - 5 gallon batch

4lb-Munich
2lb-Red Wheat
1lb-German Pils
1lb-CaraPils
0.5lb-CaraMunich
0.5lb-60L Crystal

1oz-willamette 50min.
.25-challenger 5min.

I started at 165f....added the grain and I hit about 156f. Let it sit 1 hour...only dropped to 153f over 1 hour. Did the vlorlof. And Batch sparged with 175f. til I got to a little under 6 gallons.

Once everything cooled down, I poured into my fermenter (about a 5 gallon batch) and took a reading....I only hit 1.039!!!

wtf did I do wrong?

Joos · 03-23-2009, 07:49 PM

stupid question,but you boiled it.right?

JoefromPhilly · 03-23-2009, 08:02 PM

D'oh!

- Joe

ApolloSpeed · 03-23-2009, 08:11 PM

Yes of course......

Quote:

Originally Posted by ApolloSpeed

6 gallon boil - 5 gallon batch

**DeathBrewer** · 03-23-2009, 08:15 PM

That's about right. 60% efficiency for 9 lbs of grain in 5 gallons comes to 1.040.

ApolloSpeed · 03-23-2009, 08:17 PM

60 %???

Then why the hell did I make a mash tun? I thought it was gonna help my efficiency!

Bert · 03-23-2009, 08:18 PM

Are your thermometer and hydrometer calibrated? What mash ratio are you using? How much wort are you losing to dead space or leaving behind with hops, trub in the kettle?

**Denny's Evil Concoctions** · 03-23-2009, 08:26 PM

Are you crushing your own grains? Looks to me that you need a finer crush.

**DeathBrewer** · 03-23-2009, 08:28 PM

It also depends on your method, not just your equipment.

Check your crush, are you doing it at home or at the store?

It looks like you had a slight loss in temp...not a huge deal, but could be improved upon.

Your pH is pretty important for your mash. How is your water? You may wish to try some pH Stabilizer.

Mashing out will help, too. You can add boiling water to bring your mash up to 168°F for a mash out. ProMash or other programs can help you calculate.

This will also help you maintain a better sparge temperature. You can run 172°F water through and it will ensure you have close to 170°F sparge temp.

Use the amount of water you need. If you had water leftover in your mash tun, there might have been some sugars left in there.

I'd aim your recipes for 5.5 gallons and do a 6.75 gallon boil, if possible, assuming 1.25 gallon/hour boil-off.

Shawn Hargreaves · 03-23-2009, 08:39 PM

That mash looks a little light on base malt.

Munich malt can self-convert, but doesn't have many spare enzymes to convert other grains (especially if you were using the darker type of Munich). Then you have one pound of Pilsner malt (which has plenty of spare power), plus 2 lb wheat and 2 lb crystal malt, neither of which have any enzymes at all.

The general rule is that you should avoid going above a 50/50 base malt to other grain ratio even when using a base malt with high diastatic power such as 6-row. I believe Pilsner is a little weaker than that, but it should still be ok for a 50/50 mix. You're really pushing things with this grain bill, though. Include more base malt, and I bet you'll get better efficiency.