Beer Alchemy Dead Space Question

[GParkins]

For good or for bad, I have thrown my chips in with Beer Alchemy. One capability I haven't sorted out yet is how to compensate malt quantities and initial water volumes to accommodate dead space in my setup. I'm a cooler brewer, with a converted stainless steel keg as a brewpot.

I can figure out what my dead space is with fresh water easily enough, but I'd really like to be a bit more confident about adjusting my next grain bill to compensate for it.

Also, I just flat-out don't know if all dead space is cumulative, or is boil kettle dead space weighed differently than MLT dead space?

I think the following pic is where I make the adjustment, but would be damn glad for some advice from a fellow alchemist.

 

[tektonjp]

For good or for bad, I have thrown my chips in with Beer Alchemy. One capability I haven't sorted out yet is how to compensate malt quantities and initial water volumes to accommodate dead space in my setup. I'm a cooler brewer, with a converted stainless steel keg as a brewpot.

I can figure out what my dead space is with fresh water easily enough, but I'd really like to be a bit more confident about adjusting my next grain bill to compensate for it.

Also, I just flat-out don't know if all dead space is cumulative, or is boil kettle dead space weighed differently than MLT dead space?

I think the following pic is where I make the adjustment, but would be damn glad for some advice from a fellow alchemist.

View attachment 247949

Sorry you've been orphaned! I'm surprised, are there no other Alchemy users, or they just don't have any problems and never come to this forum?

Your thinking is right, I believe. BA doesn't have the details for losses like some other programs, I think. You have to do the math yourself and then plug it in. Dead space on brew day is cumulative. Three of these are consistent (if boil time remains the same on each batch): loss in the bottom of the MT (cooler), loss to evaporation at boil, and loss in the bottom of BK. The variable loss occurs in the your grain bill and its absorption.

BA will calculate the variance of grain bills and the additional (or opposite) need for water. When you go to "batch", double click to open, then enter all your viariables for the day (temp etc) and then click on instructions. That will give you the amount of water you'll need and the strike temp.

Also, I am concerned, a little, why you have a gallon of loss in the fermenter. Probably should be about half that or less.

Does this help at all?

 

[MX1]

Are you sure there is not and Equipment profile set up page??

I remember, being asked my thermal mass and such, you should be bale to dial in the losses there.


Ok, it is coning back to me now.

You do need to know your system somewhat, or use some of the other sites to rough in your numbers.

Wort before and after: put in how much you want after the boil, to include your trub loss. If you pour everything into the fermenter, then you have 0 trub losses.

go here: http://sigginet.info/brewing/tools/boil-off-calculator/ it should help dial in that number, add the amount lost to your after boil amount to get your before boil amount.

Finished volume after pitching is what you plan on putting into a keg or bottles. Or, total volume after pitching, miss what you leave behind in yeast cake and hop sludge.

Thermal mass is how much heat your MT soaked up when adding strike water. If you preheat a cooler by adding hot water, and waiting until it drops to strike temp, then this is 0, also if you have a RIMS/HERMS this will be 0.

In the brew day instructions, it will figure out all the water and water losses for you based on the profile, and boil time you select.

Hope that helps


T

 

[eric19312]

I'm a BA user

I think it's missing and would be nice addition of there will be upgrades.