Plan of attack on Efficiency!

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brentt03

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Here in the next couple of weeks we will be getting our synergy equipment in, and I want to try and prep ahead a bit and get a better grasp on nailing down efficiency. I feel that my current efficiency on my 3.5gal equipment is all over the place.

Do you guys have a plan of attack i can take to nail my efficiency down?? I have been using beersmith religiously for the past year, but still havent had much luck.

I will continue to do some research, but figured you all could enlighten me!

Thanks
 
I'm confused...Are you trying to improve your efficiency? To make your efficiency more consistent? To figure out how to measure your efficiency?
 
I am trying to improve my efficiency and nail down my process to get closer to my OG numbers.

I think that since I have not nailed down my efficiency it cause my grain bill and final ABV to be off.
 
brentt03 said:
I am trying to improve my efficiency and nail down my process to get closer to my OG numbers.

I think that since I have not nailed down my efficiency it cause my grain bill and final ABV to be off.
Click to expand...

The way to get closer to your OG numbers is to use an efficiency value that is actually equal to the efficiency you are getting. If you are consistently landing below your intended OG, it is because you are assuming an efficiency that is higher than it should be. Are you saying that you are getting inconsistent results?

Once you have that squared away, you can try to improve your efficiency if you feel like it. The most comprehensive guide to this, far and away, is Kai Troester's article "Troubleshooting brewhouse efficiency" at Braukaiser.com.
 
MalFet said:
The way to get closer to your OG numbers is to use an efficiency value that is actually equal to the efficiency you are getting. If you are consistently landing below your intended OG, it is because you are assuming an efficiency that is higher than it should be. Are you saying that you are getting inconsistent results?

Once you have that squared away, you can try to improve your efficiency if you feel like it. The most comprehensive guide to this, far and away, is Kai Troester's article "Troubleshooting brewhouse efficiency" at Braukaiser.com.
Click to expand...

I will check it out! Thanks!

I always seem to have a lower OG than what is estimated. For my last Irish Red, Estimated OG was 1.060 and my Actual OG was 1.054; my efficiency (in Beersmith) was set @ 68%

I guess this means for my next brew of this I need to back the efficiency down to say 50% and then tweak as needed?? Within Beersmith does this mean I need to adjust the grain bill? This will change the estimated efficiency and put it to my actual efficiency, correct?

Sorry if I am rambling!
 
brentt03 said:
I will check it out! Thanks!

I always seem to have a lower OG than what is estimated. For my last Irish Red, Estimated OG was 1.060 and my Actual OG was 1.054; my efficiency (in Beersmith) was set @ 68%

I guess this means for my next brew of this I need to back the efficiency down to say 50% and then tweak as needed?? Within Beersmith does this mean I need to adjust the grain bill? This will change the estimated efficiency and put it to my actual efficiency, correct?

Sorry if I am rambling!
Click to expand...

Next time you make a batch, do the math and figure out what your efficiency actually is. Then, from there, build your grain bill off of that number. Beersmith will automatically adjust your grain bill to suit the recipe given your particular efficiency.
 
Since we will be using the new equipment in a couple of weeks, what is a good percentage to start out on and build from??

It looks like based off of my last Irish Red that my efficiency is 62%. Double check me here:

I got 62% by adjusting the Tot Efficiency in beersmith until the Estimated OG hit the Actual OG.

So now I enter in 62% in the efficiency into the Tot Efficiency and adjust the grain bill until I hit the desired ABV, correct?? This is pretty much what you said above, just added in beersmith steps
 
brentt03 said:
Since we will be using the new equipment in a couple of weeks, what is a good percentage to start out on and build from??

It looks like based off of my last Irish Red that my efficiency is 62%. Double check me here:

I got 62% by adjusting the Tot Efficiency in beersmith until the Estimated OG hit the Actual OG.

So now I enter in 62% in the efficiency into the Tot Efficiency and adjust the grain bill until I hit the desired ABV, correct?? This is pretty much what you said above, just added in beersmith steps
Click to expand...

Well, I wouldn't typically design a recipe around ABV so much as OG, but yeah...otherwise that looks about right. There's no real answer to where you should start with a new system. Most batch sparge systems hit the mid 70s; most fly sparge systems are a bit higher.
 
MalFet said:
Well, I wouldn't typically design a recipe around ABV so much as OG, but yeah...otherwise that looks about right. There's no real answer to where you should start with a new system. Most batch sparge systems hit the mid 70s; most fly sparge systems are a bit higher.
Click to expand...

Awesome! Thanks for your help! :mug:
 

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