How good/bad do you think this crush is??

So I've just gotten back into brewing after a 2 year break and am getting horrible efficiencies. I remember getting well into the 80%'s but now am not even getting out of the 60%'s. I've used the same online brew store for all my pre-milled ingredients both before and after the break. I've also kept the same equipment.

I've brewed 2 batches so far since brewing again and after the first I bought a new thermometer as I though the temps may be off, nearly the same result on the second brew day. It has been cold which makes hitting your temps a bit harder but my mash temp seems pretty close.

Here is a picture of the crush through the plastic bag. It seems as if it could be finer but since I've never had a mill I thought I would let you guys decide. I don't really want to mill my own grain but if its either fight with the mid to upper 60%'s or mill my own and get mid 80%'s then I wouldn't care to mill my own. Brewing just isn't as fun if you efficiency sucks lol.

BTW if it matters to anyone I mash in a 10g cooler and average 20lb of grain with a thickness of 1.25 qt/lb. I do a double batch sparge, no mash out.

It's hard to tell the difference between husks and whole grains in that picture...

How about this photo? I cut the bag and poured some on a plate for a better photo. I'm pretty sure the crush isn't very good as I had no problem quickly picking several whole grains that were not crushed at all.

What online HBS are you using? Perhaps they've changed.

Either way, I agree, it looks like a very loose crush.

I'm not going to pretend I'm an expert but it looks somewhat questionable to me unless you're fly sparging.

I was buying crushed grain frim morebeer and was getting similar efficiency then I biut my own mill and now average between 75 and 80.

I really wasn't going to disclose the online store as they've had enough questionable press lately and I've been one of their fans going back a few years but it's Brewmaster's Warehouse. I love their brewbuilder tool, ability to add ounces of grain to a batch and their packaging is great. I used to get over 80% from their mill though is what sucks, I was hoping it was something in my process but I'm starting to think it might be the crush.

zanemoseley said:

I really wasn't going to disclose the online store as they've had enough questionable press lately and I've been one of their fans going back a few years but it's Brewmaster's Warehouse. I love their brewbuilder tool, ability to add ounces of grain to a batch and their packaging is great. I used to get over 80% from their mill though is what sucks, I was hoping it was something in my process but I'm starting to think it might be the crush.

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Email them about it. Who knows? Maybe they've been getting complaints of stuck sparges from other brewers and deliberately loosened it. Maybe it was just a mistake that nobody corrected.

If you don't hear anything back, find another HBS. But maybe this is news to them, or they have a real reason for it, and you can make your decision from that.

Of course, this is why I have a mill so that I get the same crush every time

There's been talk about the BMW crush going south, and Ed has posted about it claiming to have assessed the issue. I would call them about it and straighten it out. For whatever their faults, they have always gone the extra mile to make things right.

I have found in my own experience when dealing with any business if you are sincere, and dealing with the right person, 99% of the time they will correct the problem.

Looks like a poor crush to me. But since you have them in front of you it should be easy to tell. Every single grain should show at minimum being cracked.

I just got a batch from them as well, and the crush looked extremely questionable. I hit all my temps perfectly and still had horrible efficiency. I like their brewbuilder, but I will be very hesitant to order from them in the future. I just can't trust the crush.

I prefer my crush a lot finer than that. That would not fly with me lol

I do BIAB, and each of the 2 times I've ordered from BMW, I requested a double crush, and they've complied. Your system may not want a double crush, but something to think about.

Get a mill. It's the only way to control the crush. Mine looks like this...

Make the initial investment and get you a mill. You will not ever be let down and will get your eff. I just bought a barley crusher and started buying my grain in bulk. Absolutely love the mill. For it off Beersmith through there coupon. Cost me 126 shipped to my front door. Here's a few pics of it. Cheers

The white endosperm should have a particle size close to ground coffee with the husk as intact as possible. You want a mix from close to flour to coffee size pieces.

That crush does look a little loose. Hopefully BMW can resolve this for you. Ultimately if your going to continue all grain brewing it makes sense to invest in a mill bc at least your gonna control the crush and it should be consistent. Not to mention the savings from buying grain in bulk.

Well my bag of grain isn't even close to looking yours Trubdog. Guess its time to bite the bullet and get a mill, I'm looking at the Monster MM-2. I really don't "want" to mill my own grain but it bruises my brewing ego when I get efficiency in the mid 60%'s.

zanemoseley said:

Well my bag of grain isn't even close to looking yours Trubdog. Guess its time to bite the bullet and get a mill, I'm looking at the Monster MM-2. I really don't "want" to mill my own grain but it bruises my brewing ego when I get efficiency in the mid 60%'s.

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I brewed Sunday and this is extremely high but I hit 90.8 efficiency with this crush. I took a pic for ya. Hope this helps buddy. Cheers.

That crush almost seems like its suited for extract batches ...if venture to say the rollers on their mill might be worn out or mal adjusted. My lhbs specializes in bulk extracts and extract brewers, and their mill stunk. The only way to get a good efficiency was to have them double crush. (They've since upgraded to a 3 roller monster mill).

I bought a Millars B2 mill off amazon (had amazon gift cards) recently and it cost me 47$ shipped after applying my gift cards. It's a fantastic mill for the money and I'm getting 88% on it.

Well I believe I got 78% efficiency from this batch however 40% of that was flaked corn which I believe come pre-cracked. So it were all malted barley I would probably have gotten low 70%'s or high 60%'s.
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When I brew I have found that if I keep on tweaking the grind finer and finer every batch until the sparge starts to slow down then I give it a little tweak more and then add rice hulls to every batch from there on. I get great efficiency and no stuck sparges.