EBiab with the Boil Coil

[radwizard]

I have slowly been making the move towards brewing indoors and getting off the propane. Last weekend I brewed my first batch on my EBIAB system, everything went pretty well.

I did have a few questions, mainly about adding heat and recirculating. Last brew I did not bring in all my insulation stuff I used in the garage. During the mash I recirculated and added heat 2 or 3 times to bring the temp up. I was sketched out doing this (worried about scorching the grains that could get into contact with the element). But all turned out well, and I did not see any problems.

This week I decided to modify my Brewhardware false bottom so I could recirc during the entire mash without worrying about scorching. I just did a test, and dont really like the end result so much. The FB has about 4 gallons of space underneath.

I am going to brew a Kolsch tomorrow afternoon. I might just do as I did last week and keep the recirculating to a minimum and not use the false bottom.

Any words of advice? Any Boil Coil BIABers out there? Maybe I am over-reacting to the possibility of scorching??

 

[wilserbrewer]

Perhaps your also over reacting to the notion that holding an exact mash temp is critical

Try mashing in a couple degrees above target, unplug your kettle, wrap a couple blankets around it and go take a nap and relax for an hour.

Please don’t report back what your ending mash temp was, but rather report back what your efficiency and attenuation were compared to when you baby sit and worry about your mash like a newborn.

 

[bgmac]

Yes avoid the grains or bag from touching the boil coil. Give it a shot with the false bottom and 4 gallons of space. If you hit or exceed your efficiency then no worries. I know everyone says that if its too diluted then you wont have the right PH around 5.2. I use a 10 gallon kettle with a bag with holes drilled in the bottom and one inch feet that fits inside my 20 gallon boil coil and rest on the bottom of my 20 gallon kettle. Usually end up with 3 to 4 gallons of water in the space around the outside and underneath but have never had an issue hitting expected efficiency usually 80-85 percent (with a fine crush). But, I am doing 11 gallon batches. Now if your doing a 5 gallon batch with 4 gallons of space under the FB, not sure how that will work out. Might be ok if you circ during the mash. See what your efficiency ends up at to indicate if it works out.

 

[doug293cz]

If you are doing 5 gal batches BIAB, then 4 gal under the FB is way too much. You're only going to have 7.5 - 8 gal of total brewing water, and only having half or less in contact with the grain isn't a good thing.

Brew on

 

[RM-MN]

During the mash I recirculated and added heat 2 or 3 times to bring the temp up. I was sketched out doing this (worried about scorching the grains that could get into contact with the element). But all turned out well, and I did not see any problems.

Have you ever checked how long it takes for your grain to reach full conversion of starch to sugar? You may not need to keep the temp up for as long as you might think and the temperature only matters during conversion. After the conversion is over you are only extracting the sugars, color, and flavor and that can happen over a much wider range of temps.

 

[Austin_]

Any Boil Coil BIABers out there? Maybe I am over-reacting to the possibility of scorching??

My bag and grains rest directly on the boilcoil and I've never had scorching or the bag burning. I was hesitant the first time I did it, but I'll be damned if it didn't work. I haven't looked back since.

 

[Cato1507]

I use the boil coil with the Brew Commander. No false bottom or basket. Just straight BIAB.

The Brew Bag touches the boil coil and I leave the heat on during the mash and also recirc during the mash with no problems at all.

I was cautious at first but now I mash with the boil coil at 90% power. I have the 3750w Boil Coil in a 10gal Blichmann kettle. Mostly do 4-5 gal batches.

 

[radwizard]

Thank you all for you replies. I have been successfully using a fine grind and good insulation to do single infusion mashes for quite some time. It works very well as a method and has produced many beers that I have been proud of.

For various reasons and curiosity, I want to explore different methods. I’m not sure which route I will actually go, but I want to experience the pros and cons of each.

Thanks again!

 

[BoilerInSoCal]

My bag and grains rest directly on the boilcoil and I've never had scorching or the bag burning. I was hesitant the first time I did it, but I'll be damned if it didn't work. I haven't looked back since.

Same here. Wilser bag in a 20 gal SS brewtech with 5500W boil coil; 5 and 10 gal batches; both with recirc during mash and not. Never had an issue.