A tale of first two BIABs. What do you use for bags?

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BruceH

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Hi,

I decided to progress to all grain brewing. The equipment arrived last week. Friday was the first try.

Equipment consists of an 8 gallon kettle, burner, and copper chiller. The target is a 5 gallon batch.

Friday did not work as planned. I used a super fine mesh generic bag. IMO it didn't allow enough water in and out. Gravity ended up about half of what was expected.

Because of the Friday disaster I had to try again today. The biggest difference was that I used disposable bags that look kinda like socks made from cheesecloth but they expand to hold about 5 lbs each. They also let a whole lot more water in and out. I've used them with success in previous partial mash brewing.

Without going into too much detail I will say that todays brew hit the gravity numbers as expected. 9.7lbs of Pilsner malt hit 1.055 for a little over 5 gallons into the fermenter. Temps were monitored during both batches with a target of 150. Temps varied from 153 - 148.

I'm convinced that the bag makes a huge difference.

So, please tell me what bag do you use for biab? I've seen reference to custom made bags that line the kettle so everything stays open and in motion instead of bagged.

For those who use a custom made "liner" bag how well does it work for you?

Thanks,
Bruce
 
I've used brewinabag dot com for my first and only bag. Has lasted years. When I need a replacement I will go thru wilserbrewer (on HBT a lot). I would have gone thru him first if I were on HBT back then... biabbags dot webs dot com
 
Get a bag from Wilserbrewer, you won't be disappointed. FWIW I doubt the bag had anything to do with your efficiency UNLESS the bag was too small for the kettle and not enough water reached your grain. The fine mesh I'm confident had nothing to do with efficiency. Get a custom bag, they are affordable and work great.
 
Wilser.

Well made, great price. Fit my 15gal kettle perfectly. The shape drains well, directing the drip to the center of the pot.

At first it may look like the Wilser design would be weaker than the competition (that has sewn straps), but that's not the case. There is only one seam, that fact combined with the shape is very effective at distributing the stresses evenly. It's very robust.

I don't lift with the drawstring. I gather the fabric above the grains, and use a short loop of cord to tie a prusik hitch around the fabric. This way I can put my lift point wherever I want it, which for me is near the grain.
 
Unlikely the bag was the cause of the low OG. There are other factors, such as bad crush, poorly-mixed mash (lots of dough balls), etc. You WANT a fine-mesh bag, to minimize trub. Don't worry, the wort will find its way through the bag and into the kettle. After the mash, hoist it out and squeeze it like it owes you money.

Get a Wilser bag and you'll be set for a long time.

Ditto on hoisting the bag by the fabric and not the drawstring. And the prusik knot, for those unfamiliar:

prussik-knot.jpg
 
Another vote for Wilser. I've got two of them. One for my 5 gallon batches and a smaller one for experimental batches.
 
So far I have only done small batch BIAB. I use a 5 gallon kettle and a paint strainer bag. The bag is open and lining the pot. The water/wort is done in that. Then draining should not be a determining factor with your OG. If you use a bag and have it closed, constricting the grain bed, then that probably is your problem. You might have even had a clump of dry grain in the middle.

If that is what happened it doesn't matter what material you use.

If I ever do larger batches, I will purchase a Wilserbrewer bag.
 
Wilser will have a stupid bowl sale. Buy a bag. Skip the stupid game. Brew beer or go fishing. Both beat that stupid American football.

His bags are great.

If you can't crush fine, mash longer. You'll get the right numbers.
 
Another for Wilser. Custom made for your kettle and works great.

FYI, that 8 gallon kettle will be too small if you attempt to do larger beers. I have an 8.5 gallon and I hate myself for buying it. When I try to make beers north of 10% i'm at the very top of the kettle when mashing and have to hold back some water to "sparge" with. My process involves just moving the bag of grains to another vessle, pouring the "sparge" water over them to rinse out as much sugar as I can, then squeezing the grains as dry as I can. Helps a lot with BIAB efficiency. If I were to start over I'd listen to everyone that says get a kettle that is a min twice the volume of your desired batch size.
 
