All Grain equipment

[duridsr4fite]

So, I see all the cool equipment with false bottoms, buckets with holes, etc., but what is actually necessary to do an all grain batch? Also, it seems like a lot of people mash on outdoor burners, but is it necessary to do that really? Why on the outdoor burners (more control of the flame?)? Can i do it on an indoor gas range?

 

[Brewer_Steve]

Just a big pot on your stovetop is all you need.
I made 2 AG batches like that. It works. It's not very convenient though...

I've since converted a cooler to an MLT, and that makes mashing much easier, and the entire process is more enjoyable.

 

[Displaced MassHole]

Most people use the outdoor turkey fryer type burner because of the amount of heat it can produce. A kitchen stove usually doesn't produce enough heat to boil the amounts of liquid AG requires.

As for the required equipment, do a search either here or google for John Palmer's How to Brew. It's a great place to start.

 

[flaminpi3]

I just started doing all grain. I went the cheaper route of converting a five-gallon Gott cylindrical cooler into my Mash/Lauter Tun with a loop of stainless steel braiding for my filter and an extra cooler for a hot liquor tank. These coolers maintain your mash temperature extremely well without relying on a burner. The advantage to going with a keggle/burner setup, though, is that you will have more control over the mash temperature for easier protein rests and step infusions. It really just depends on what kind of investment you want to make, you'll brew fantastic beer either way.

 

[McKBrew]

Yes you can do it indoors. You can do it with a minimum of equipment.

This thread may have been written for you.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/easy-stovetop-all-grain-brewing-pics-90132/

 

[duridsr4fite]

Can someone please explain the sparging process in this method to me? Instead of rinsing the grains, I just immerse them in the sparge water? Also, all this talk of efficiency...little help?

Thanks in advance!

 

[McKBrew]

The best bet for explanation on the process is at How to Brew - By John Palmer.

Also Bobby_M here at HBT has a decent AG write up. There is a link in his signature.

 

[Dougan]

Can someone please explain the sparging process in this method to me? Instead of rinsing the grains, I just immerse them in the sparge water? Also, all this talk of efficiency...little help?

Thanks in advance!

You rinse them by immersion, you'll probably want to jiggle your grains a lot so the water runs through them

efficiency is how much fermentables you extract out of your grain. An "average" all-grain batch with a picnic cooler mash tun is like 70-80% efficiency and I think stovetop is more like 50-70%. You should look up how to calculate efficiency on google. Basically if your efficiency is low with this method than just throw some extra grain in the mix.

 

[duridsr4fite]

how can I tell what my efficiency is? Hydrometer reading doesn;t seem like it would work, as there is no breakdown; the same matter is there at the beginning and the end.

 

[gplutt]

how can I tell what my efficiency is? Hydrometer reading doesn;t seem like it would work, as there is no breakdown; the same matter is there at the beginning and the end.

Actually, there is less matter. The yeasts eat the fermentable sugars and turn it into alcohol and CO2. the CO2 blows off and you are left with alcohol and the unfermentables in the wort. Alcohol has a lower gravity than the sugars, so the difference between the first reading and second reading will tell you how much has changed in your beer.

As far as a reading from pre-boil and post boil, you have increased the gravity by concentrating the sugars. There is less water than when you started, but you have the same amount of sugars and other material in the wort.

So you should do a gravity check pre-boil, post-boil and a couple times during fermentation. I guarantee you will see a difference along the way. When your gravity reaches a certain point and stays you should be done.

<some durid is pvp here>

 

[woollybugger2]

how can I tell what my efficiency is? Hydrometer reading doesn;t seem like it would work, as there is no breakdown; the same matter is there at the beginning and the end.

Programs like Beer Smith allow you to calculate an approximate OG based upon the grains that you use, it allows you to enter your "brew house" efficiency and will calculated the amount of sugars that you should get from your recipe. If your OG is under then you could assume that your efficiency wasn't up to par.

 

[Dougan]

the same matter is there at the beginning and the end.

If you mean the mash, no. Depending on how the grains convert, and how good you are at rinsing the grains, varying amounts of matter will come out . That's what efficiency measures. 100% is the value they're able to get in a laboratory examination.