Just hit my best BIAB efficiency yet

83% - wow!

I switched from extract to all-grain BIAB a few months ago, now I'm dialing it in. This working out well.

Granted, this batch was pretty easy - 4 lbs of two-row and 4 lbs of wheat. But, still, 83% is rockin for my little turkey fryer BIAB set up.

I mashed 8 lbs of grain in 6 gallons of water. Strike temp was 158, mash temp came down to 152. I let it sit for an hour and 15 minutes and lost 6 degrees over that period. Brought it up to 170 for ten minutes.

Then I pulled the bag and and let it drain over the kettle, twisting the bag tight to get out a lot of wort. Then placed it in a collander and pushed down on that bag with a pot lid to squeeze out some more wort.

I ended up with about 5.65 gallons of wort at 1.044 pre-boil gravity.

So glad I switched to BIAB....

Great job!

you know, as much as i love my "3-tier" setup, i've always wanted to try out BIAB.... i may soon!

I would be careful squeezing too much! You may just have extracted a ton of tannins with as much force as you applied. Don't be disappointed if the brew doesn't taste right. It is better to add more grain to increase your efficiency than to have to squeeze the bag. Just my two cents.

SouthernBrewMan said:

I would be careful squeezing too much! You may just have extracted a ton of tannins with as much force as you applied. Don't be disappointed if the brew doesn't taste right. It is better to add more grain to increase your efficiency than to have to squeeze the bag. Just my two cents.

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I've heard this a number of times, and I just can't wrap my head around the reason why squeezing the bag would extract tannins. All you're doing is "squishing" out water. How would this be different than just letting the water from the bag drain via gravity? Can someone explain the science behind why squeezing would extract tannins? I've had quite a few people say it's the case, and an equally number of people say it's bogus.

Just curious if there's an explanation behind the concern.

Tannin extraction has to do with mash ph and temperature. If your ph and temps are good, you can squeeze until you get a cramp and will not get any tannins.
I think the people that are getting tannins are incorrectly assuming that the squeeze was where they got them, not incorrect ph or temperature.

Lots of back and forth in this forum on the tannin extraction. I squeeze the bag with no bad effects to date. 83% efficiency is awesome. I've done 3 bayches BIAB so far with 78, 58 and 76% efficiency. I believe correct dough-in temps and plenty of stirring during the 60min mash are what give me the best results.

I think if you could squeeze with about 100* tons of pressure you might pulverize the husks to the point of giving up Tannins.


* exaggerated for demonstration purposes only - temp/PH is really the answer as pointed out already. Simply try it with a tea bag that has not overstayed its welcome in the cup and you won't get any excessive Tannins.

Thanks for all the advice on squeezin - but, this is my fifth all grain BIAB and fifth time squeezin. Not a tannin yet.

Doesn't sound like you were asking for or need advice. What kind of crush were you doing and do you deal with or know your water chemistry? 83% is great, better than I get, but then again I am very imprecise in my volume measurements (read- lazy).

Crush = twice thrøugh the LHBS mill.

H20 chemistry = no idea. Overland Park, KS tap water.

frailn said:

Crush = twice thrøugh the LHBS mill.

H20 chemistry = no idea. Overland Park, KS tap water.

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Which lhbs you use? Bacchus or olathe?

On a recent batch I reached 89% efficiency, and 93% on the batch after that.

I love BIAB. I'm not sure I'll ever switch to a conventional MLT.

JWS said:

Which lhbs you use? Bacchus or olathe?

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Bacchus - I tried Olathe, but found Bacchus more helpful and closer to home.