Mash tun kettle

This may seem like a stupid question, but why does it seem like people tend to heat their mash water in the hlt then transfer to their mash tun when they have a kettle style mash tun. Why not just heat the water in the mash tun then add the grains?

 

1. Now you're going to make "people" feel stupid.

2. Because they have a HLT and they want to use it.

3. Who does this? We need names, so we can make fun of them properly.

4. Maybe they are only heating sparge water this way?

 

Maybe the mash tun kettle only has a small burner to maintain heat, and the HLT has a big one?
Just guessing....

 

I'm guessing they fly sparge from the HLT.

 

As a newer brewer I have a question... Why do people fly sparge and use two pieces or more of equipment when they can just BIAB and have a shorter/cheaper brew day?

 

Because it's TRADITION! and because they have more equipment to impress their friend and can take more time brewing so they have time to drink more beer.:rockin:

 

Because it's fun.

Also you get better efficiency...not that you can't spend an extra $2 for some base malt to make up for it, but you don't brew just to get the beer.

For me it's like fishing. You don't fish to eat. Yeah you get to eat the fish, but it's about being on the lake, in nature, with a friend. It's about the process.

 

cue @RM-MN...

 

?

 

Chickypad knows that I typically get over 85% efficiency with BIAB. Many 3 vessel brewers don't exceed 75%. My first batch I brewed BIAB full volume, no sparge got me 80%. I'm not the only one that gets that kind of efficiency with BIAB and I'm not the highest either.

 

Are you a wizard? What do you do to get such high efficiency? I've done BIAB a few times and have gotten 72% consistently.

 

Yes sorry if that was cryptic, I worked the graveyard last night and posted before my nap. As an experienced BIAB brewer RM-MN is good at dispelling some of the myths that go around, such as that BIAB = sacrificing efficiency. Many of us who have brewed different systems know that is not the case.

 

One of the advantages of BIAB is the bag as you don't need to depend on the grain husks for forming a filter bed. Without needing the husks intact you can mill much finer and with that finer milling comes increased efficiency. Mill your grains until they look like cornmeal. Some have even gone to using the blender to mill them finer (small quantities for small batches).

 

Do you have to pay more attention to ph to avoid astringency? Also, how clear is your wort transfer?

 

This thread may have gotten derailed somehow. Hope this helps.

 

Everyone needs to pay attention to pH to avoid astringency, the main potential issue with BIAB is the often thinner mash which can exacerbate water issues. Not sure about what the others experience but for my BIAB batches the wort in the kettle is hella cloudy, coming out of the kettle and finished beers are clear.

 

I always thought that the goal was to get clear beer, not clear wort. Other than a taste I never drink wort anyway. The wort is always really cloudy but that clears up in the fermenter and clear beer is the result.

 

Well, the only negative I could think of is having a lot more trub than with a three vessel system and resulting in less beer, but I'm sure it's fairly negligible.

 

I do fly sparging for the efficiency I get opposed to BIAB (my BIAB-fu needs work), and because I have a 6 gallon bucket-tun that I can't brew ful-volume in unless I go for smaller beers. My pots are 4-gallon (stove-top boils), so that would severely limit BIAB batch size, even with a sparge step. When I can I really want to go eBIAB for a quicker brew-day, even if I sacrifice efficiency (which may not happen).