Spinning fly sparge is awful!

[natev]

I figure it would've been more appropriate to have "I has HERMS?" to stay in line with the cat viral thing.

If the grain actually turns into dough balls, I don't think it's that bad. I didn't notice any clumps when I emptied out the grain.

As for the sparge arm I did end up cramming a pipette in the end to get it to work. That is, after all the other things I tried fell off into the grain...

 

[squirrelly]

Ok here's what my wife an I use. It is on the B-1100 digital system: the mashtun is equipped with a stationary sparge arm which clamps to the side of the mashtun. On the sparge arm is a copper ring with 1/2" holes drilled all around it. The sparge arm has a float switch that is controlled by the digital controller and will shut the pump off when then sparge water gets too high.



That is the mashtun during a mash of my pale ale. You can see the sparge arm attached.





That is the mashtun empty with the false bottom. The float switch is viable along with the digital thermowell probe and the thermometer probe





That is the whole system. As you can see a hose comes from one of the pumps and connects to the bottom of the sparge arm moving either wort or sparge water into the ring. We've never had an issue with this, and my wife is able to brew on it by herself quite easily.

 

[BOBrob]

OK... with an 8 gallon boil off the hops would be 5oz. (secret) at 320 min. then 4oz. at 240 min.; with a combination of 2oz (nother) and 1 oz (this) at 120 min. then 2oz. (secret) at FO (flame out). I just had to...... Best thread of the day. I believe you should try batch sparging and forget the wirrly twilly thingy. The cone shape grain bed got me thinking , do you put it directly in the grain bed? You did get the answer to your problems from many people trying to help, but you do not see that you are wrong ,and that you do not understand the process. Spend more time reading and learning the process of brewing & BSing, rather than trying to BS you're brewing process. Over use of water in your sparge & channeling. Just my 2cents cheers

 

[bigbeergeek]

Sorry, went to lunch.

17# 2-row
2# marris-otter
2# cara-pils
11oz crystal 40

Skip the MO next time. If you were using up the last of a sack or something, fine, but those 2 lbs aren't going to have an effect on the recipe.


This is why we share these things.

 

[natev]

Batch Sparge is an interesting idea, that would certainly cut down on difficulties and potentially reveal where the problem lies. As for the hops, I have been adding them when we are 1hr from done, not during the boil off, but I think you figured that, and are giving me a hard time.

If you say I'm wrong about the fly sparge being awful, perhaps. However, the title was an attempt to get a decent amount of replies, and a quite successful one at that. Some other posts of mine did not receive much notice. This one did, and I'd say I probably learned a lot.

When you say BSing I assume you don't mean Batch Sparging, but it's unclear when you say learning the process & BSing, rather than trying to BS your* brewing process.

 

[cwi]

As for the hops, I have been adding them when we are 1hr from done, not during the boil off, but I think you figured that, and are giving me a hard time.

He was giving you the business, but I was trying to be helpful. Extracting that much extra low grav wort (which can introduce its own issues), and then having to adjust your pre-hop boil time or boil-off rate significantly to get your desired FV makes it difficult to determine what effect a change to your recipe has made, or to verify a previous change in a repeatability trial. I was suggesting to deal with the jacked up mash by modifying the batch size 'on the fly' (not talking about fly sparge), to get the SG (OG & FG) you want, which is more important than batch size. It may introduce less variability, or maybe not. Depends on your views on low grav extraction, long/high boils, etc.

If you say I'm wrong about the fly sparge being awful, perhaps. However, the title was an attempt to get a decent amount of replies, and a quite successful one at that. Some other posts of mine did not receive much notice. This one did, and I'd say I probably learned a lot.

All sparge methods have their followers. Fly is the most finicky. If you can't get the hang of fly sparging, try batch. There are many happy batch sparge customers. You can even 'No Sparge', if you have the tun space. More important than efficiency is consistency. A couple of $ of grain will solve efficiency issues to get the final volume you want.

When you say BSing I assume you don't mean Batch Sparging, but it's unclear when you say learning the process & BSing, rather than trying to BS your* brewing process.

I has secret recipes?
If only I had the motivation to photoshop that, along with a cat, into the OP's recipe pic.

 

[natev]

While we are all having a good laugh...

 

[cwi]

While we are all having a good laugh...

How is that funny? Gollum doesn't has a HERMS, or RIMS. That is obviously a direct fired MLT grav system.
What are you trying to say with that?

Edit: in case you haven't caught on, your only way out of this is to replace your recipe photo with the unblurred version. This may haunt you for a while otherwise. Just from your unblurred hop schedule times, you have no flame out aroma addition. Unless you left off a dry hop addition in your notes, you may not get the aroma level you want.

 

[squirrelly]

I guess this OP didn't get the memo that home brewing is open source. Even most craft brewer pony up their recipes when asked. Some may not tell you some proprietary secrets about equipment, but the majority will talk all day about their process, the systems and equipment they use, as well their recipes! This guy must brew for Microsoft.

