jakecpunut
Well-Known Member
Just brewed up a 2 gallon BIAB Saturday ----> Click here if you wanna see the recipe.
and thought I would share how I held the mash temps. I don't "think" I've read about anyone doing this, I'm sure they have and I'm sure there's a post about it somewhere... but anways...
This was my 2nd BIAB. When I did my FIRST BIAB, I used a 22 quart SS pot with a large grain bag stretched over the pot. When I got the strike temp where I wanted it and put the grain in, I hit my mash temp spot on. At that point I just put the lid on and left it for the 60 minute mash sitting on the stove. I know I had read about how some would keep checking the temps and turning the stove eye on to keep the temp up, but I was afraid to do that because I didn't want to risk scorching the wort or going over the mash temps. So after the 60 minutes I had lost about 7 degrees.
Sooo, on this second batch, it hit me that I had an old square beer cooler that would hold my 22 qt ss pot perfectly. So for this second batch I heated a gallon of water to 175 and dumped it in that cooler, closed the lid and let the cooler absorb some of the heat.
I had heated up my strike water on the stove at the same time I had heated that one gallon of water for the cooler. Of course my strike water was like 165 so after I added my grain and got my mash temp regulated to 153, I just took the 22 qt ss pot and sat it in the cooler where I had left the heated water. That water had regulated to 155 from the cooler absorbing the heat which surprised me that it evened out so well..
Shut the lid and didn't open it for the full 60 minutes and when I checked the temps, STILL at 153!!
Soo, just thought I'd share that, may be an option for someone that has a spare cooler sitting around or can get one cheap? Dunno if anyone has tried it but it worked well and I'll probably do that with all my BIAB's instead of wrapping in blankets or trying to regulate with the stove eye...
and thought I would share how I held the mash temps. I don't "think" I've read about anyone doing this, I'm sure they have and I'm sure there's a post about it somewhere... but anways...
This was my 2nd BIAB. When I did my FIRST BIAB, I used a 22 quart SS pot with a large grain bag stretched over the pot. When I got the strike temp where I wanted it and put the grain in, I hit my mash temp spot on. At that point I just put the lid on and left it for the 60 minute mash sitting on the stove. I know I had read about how some would keep checking the temps and turning the stove eye on to keep the temp up, but I was afraid to do that because I didn't want to risk scorching the wort or going over the mash temps. So after the 60 minutes I had lost about 7 degrees.
Sooo, on this second batch, it hit me that I had an old square beer cooler that would hold my 22 qt ss pot perfectly. So for this second batch I heated a gallon of water to 175 and dumped it in that cooler, closed the lid and let the cooler absorb some of the heat.
I had heated up my strike water on the stove at the same time I had heated that one gallon of water for the cooler. Of course my strike water was like 165 so after I added my grain and got my mash temp regulated to 153, I just took the 22 qt ss pot and sat it in the cooler where I had left the heated water. That water had regulated to 155 from the cooler absorbing the heat which surprised me that it evened out so well..
Shut the lid and didn't open it for the full 60 minutes and when I checked the temps, STILL at 153!!
Soo, just thought I'd share that, may be an option for someone that has a spare cooler sitting around or can get one cheap? Dunno if anyone has tried it but it worked well and I'll probably do that with all my BIAB's instead of wrapping in blankets or trying to regulate with the stove eye...
