Sparge water temp dropping

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hal simmons

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Brewed my first AG batch this weekend and it went pretty well. Got a much better efficiency than expected (84%), which is good for first attempt I guess. My question is, we mashed at around 155 for 60 minutes, heated to 170 to mash out, then started sparging with 170 degree water. We did fly sparge and it took about an hour to collect 8.5 gallons.

I noticed that over the hour we sparged the temp of the sparge water and mash dropped significantly since both were off the heat and the mash tun didn't have a lid due to the sparge arm being in the way. Is this an issue? The temp of the runnings I was collecting at the very end of the sparge were around 130. Is this a problem? Should I be keeping the sparge water on heat to make sure it's constantly at 170?
 
I use a cooler for a HLT (which keeps the temperature fairly stable).
I also heat the sparge water to 185 degrees. It drops some when I add it to the HLT (which I don't preheat), and it drops some more in the tubing on the way to the sparge arm, but the grain being sparged stays between 165 and 170 degrees for the duration of the sparge which is anything from 60 to 90 minutes.
As your equipment is different than mine, my figures will probably be different than yours. I would try heating the sparge water to about 180, and monitor the sparge temperature. It may take a few tries to get it dialled in.

-a.
 
What's the potential downside to the temp dropping during sparging? I know you mash out to stop enzyme activity, so does this get negated if your temp drops back into that range during the sparge?
 
I thought you were supposed to keep sparge temps below 170 to avoid possible tannin extraction. So as long as the mash temp doesn't rise above 170 i'm safe, right?

Any downside to the mash temp dropping during sparge? If the mash and sparge temps are at 170 at the start and 140 at the end is this an issue?
 
I fly sparge and use SS MLT and HLT and my process sounds identical to yours. My temps always drop during the sparge and it hasn't hurt any of my beers yet. Do keep an eye on the gravity of your runnings as well as the pH of them near the end of your sparge and you will reduce any chance of picking up tannins.
 
I keep the sparge water on the burner and watch my thermometer carefully. I know those sparge arms can be pricey, but one thing I would suggest if you're worried about heat loss from hlt to mash, and don't want to heat your hlt above 170, is ditching that sparge arm and replacing it with a plastic coffee can lid. Just float it on your mash and hold the tube an inch or so above while performing your normal sparge.
 
We brew with a three tier gravity rack, and have burners on both the HLT and boil kettle. Tun is 10 gallon igloo cooler. We heat the sparge to about 175F, then lower the burner flame so it maintains this temp throughout the sparge (fly method).

Sparging is rinising the remaining sugars from the grains, so from my understanding warmer water will facilitate this better than cold; kinda' like rinsing soap from a wash cloth with warm water vs. cold. Warm water helps rinse/dissolve the soap better.
 
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