 

[natev]

What, you can't run a HERMS on a tiered sculpture? It was the most appropriate image to fit in the small area next to Gollum. I take offense to the Microsoft comment. But, I suppose I'll have to deal with the ridicule.

I tend to add in the dry hops when I dry hop. Otherwise, I'd use the hops and when the day comes, not have what I wrote down. Which is a secret!

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

How is that funny? Gollum doesn't has a HERMS, or RIMS. That is obviously a direct fired MLT grav system.
What are you trying to say with that?

Edit: in case you haven't caught on, your only way out of this is to replace your recipe photo with the unblurred version. This may haunt you for a while otherwise. Just from your unblurred hop schedule times, you have no flame out aroma addition. Unless you left off a dry hop addition in your notes, you may not get the aroma level you want.

Have you not seen the B3 tierd HERMS systems?

 

[cwi]

What, you can't run a HERMS on a tiered sculpture?

You most certainly can, but you has no visible pump or HEX ports on the HLT, and you has a burner under the MLT. Also, it would be redundant to has a 3 tier and a pump. And, the point was about BS, not the facts.

I tend to add in the dry hops when I dry hop. Otherwise, I'd use the hops and when the day comes, not have what I wrote down. Which is a secret!

Will you be doing all the brewing of your secret recipes yourself at your future brew pub? It will be problematic having to find new employees after every brew day, since you will have to kill them before they leave the brewery with the secret recipe in their head. Body disposal is a whole other issue. Don't forget that you will also need a 'no cell phones allowed' rule, lest they stream a live video revealing your recipes.

 

[natev]

Real quick, since everyone is checking this post out. If you take a mash to a temp capable of denaturing the enzymes, they are no longer able to do any starch conversions, right? If you drop back down to the conversion temp, is it still done converting? That is, once you pass lets say 170°, are the enzymes more or less broken and unable to convert regardless of the temp from that point on?

 

[natev]

Ha ha ha, perhaps everyday I will have large boxes covered with question marks and filled with the appropriate ingredients.

Or perhaps the secret ingredient will be people.
Yes, yes that will work nicely. Soylent Ale.

 

[IrregularPulse]

Lol at the blurred out recipe.

My thinking too. I won't share my brewing knowledge with the group, but ask for them to return the non favor by helping me

 

[cwi]

Real quick, since everyone is checking this post out. If you take a mash to a temp capable of denaturing the enzymes, they are no longer able to do any starch conversions, right? If you drop back down to the conversion temp, is it still done converting? That is, once you pass lets say 170°, are the enzymes more or less broken and unable to convert regardless of the temp from that point on?

It is a time + temp equation. The higher the temp and longer it sits above denaturing temps the more (quantity of) enzymes will be denatured. Which part of the process are you worrying about, or is this another 'secret' component of the recipe?

 

[cwi]

Or perhaps the secret ingredient will be people.
Yes, yes that will work nicely. Soylent Ale.

You can call it Volks Ale. Made for the people, by the people, and of the people.

Are you not seeing the absurdity of your secret recipes yet?

 

[natev]

Here:

"Most enzymes can be denatured—that is, unfolded and inactivated—by heating or chemical denaturants, which disrupt the three-dimensional structure of the protein. Depending on the enzyme, denaturation may be reversible or irreversible."

Pertaining to the enzymes in the grain, can this denaturing be reversed if the temperature is dropped back to a conversion temp?

 

[bigbeergeek]

Here:

"Most enzymes can be denatured—that is, unfolded and inactivated—by heating or chemical denaturants, which disrupt the three-dimensional structure of the protein. Depending on the enzyme, denaturation may be reversible or irreversible."

Pertaining to the enzymes in the grain, can this denaturing be reversed if the temperature is dropped back to a conversion temp?

I'd assume not... otherwise the enzyme-denaturing affect of the mashout would be moot.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

I'd assume not... otherwise the enzyme-denaturing affect of the mashout would be moot.

The mashout is not entirely meant to denature the enzymes as much as it is meant to make the wort less viscous so that it can be drained from the draff.

 

[cwi]

I'd assume not... otherwise the enzyme-denaturing affect of the mashout would be moot.

Have you not been told the secret of fermenting at 170F to preserve the sugar profile? If men in black suits and sunglasses come a knockin', you didn't hear it from me.

 

[bigbeergeek]

The mashout is not entirely meant to denature the enzymes as much as it is meant to make the wort less viscous so that it can be drained from the draff.

I thought it served both purposes. If you work up some elaborate mash profile, the last thing you want is to change it during an hour-long fly sparge.

 

[Copbrew133]

I have had similar problems in my last two batches while fly sparging. I have gravity fed the sparge arm from a differential in height of about 4 feet. It will not rotate unless I spin it manually. (maybe the pump works better I dn't know) I said screw it, I just ordered some silicone hose to whirlpool it slowly. The sparge arm looks really cool but I just want results not aesthetics.

Bruins still suck!!