Infusion mashing: too much volume for sparge/mashouts

The basic problem is that I frequently run into the situation when doing infusion mashes that I just run out of "spare" volume if I want to hit my pre-boil volume accurately. For example, suppose I want to collect 12 L for a 10 L half batch (my stove boils off 2 L/hr)...

Batch size: 10 L
Boil size: 12 L
Grain: 2.551 kg
==Mash profile==
67 C conversion infusion - 7.143 L @ 73 C ( 2.8 L/kg thickness)
80 C mashout infusion - 7.500 L @ 100 C

Total collected wort: 7.143 L + 7.5 L - 2.551 L = 12.1 L

No room for a sparge if I do a mashout. Similarly, if I want to add in a mash in or protein rest, I don't have enough spare volume to even get the mashout up to 80 C. How are you guys dealing with this? My options (I think) are 1) Do a really thick first infusion. 2) Do decoctions for some of the steps.

Or you could do no mashout, or no sparge. All 4 options seem viable to me. You'll have to make minor adjustments with each one, sure, but they're all options that tons of other brewers use with success. I'd just pick one, whatever is easiest for you, and run with it.

Edit: I forgot to mention, if you fly sparge, the no mashout option may not be the best. So, you still have three options if you fly sparge.

GuldTuborg said:

Or you could do no mashout, or no sparge. All 4 options seem viable to me. You'll have to make minor adjustments with each one, sure, but they're all options that tons of other brewers use with success. I'd just pick one, whatever is easiest for you, and run with it.

Edit: I forgot to mention, if you fly sparge, the no mashout option may not be the best. So, you still have three options if you fly sparge.

Click to expand...

Thanks. I do indeed do fly sparging, and no mashout is definitely a problem, especially with wheat or rye in there. I think maybe a decoction from conversion to mashout is probably the best option, since I'll never have to stop the decoction for any period of time at 65-70 C to convert at that point.

I think my real question was if other people have the same issue (the math seems unavoidable) with mashouts, if they are just not doing them, or what?

I batch sparge, so no mashout is not a problem for me. In fact, I rarely do a mashout step, as it just isn't necessary when batch sparging. If you don't mind a small efficiency hit, the no sparge methods works well, and some people really tout the improved taste when doing it. How much benefit you get out of skipping the sparge probably depends mostly upon your water, but that's just a guess on my part.

Decoctions work just fine, if you an pull them off, but they can be labor intensive. A single decoction to bring you up to mashout temps might be just what you need. It's something you can tack onto the end of your usual routine, without disrupting the rest of it.

You can pull a "thin" (liquid only) decoction for the mashout and shouldn't have any issues with that, since the goal is to denature the enzymes at that point anyway.


If you are doing a 60 minute mash, you might just start checking for conversion a bit earlier, say after 30 minutes or so, and then pull off the decoction portion and start heating it up sooner. Slowly heating up the decoction through that range up to mashout temps will actually speed conversion, so that if you stick to, say 0.5 - 1 degree C per minute, you ought to have full conversion in there even if you pulled out a fairly starchy liquid to start with. If you heat it up quickly, of course, all bets are off.

Just mash a little thicker...maybe 1-1.2 qt per pound.