I like the convenience of disposable paint strainer bags, one less thing to clean. I brew 5-7 gallon batches in an 11 gallon kettle, the 5g paint strainer bag fits the turkey basket perfectly and I've mashed up to 14 pounds of grain in it. These bags don't have a drawstring but can easily be hoisted with a short loop of rope around the top of the bag using the knot idea posted above, though I stop at step 2 and hang it. This setup has given me zero problems.
 
I’m 1 whole brew day in on my mash in a bag from https://www.brewinabag.com/?aff=3
It was awesome! I was able to hoist the grain bag without a problem. (Granted it was a small batch) but...
It’s fairly inexpensive, never going to have a stuck sparge, plus easy to clean & BH efficiency was 78%! If needed I could easily batch or fly sparge for increased efficiency but don’t really see a need that at home brew level.
Brülosphy pointed me in this direction-
http://brulosophy.com/methods/processes/brew-in-a-bag-biab/


IMG_1517120682.930978.jpg
IMG_1517120682.930978.jpg
IMG_0292.jpg
IMG_0289.jpg
IMG_0289.jpg
 
ddibbern5 said:
I’m 1 whole brew day in on my mash in a bag from https://www.brewinabag.com/?aff=3
Click to expand...

Glad to hear you are enjoying cooler BIAB success. My only comment would be that I think you overpaid....

$43.50 plus $6 shipping at brewinabag - $49.50 total (cooler length over 26" $57.50 plus $6 shipping - $63.50 for a bag...OMG)
$28.00 plus $5 shipping less $5 w/ current sale - $28.00 total (up to 72 qt coolers) @ wilserbrewer

That's substantial...Please don't let my crappy free hosted website and my lack of using google ads sway your bag choice, that all saves money which is passed back to you, plus some. We have been making bags long before Brewinabag.

Thanks for your support
wilser
 
MaxStout said:
Unlikely the bag was the cause of the low OG. There are other factors, such as bad crush, poorly-mixed mash (lots of dough balls), etc. You WANT a fine-mesh bag, to minimize trub. Don't worry, the wort will find its way through the bag and into the kettle. After the mash, hoist it out and squeeze it like it owes you money.

Get a Wilser bag and you'll be set for a long time.

Ditto on hoisting the bag by the fabric and not the drawstring. And the prusik knot, for those unfamiliar:

View attachment 554879
Click to expand...

Turns out that the wireless bbq thermometer I was using gives bad readings when the outer braid of the wireless probe wire gets wet.

It's quite possible that the mash temps were 20 degrees lower than I thought they were for the low og batch.

Subsquent batches have hit pretty close to predicted numbers but I've been using a different thermometer.

soccerdad said:
stupid bowl sale.
Click to expand...

Lol.

cegan09 said:
Another for Wilser. Custom made for your kettle and works great.

FYI, that 8 gallon kettle will be too small if you attempt to do larger beers. I have an 8.5 gallon and I hate myself for buying it. When I try to make beers north of 10% i'm at the very top of the kettle when mashing and have to hold back some water to "sparge" with. My process involves just moving the bag of grains to another vessle, pouring the "sparge" water over them to rinse out as much sugar as I can, then squeezing the grains as dry as I can. Helps a lot with BIAB efficiency. If I were to start over I'd listen to everyone that says get a kettle that is a min twice the volume of your desired batch size.
Click to expand...

I ended up with the 8 gallon kettle as part of a package. I agree that a 10 gallon or larger would of been better. The deal was for an 8 gallon kettle with lid, burner, and copper chiller for $160 shipped. I couldn't pass it up and so far it works but I have to pay close attention to everything for a 5 gallon batch.

Jayjay1976 said:
I like the convenience of disposable paint strainer bags, one less thing to clean. I brew 5-7 gallon batches in an 11 gallon kettle, the 5g paint strainer bag fits the turkey basket perfectly and I've mashed up to 14 pounds of grain in it. These bags don't have a drawstring but can easily be hoisted with a short loop of rope around the top of the bag using the knot idea posted above, though I stop at step 2 and hang it. This setup has given me zero problems.
Click to expand...

