Water Volume Measuring Question
- Thread starter Jiffster
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:
I never measure water to the 0.01 of a gallon. I figure that's what some recipe spits out as the required water to hit the OG. I may measure to the nearest 1/8 of a gallon since that is a pint. My guess is that is what this recipe is doing. 6.63g is probably 6.5g + 1 more pint of water to get to 6.625g. Rounded to 2 digits, that is 6.63.
I usually try to focus more on nailing the OG. If I'm a little under on the wort, so be it. If I'm over, I can always leave some wort in the kettle.
I usually try to focus more on nailing the OG. If I'm a little under on the wort, so be it. If I'm over, I can always leave some wort in the kettle.
chickypad
lupulin shift victim
I measure to the nearest quart on my 10 gal batches, to the nearest 1/2 quart on my 3 gal batches. Also realize that you don't necessarily want to go by the recipe volumes, and instead figure things out for your own system. For example if you boil off more than the recipe author does you need to start with more water. I typically ignore water volumes entirely when borrowing a recipe.
I agree with the above, I don't use what's listed on the recipe.
There are too many variables when it comes to efficiency with individual set ups.
In my BIAB set up to do a 5 gal batch I start with 7 to 7.5 gallons depending on my grain bill. Your efficiency may vary.
There are too many variables when it comes to efficiency with individual set ups.
In my BIAB set up to do a 5 gal batch I start with 7 to 7.5 gallons depending on my grain bill. Your efficiency may vary.
McGarnigle
Well-Known Member
6.75 is just as precise as 6.63 
.
I might to somewhere in between 6.5 and 6.75, not worrying about two decimals.
.I might to somewhere in between 6.5 and 6.75, not worrying about two decimals.
OP
OP
Jiffster
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 8, 2015
- Messages
- 806
- Reaction score
- 109
Yeah, the whole "efficiency" subject is still not clear to me. I've read a couple of brewing books and still don't completely understand it.
I'm sure I will after I get my first AG batch under my belt. Hopefully this week!
I'm sure I will after I get my first AG batch under my belt. Hopefully this week!
I do rather large pb/pm biab beers, as much as 8.6lbs of grist. I also do it in the same 5 gallon kettle I started with. so I measure 1 1.4 to 1 1.2 quarts per pound of grain, depending on the size of the mash.
For my mash, I use 1.3-1.5 quarts of water per pound of grain. If that's 29.6 quarts, like on Sunday, I use 7.5 gallons. Then I sparge up to my boil volume, so that could be 7.3 gallons or 7.932 gallons- it doesn't matter as long as I hit my boil volume. Does that make sense?
The recipe doesn't really give water amounts, only the water amounts someone used in their system.
I may have more dead space under my false bottom, and you might brew in a bag with less absorption loss, so it's not going to be the same for both brewers even if the recipe they use is the same. I'd use more water than the BIAB guy who squeezed his bag out.
Does that make sense? The easiest thing to do is work backwards. Say you need 6.75 gallons of wort in the kettle because your boil-off is 1.5 gallons per hour. So it doesn't matter how much water you use to get there- BIAB guy might need 7(?) gallons while I'll have more losses so I'll need 8 gallons of water at the start.
The best thing to do on a brewday when you don't really know how much you'll "lose" to absorption and boil off is to have more water ready and on hand. If you're doing a traditional mash, using 1.3-1.5 quarts of water per pound of grain is a great place to start. Then either sparge up to your volume (fly sparging) or drain your first runnings, and measure those. Then use however much water in the sparge that you need to reach your boil volume. You may want to know you have about 7 gallons of water to start with, but actually need more or less than that.
OP
OP
Jiffster
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 8, 2015
- Messages
- 806
- Reaction score
- 109
Right.
You will get conversion from your mash anywhere in the sub- 1 quart/pound range to 2+quarts/pound range.
I like staying around 1.33-1.5, for a couple of reasons. One is if I miss my temperature- I have "room" to add a bit of ice or a bit of boiling water. Also, for my "new" system (about 5 years old), I get a more fluid mash consistency. But anywhere in the neighborhood is good.
Then, sparge up to your boil volume so you don't find yourself short on volume.
It's not the way to maximize efficiency like professional breweries do, but it's effective and time saving as well as inexpensive.
The goal should be consistency and hitting your volumes.
How are you measuring?
I took a length of PVC pipe and began filling my boil kettle first w/1 gallon of water and then made a mark on the pipe w/a marker pen
Then did the same for each additional quart till I reached my max.
Since I only do 2 gallon batches I started w/the quart measures early.
If you are doing 5 gallon you can skip a lot of the early measures.
And yea recipe volumes are general amounts. You have to use according to your system.
Keep notes to grain absorption, boil off and trub loss. Soon you'll have it down pat.
I took a length of PVC pipe and began filling my boil kettle first w/1 gallon of water and then made a mark on the pipe w/a marker pen
Then did the same for each additional quart till I reached my max.
Since I only do 2 gallon batches I started w/the quart measures early.
If you are doing 5 gallon you can skip a lot of the early measures.
And yea recipe volumes are general amounts. You have to use according to your system.
Keep notes to grain absorption, boil off and trub loss. Soon you'll have it down pat.
