Another Efficiency Question

[backsideslash]

I have been struggling with my efficiency ever since I started all-grain. I have tried pretty much everything I can think of to help, from thick, thin, medium mash thicknesses, mash-out vs. no mash-out, stirring vs. not stirring during the mash, single vs. double batch sparge, high gravity vs. low gravity, fast lauter vs. slow lauter, crush size, braid vs. false bottom, and I still haven't gotten above 65%, with 60% pretty much being average. The only two things I haven't tried are fly sparging due to my current setup, and water chemistry mainly because I haven't gone down that road yet.

My question is, is it possible that a crushed stainless steel braid would affect efficiency? The highest efficiency I have gotten was with a false bottom, but it was a stuck sparge so I had to switch to a braid halfway through. Would placing a SS or copper tube inside the braid/bazooka screen increase my efficiency at all? I have noticed that the SS braid is typically pretty flat and crushed after I empty my grains.

I know efficiency isn't something that affects the quality of the beer, but I like to brew a lot of big beers and getting 60% efficiency on a normal gravity beer makes it hard to do a high gravity one in my 10 gal cooler. ANY help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[h22lude]

Water chemistry and mash pH could be an issue. Both of those (if out of whack) can cause low efficiency problems. You would need a water report and plug in your figures with grain bill into a calculator to see what your estimated mash pH was. If it was getting over 6 then you have a high mash pH and most likely the cause (part of the cause) for your low efficiency.

Also are you calculating mash pH or just brewhouse? Brewhouse isn't a real good number in my opinion. Brewhouse deals with how much wort is left over in your kettle. So if you hit all your gravity readings but left an extra half gallon or gallon in your kettle, that would lower your efficiency.

 

[Biscuits]

This is a very open ended question without specific details. I hate to be "that guy" but before we go pointing the finger at braided lines and water, we need to know your grain bill, volumes, temperatures, etc. before we can start troubleshooting efficiency.

 

[TheMadKing]

I have been struggling with my efficiency ever since I started all-grain. I have tried pretty much everything I can think of to help, from thick, thin, medium mash thicknesses, mash-out vs. no mash-out, stirring vs. not stirring during the mash, single vs. double batch sparge, high gravity vs. low gravity, fast lauter vs. slow lauter, crush size, braid vs. false bottom, and I still haven't gotten above 65%, with 60% pretty much being average. The only two things I haven't tried are fly sparging due to my current setup, and water chemistry mainly because I haven't gone down that road yet.

My question is, is it possible that a crushed stainless steel braid would affect efficiency? The highest efficiency I have gotten was with a false bottom, but it was a stuck sparge so I had to switch to a braid halfway through. Would placing a SS or copper tube inside the braid/bazooka screen increase my efficiency at all? I have noticed that the SS braid is typically pretty flat and crushed after I empty my grains.

I know efficiency isn't something that affects the quality of the beer, but I like to brew a lot of big beers and getting 60% efficiency on a normal gravity beer makes it hard to do a high gravity one in my 10 gal cooler. ANY help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

http://braukaiser.com/wiki/index.php?title=Understanding_Efficiency

I recommend giving this a good read.

It also depends on exactly what you're measuring and calling "efficiency" as there are several different definitions of efficiency. You will need to pinpoint exactly where your process is going wrong (conversion, lauter, total system loss, etc)

In general, mash thinner, crush as finely as your setup can handle without a stuck sparge, you could try a 90 minute mash, and double check that you are taking your measurements at the correct point in your brew day, and with a calibrated hydrometer at 68F.