Help, to many choices.

[tolip_ck1]

What should I do, The system I built has the ability to do just about anything, but I am not understanding some basic ideas.

Once I am done with the mash and I start to collect wort should I add hot water on top of my grain (fly sparge) until I reach the total pre-boil volume?

Should I re-circulate the total pre-boil volume continuously onto my grain bed until I reach a certain OG?

Should I batch sparge the grains only with a pre-calculated volume of hot water and then add just water to the kettle until I reach a calculated volume?

sorry I am confused about what is the "Best,"

Again I have the ability to do almost any configuration with the system, direct fire or not RIMS system, fly/batch sparge etc.

Maybe this should be in the newbie section?

 

[Hammy71]

I batch sparge. I usually use about 1.5qts of water per pound of grain. I use this calculator to dermine the strike temps, etc.

http://www.brewheads.com/batch.php

After I'm done the mash (usually between 60-90 minutes) and the vorluf is complete I transfer the first runnings to the boiling pot. I then subtract the volume that is in the boiling pot from my total preboil volume. I then use that number to determine my sparge amounts. Example: If my preboil volume is 6.5 gallons and my frist runnings came to 2.5 gallons, then I would need 4 gallons of sparge water. I usually sparge with two equal amounts so each sparge volume would be 2 gallons. I don't fly sparge, so I can't help you there. But, that's batch sparging 101. When I used a cooler I was getting around72% eff. With my recirculating mash/RIMS system I am running at 81% eff. Not saying it's the 'Best', but it works for me.

 

[imperialipa]

I fly sparge. Basically I fill up my HLT with 169 degree water and gently sprinkle water over the grain bed while draining into a tub on the bottom.

I drain slowly and sparge slowly. Try to get sparge to take more than 40 min.

I just bought a coil of copper tubing and drilled holes into it to attach to the HLT.

Make sure there is about 2 inches of water above the grain bed and position the sparge so its just right on top of the bed.

I figure my preboil volume is 6.5 gal to get about 5 with a 60 min boil. (your boil off rate may be different) So I fill my tub to about 5.5 gal and shut of sparge and drain the rest of the wort which usually gets me about 6.5 total.

 

[tolip_ck1]

Should I "recirculate" my runnings while adding my sparge water? Is that what a "step" mash is? Because I could step up the temps at any point, or I guess lower them if needed? This can be done via a direct fire, or an imersion copper coil in my HLT.

Thanx again

 

[imperialipa]

I recirculate direct fire with a rabanco and solenoid while mashing but once mash out is done I just add sparge water to the top and drain it out the bottom slowly until I get about a gallon short of my desired Preboil volume. Turn off fly sparge and drain the rest of the wort. Usually another gallon.

 

[RM-MN]

Should I "recirculate" my runnings while adding my sparge water? Is that what a "step" mash is? Because I could step up the temps at any point, or I guess lower them if needed? This can be done via a direct fire, or an imersion copper coil in my HLT.

Thanx again

You want to watch your first bit of wort that you drain to see if you got any grains in it. If you do, you pour that back on the top to filter out. Once the wort is clear of grain pieces, you don't need to put any more back.

A step mash is done by bring the temperature of the mash to certain temperatures and holding at that temp for a given amount of time, then warming it up to the next "step". With the better malts available now, you should rarely need this and you will know by that point without asking.

 

[tolip_ck1]

You want to watch your first bit of wort that you drain to see if you got any grains in it. If you do, you pour that back on the top to filter out. Once the wort is clear of grain pieces, you don't need to put any more back.

A step mash is done by bring the temperature of the mash to certain temperatures and holding at that temp for a given amount of time, then warming it up to the next "step". With the better malts available now, you should rarely need this and you will know by that point without asking.

I have a filtering system in place so I will catch any grains and bring the first bit of wort back onto the grain bed to set it for clearness this can been done as long as necessary.

I guess after that I will "rinse" the filtered and set grain bed with clean water until I reach just below (maybe a gallon) and allow the grain bed to go "dry" and raise my total volume up to a pre-boil amount..

 

[tolip_ck1]

I recirculate direct fire with a rabanco and solenoid while mashing but once mash out is done I just add sparge water to the top and drain it out the bottom slowly until I get about a gallon short of my desired Preboil volume. Turn off fly sparge and drain the rest of the wort. Usually another gallon.

Ok, can you define "Mash Out" how do I know when this is happening? I hear about adding to much water and messing up the PH, or having to much water and stripping off to much organic material, (changing flavors.) I have done most of this above, by hand, but fail when it comes to understanding the process.

 

[RM-MN]

While mashing you try to hold the temperature at exactly the proper temperature for converting the starch to the mix of sugars you want. At the cooler end of the temperature range, most of the sugars converted will be highly fermentable and you end up with beer that is drier and thinner. As the temperature goes toward the higher end of the range, more long-chain unfermentable sugars are produced. To stop the enzymes from converting any more sugars you bring the temperature high enough to stop (denature) the enzymes and hold it there until the enzymes are denatured. This is the mash-out. If you are using a direct heated mash tun you can do this but it's almost impossible in a plastic cooler so it is skipped.

Not true, you can do a mash out in the plastic cooler by doing a decoction but I suspect that most people don't bother with this stem and simple begin to vorlauf, then batch sparge.

 

[tolip_ck1]

Ok starting to understand.

I do have a plastic cooler however I can start taking runnings off (would have to replace some with water in order to keep height above the grain bed).

Then I can run that to my brew kettle heat up (denature/direct fire) and pump back on top of the "cooler" grain bed. OR.... I can take runnings out of the cooler and pump it through a copper coil in HLT (not direct fire/but to denature) and heat up and put back on top of the grain bed. I guess I should just start brewing more and see which is an easier process.

I have a large filter to catch any big pieces of grain (my pump does not like that), and a sight glass so I can run as long as necessary in order to allow the grain bed itself to set and become a filter.

 

[tolip_ck1]

...Not true, you can do a mash out in the plastic cooler by doing a decoction but I suspect that most people don't bother with this stem and simple begin to vorlauf, then batch sparge.

To do the decoction is it "REQUIRED" to actually boil a portion of the grains? What if I raised the temperature of the cooler using only the runnings? I could direct fire for some carmalization or I could not to avoid this. Or I could actually do both.. not sure why I would do that, but i could.

One of the only limitations is I can only add water to the TOP of the grain bed, I did not pipe for adding in the center or bottom of the cooler.

 

[tolip_ck1]

i have posted the before, It is the "Brew Monster"

The cooler is not in this picture I am upgrading it to a 10 gallon at this time.