conversion by IG/SG measurements

Im wandering if the iodine test for conversion is necessary if you can simply boil down wort volumes to get to desired IG/SG into fermenter? confused in La. please explain. thanks, doc

docmoran said:

Im wandering if the iodine test for conversion is necessary if you can simply boil down wort volumes to get to desired IG/SG into fermenter? confused in La. please explain. thanks, doc

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The iodine test is to confirm that you have converted the starches in the grain to fermentables.If it turns black then you need to mash longer or get your temp into the proper range.It is basically telling you that you did indeed get the fermentables out of the grain.If you are having a conversion problem then you can fix it before you have all the runnings instead of after.
For example:I brewed a beer with alot of wheat in it.After 1 hr.I took a few drops of the mash and put it on a plate.Dropped 2 drops iodine in it and it turned black.It hadn't converted so I let it sit another 30mins and checked again.Voila!Color didn't change and I started the runoff.If I hadn't checked for conversion then I wouldn't have been able to correct the problem w/o putting all the runnings back in the mash and would have ended up w/ a lower than expected s.g.It's merely a safety measure for your peace of mind.Hope this helps.