This is where I'm at now. I have a supply of disposable bags that will hold up to 5 lbs. of grain. I tie the end and squeeze everything out prior to throwing them away. I like being able to just toss it and be done. The bags cost $.75 each. Currently getting 75% efficiency according to the Brewers Friend online calculator.

Thanks for all the responses. This forum is a great resource.
 
Yet another vote for Wilserbrewer bag. Over 35 brews with mine still going strong.
 
It's threads like this that convinced me to give a wilserbrewer bag a try. I've had issues with both disposable paint strainer bags (don't fit the kettle properly) and a cheap, generic grain bag (seams opening up after a few batches), hoping that the wilserbrewer bag will make brew day more trouble free.

Only issue for me currently is the bag shipment is seemingly lost in limbo getting to Canada. Crossing fingers it shows up one day. o_O
 
Mothman said:
It's threads like this that convinced me to give a wilserbrewer bag a try. I've had issues with both disposable paint strainer bags (don't fit the kettle properly) and a cheap, generic grain bag (seams opening up after a few batches), hoping that the wilserbrewer bag will make brew day more trouble free.

Only issue for me currently is the bag shipment is seemingly lost in limbo getting to Canada. Crossing fingers it shows up one day. o_O
Click to expand...

Sorry that you live in the wrong country ;), but it should arrive eventually, or call for customer service.
 
ddibbern5 said:
I’m 1 whole brew day in on my mash in a bag from https://www.brewinabag.com/?aff=3
It was awesome! I was able to hoist the grain bag without a problem. (Granted it was a small batch) but...
It’s fairly inexpensive, never going to have a stuck sparge, plus easy to clean & BH efficiency was 78%! If needed I could easily batch or fly sparge for increased efficiency but don’t really see a need that at home brew level.
Brülosphy pointed me in this direction-
http://brulosophy.com/methods/processes/brew-in-a-bag-biab/


View attachment 555438View attachment 555438View attachment 555439View attachment 555440View attachment 555440
Click to expand...

You could be takin photos of my setup. I get 80+ BH efficiency with my Brew Bag. I am sure Wilser bags are equally awesome.
 
Cheap bag off amazon.
I put it in the basket that came with my pot and clip it in place, I lift it up to drain with the basket handle then I use a lid from a smaller pot to press the grains instead of squeezing.
 
NitrogenWidget said:
Cheap bag off amazon.
I put it in the basket that came with my pot and clip it in place, I lift it up to drain with the basket handle then I use a lid from a smaller pot to press the grains instead of squeezing.
Click to expand...

That sounds like a crap shoot over a bag that will last a couple of brews over a Wilser bag that should last a long time.....
 
It's probably stuck in customs. Once had a shipment held for a week while they inspected every item in a container from multiple senders... Maybe in the system with Canadian postal service.

Try customer service with Wilserbrewer, they may be able to track it from the other end...
 
kh54s10 said:
It's probably stuck in customs....
Click to expand...

This is exactly why some vendors won’t ship international! Shipping is expensive as hell and can be unreliable. USPS international tracking is almost non existent. One can “file a claim” with USPS after 60 days...thanks a lot :(

Mothman, PM me in a few days if nothing shows up, thanks for your patience.



ddibbern5 said:
It’s fairly inexpensive]
Click to expand...

I think I need to raise prices lol jk

$43.50 and $57.50 for coolers over 26” long plus shipping at Brewbag (that’s not fairly inexpensive to me lol)

Cooler bags at wilserbrewer $28 plus shipping (that’s inexpensive)

Thanks
wilser
 
Last edited:
kh54s10 said:
That sounds like a crap shoot over a bag that will last a couple of brews over a Wilser bag that should last a long time.....
Click to expand...

The bag is fine for now, was dirt cheap and I really don't put it under much stress since the lobster basket holds it.
This is temp setup.
i'm collecting parts for a dedicated e-biab system with a bigger pot.
When that is complete I plan to purchase from wilser or sew my own out of heavier material.
 

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