Hard time controlling temp while steeping grains

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IPAAAA

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So I am trying to get 2-3 quarts of water to around 155-160 degrees but my ****ty ass oven is really throwing me off. Should I reach the temperature then pop the grains in and pull it off the oven or what? My thermometer is one of those normal glass ones so does it matter if it is touching any part of the pot while I try and get a correct reading?

I really don't want to screw this up by it being too cool or cooking way too hot. Btw this is my first time brewing so that is why I'm struggling. :(
 
Don't fret too much over it! It's not rocket science, and you'll still make beer whether you steep at 170F or 155F. :)

Heat the water to just under 170F. That way, when you add the room-temp grains (in a steeping bag, mind you) it'll bring the temp down to 155-160F.

Hold your thermometer away from the walls of the pot. For future brew sessions, buy a $20 instant-read thermometer. If you brew, you'll use the heck out of this, and will find other uses for it, like grilling.

Once you add the grains, put a lid on the pot and remove from heat. Most people don't use the oven for this, they just do it on the stovetop. Over 30-40 minutes, if you have a decent pot, your temps won't drop that much, but you could always wrap the pot in a thick bath towel to keep the heat steady.

You're not mashing, so keeping the temp steady isn't super important at this point. The only thing you'll want to watch is starting temp. Keep it below 170F, and you'll have no problems. Over 170F, and you start pulling bitter tannins from the grain husks.

Dunk the grain sack like a teabag a few times throughout the steep. This assures that all the grain in the sack is wet and releasing the sugary goodness.

Get that thermometer, and this will be less stressful in the future, that's for sure! Have fun!
 
If you want a cheap digi thermometer IKEA has em for about $7 It read fine next to my K type thermocouple and my PID controller.
 
I've never done it in an oven, so I'm not sure what would work best. I just heat the pot up on the stove until it gets to 160ish, and then put the grains in, stirring well, and then turn off the heat and cover. It stays in the 150-160 range for the 20-30 minutes for the steeping without any problems. My oven's lowest temperature is 250 degrees, so I don't think it would work in my oven.

Unless you're putting in the oven, turned off, just to have it in a draft-free place? anyway, it should be fine just in the pot.
 
Heat the water to just under 170......turn off heat....add grains.....

Monitor temperature....when it gets down to 157-160.....turn heat back on an dheat until water hits 168 or so.......rinse and repeat...


I just did a 45 minute steep....and i had to reheat 2 times.....

Get a stainless steel thermometer you can hook to your kettle for easy monitoring.

Dont try to adjust heat to keep temp steady.....just turn on and off to maintain in between the range yoyu want.
 
Before I got my cooler, I did my partial mashes using the oven and it works GREAT. You heat your water on the stove, add your grain, make any temp adjustments by adding either cold or boiling water. While you do that, you have your oven on at it's lowest temperature (usually around 200F). When you have your temp right in your mash/steep, turn the oven off, open it up, pop your pot in and close the door. When you open the door, you'll let a lot of the hot air out and since the oven is now turned off, it won't get any hotter. The residual heat the walls of the oven give off will keep your pot warm longer than having it sit on top of the stove and you won't have to use the burner to try to maintain heat.
 
Put the grains in cold and slowly heat the water while you swish the bag around.. Take the grain bag out when it gets to 170*. Just another way to do it.
 
Thanks for all the great responses...really appreciate it!

I ment to say stove not oven haha. Definitely gonna look into getting one of the instant read thermometers. You remember the name of the one you got at ikea Indian villager?

Btw I now have my first batch of beer fermenting in my garage....I am pumped!!!
 
torque2k said:
Don't fret too much over it! It's not rocket science, and you'll still make beer whether you steep at 170F or 155F. :)

Heat the water to just under 170F. That way, when you add the room-temp grains (in a steeping bag, mind you) it'll bring the temp down to 155-160F.

Hold your thermometer away from the walls of the pot. For future brew sessions, buy a $20 instant-read thermometer. If you brew, you'll use the heck out of this, and will find other uses for it, like grilling.

Once you add the grains, put a lid on the pot and remove from heat. Most people don't use the oven for this, they just do it on the stovetop. Over 30-40 minutes, if you have a decent pot, your temps won't drop that much, but you could always wrap the pot in a thick bath towel to keep the heat steady.

You're not mashing, so keeping the temp steady isn't super important at this point. The only thing you'll want to watch is starting temp. Keep it below 170F, and you'll have no problems. Over 170F, and you start pulling bitter tannins from the grain husks.

Dunk the grain sack like a teabag a few times throughout the steep. This assures that all the grain in the sack is wet and releasing the sugary goodness.

Get that thermometer, and this will be less stressful in the future, that's for sure! Have fun!
Click to expand...

Got any recommendations on a specific thermometer?
 
I got a decent digital thermometer at Fry's for about $10 that yields readings within about 15-30 seconds. I don't know how sturdy it is, I've only used it for one boil so far, but I'm happy with it at this point.
 
IPAAAA: That one looks a lot like the one I got, I bet it's fine. Make sure it's rated for temps you expect to work at, though (mine goes up to 472 I think, since I like to observe even my boiling temps a bit, especially as I am chilling the wort)
 
I wonder how accurate it is?

Batteries is sold separately; 1 pc LR03 AAA size 1.5V battery required.
Measures temperatures up to 266°F/130°C.
The cord is heat-resistant up to 428°F/220°C.

So it looks like the temps should be ok. Is it safe to assume that if the water in the trashcan is 60 then the beer in the bucket is fermenting at that same temp or will it be a little higher?
 
My first three beers have tended to be 4-6 degrees higher inside the fermenter than out during the early stages of fermentation. I'm erring more and more on the side of fermenting cooler. I haven't tasted a bottled/conditioned/carbed sip of my first beer, yet, though, so maybe I won't so much mind that it largely fermented at about 78 degrees Fahrenheit. I'm guessing I'll prefer the cooler-fermented brews of my last two attempts, though.
 
Well the way I have it setup is I have a 20 gallon trash can with the fermenter in there surrounded by water with frozen water bottles. It sits at 60 degrees water temperature just not sure if that translates to the temp inside the fermenting bucket as well.
 
I am currently an electric stove top, partial mash brewer. I brew 2-2.5 gallons of water in a pot at a time. I have found a few things that may help you out.

1) If you have really nice pots and lids you may be able to just cover and remove from heat, I have super cheapo stuff so this does not work well for me.

2) I heat my strike water to about 166-168, I then dump in grains, stir, cover and move to a small burner that is set to the lowest possible setting.(this has proven to work the best for me. My temps seem very stable this way.)

3) You may be able to preheat your oven to 160 and after you get the strike water up to temp, add grains and cover; you can set the pot into the oven to mash. I have never done this but have read about others that do this and seem to get good results.

GL :mug:
 
Recordkeeping really helps out here...

I had a hard time at first, but now what I do is heat up my water to 165 F and then I place the heat on low... this keeps the temperature pretty steady while I place the grain bag in the water.

If the temperature starts dropping I turn it up a bit and I already know on my stove somewhere between settings 2-3 I can maintain the temperature at 163ish...

Your stove might be different, but trial and error and recordkeeping will get you there...
 
Thanks everyone. Gonna give your suggestions a try this new brew session.
 

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