Efficiency/Volume Help

I've done 5/6 gallon all grain batches on my system (10 gallon mash tun with SS braid) with no problems. Last night I did my first 10 gallon batch - planned for 1060. With the grain and water, I about one inch shy of the top of the cooler. I run a single tier with a HERMS coil and also pump from the MT to the BK. I had a rough time with stuck sparge last night and doing the batch sparge. It took me over an hour to get 10 gallons into the BK when I really wanted 11.5 or 12, so I just called it good. I had a low boil and end up with almost 9 gallons - 8 of which are fermenting well.

This leaves me with 2 questions:

- Do I need to come up with a better false bottom than the stainless steel braid for these bigger batches?

- Since I'm still dialing in my system I'd like to know my efficiency. If I ended up with 9 gallons of 1067 instead of 10 gallons of 1060 with a planned efficiency of 70%.... What was my actual efficiency?

Thanks!

- Since I'm still dialing in my system I'd like to know my efficiency. If I ended up with 9 gallons of 1067 instead of 10 gallons of 1060 with a planned efficiency of 70%.... What was my actual efficiency?

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Easiest way to do this is with you recipe software, do you use any? I use beer tools pro and on the analysis tab you can imput your actuals and it will give your efficiency. I am sure there is also a manual way to calculate this but I have never done it.

This info may be of use if you want to work it out manually:

http://www.davikbrewing.com/blog/brewing_101/calculating-brewing-efficiency

If you are having issues or dialing in your system, use this until you get comfy with your setup.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/efficiency-analysis-spreadsheet-107911/

For your batch, you were JUST better than your target efficiency. Your 1.067 in 9 gallons is the equivalent of 10.05 gallons of 1.060. Make sure you learn your boil-off losses and adjust pre-boil volume based on measures SG. You should have a pre-boil target volume and gravity.

This is a handy calculator as well for volume adjustments:
http://www.brewheads.com/newvolume.php

Yeah, I had a preboil target, but today I realized the that the 2.5 pounds of flaked oats probably had something to do with stuck/very slow draining mash. After spending 1.5 hours trying to get to my preboil through batch sparging I called it good enough.

I did do the calc and came up with 71% efficiency... so I was right there!

Next time, the flaked oats go on top instead of mixing them in!

JSomps6 said:

Yeah, I had a preboil target, but today I realized the that the 2.5 pounds of flaked oats probably had something to do with stuck/very slow draining mash. After spending 1.5 hours trying to get to my preboil through batch sparging I called it good enough.

I did do the calc and came up with 71% efficiency... so I was right there!

Next time, the flaked oats go on top instead of mixing them in!

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You can also and some rice hulls if it was stuck. The SS braids tend to get stuck more often than manifolds (based only on what I have read here, I have never owned a braid-based MT)