BIAB recipe conversion?

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Strangelove

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Howdy,

I've read a boatload of BIAB threads, looked at the pictures and watched the videos. After all of that I think I know the mechanics of BIAB, but I'm still not sure how to convert a traditional all grain recipe to a BIAB.

Is it 1 to 1: same ingredients, water volume and just do it BIAB-fashion?

I just got BeerSmith 2.0, but I'm not sure how to use it to convert recipes, if necessary.

Thanks
 
The grain bill remains the same, unless your efficiency varies wildly from the recipe's assumed efficiency.

Water volumes/temps need to be tweaked based on your own setup. Some BIAB brewers find a full-volume no-sparge mash works for them. Others that have multiple vessels use a dunk-sparge step to increase efficiency. Beersmith 2.0 easily calculates the temperature if you adjust the volume to fit your method.
 
In general no recipe conversion or changes are required to brew all-grain batches using the BIAB method. Sometimes people miss their target OG and they can remedy this by adding some DME or LME to make up for the shortfall. Besides this there is no recipe conversion needed.

Since this is your first BIAB I'd suggest starting with simple recipe like a pale ale until you get the hang of your system and the overall process. Learning with something with a light grain bill (10-pounds or so) keeps things easier and helps so it won't hurt much if you make mistakes.
 
If you're finding your BIAB efficiencies are way low, instead of upping your base malt or adding extract, try going to a finer crush or double crush on your grains. Because there's no risk of a stuck sparge with BIAB, this can increase your efficiency without any adverse affects on the process.
 
Thoughts much appreciated.

I think I modified a stock porter recipe correctly in Beersmith. Is there an easy way to upload the final instructions here without laboriously typing it all out?
 
Select the recipe in Beersmith, then choose "plain text" for the report type, then copy and paste the plain text here.
 
Hey, what do you know?

Does this look right?

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 5.70 gal
Post Boil Volume: 5.20 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 5.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.056 SG
Estimated Color: 44.9 SRM
Estimated IBU: 37.8 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 72.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
10.00 g Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash 60.0 mins Water Agent 1 -
8 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) Bel (3.2 SRM) Grain 2 72.7 %
1 lbs Black (Patent) Malt (500.0 SRM) Grain 3 9.1 %
1 lbs Caramel/Crystal Malt - 10L (10.0 SRM) Grain 4 9.1 %
8.0 oz Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 5 4.5 %
8.0 oz Munich Malt - 10L (10.0 SRM) Grain 6 4.5 %
2.19 oz Fuggles [4.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 7 37.8 IBUs
0.25 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 10.0 mins) Fining 8 -
1.0 pkg English Ale (White Labs #WLP002) [35.01 Yeast 9 -


Mash Schedule: BIAB, Full Body
Total Grain Weight: 11 lbs
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Saccharification Add 26.02 qt of water at 164.3 F 156.0 F 60 min
Mash Out Heat to 168.0 F over 7 min 168.0 F 10 min

Sparge: Remove grains, and prepare to boil wort
 
What size is your kettle? 26qt (6.50 gals) of mash water seems a bit low.

Where did you get the 10g of gypsum figure from?

Lastly, 1-pound of black patent is going to make a pitch black beer.
 
I have a 36 quart pot.

BeerSmith comes with 20 recipes examples. I just picked one and added my own profiles. Interestingly, it does indicate that it is way too dark for Porter.
 
Here's another Porter I modified with BeerSmith. Fits the Porter profile more closely. Better?

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f126/bee-cave-brewery-robust-porter-56768/


BeerSmith 2 Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Edworts Robust Porter
Brewer: Strangelove
Asst Brewer:
Style: Robust Porter
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 6.22 gal
Post Boil Volume: 5.72 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal
Bottling Volume: 5.50 gal
Estimated OG: 1.064 SG
Estimated Color: 35.9 SRM
Estimated IBU: 36.6 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 72.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
11 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 1 79.4 %
1 lbs Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 2 7.2 %
1 lbs Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 3 7.2 %
8.0 oz Barley, Flaked (1.7 SRM) Grain 4 3.6 %
4.0 oz Black (Patent) Malt (500.0 SRM) Grain 5 1.8 %
1.6 oz Roasted Barley (300.0 SRM) Grain 6 0.7 %
1.00 oz Northern Brewer [8.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 7 27.7 IBUs
0.50 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 8 8.9 IBUs
8.00 oz Malto-Dextrine (Boil 40.0 mins) Other 9 -
1.0 pkg Nottingham (Danstar #-) [23.66 ml] Yeast 10 -


Mash Schedule: BIAB, Full Body
Total Grain Weight: 13 lbs 13.6 oz
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Saccharification Add 28.94 qt of water at 165.0 F 156.0 F 60 min
Mash Out Heat to 168.0 F over 7 min 168.0 F 10 min
 
FWIW, depending on the amount of grains I'm using, I get between 65-70% efficiency from BiaB without a sparge. I'd recommend mashing with as much water as possible to maximize efficiency.
 
Also reaching mash out temps will increase solubility and increase efficiency, especially withno sparge
 
Thanks, all.

I still have 2 extract kits to brew, but I think I'll hit the LHBS and pick up the ingredients for the Robust Porter BIAB to brew next.
 
I"m doing really small BIAB batches, about 1.75 gallons. Grain weight avg about 4 lbs. I'm getting brew house eff about 76%. Could be that the small amount of grain is easier to squeeze and get all the liquid out compared to say 13 lbs for a larger brew.
 
My modified technique frequently yields 83%. But I do a sparge

I don't sparge. I just mash in my cooler and squeeze the "hell" out of the grain bag. I twist up the top, wrap it around a big metal mixing spoon and begin rotating the bag drawing in tighter and tighter around the grain mass. Of course this puts a lot of strain on the paint strainer bag and I only get a few brews done before a whole appears. But they are cheap, waiting for the SWMBO to sew me a "real" grain bag.
 
Not sure I'd go to all the trouble for 2 gallons, personally, but it would be easy to do on the stove top.
 
Not sure I'd go to all the trouble for 2 gallons, personally, but it would be easy to do on the stove top.

It is a lot of trouble, takes the same time as larger batches except for cooling time, and bottling time. But Look at the different beers I have to choose from once my pipeline is full again. I was on a trip for 3 weeks and then had a few "bad" batches.
 
This is what I do for water volume for BIAB:
I know from my past calculations that my grain will absorb about 0.5 gallons per pound of malt so that’s 11.5 X .05 = 0.575 gallons.
My batch size is 5.25 gallons.
My boiloff rate is 2 gallon per hour so 2 X 1.5 = 3 gallons.
Total water needed = 0.575 + 5.25 + 3 = 8.825

I heat up for a mashout but do not do a sparge most times. I squeeze the heck out of my bag over an upsidedown colander in a bucket. I get 80% efficiency for low to mid gravity beers so I adjust my recipe grist down. Plenty more info on my blog linked below (The Little House one), I do exclusive BIAB.
 
This is what I do for water volume for BIAB:
I know from my past calculations that my grain will absorb about 0.5 gallons per pound of malt so that’s 11.5 X .05 = 0.575 gallons.
My batch size is 5.25 gallons.
My boiloff rate is 2 gallon per hour so 2 X 1.5 = 3 gallons.
Total water needed = 0.575 + 5.25 + 3 = 8.825

I heat up for a mashout but do not do a sparge most times. I squeeze the heck out of my bag over an upsidedown colander in a bucket. I get 80% efficiency for low to mid gravity beers so I adjust my recipe grist down. Plenty more info on my blog linked below (The Little House one), I do exclusive BIAB.

My last brew was an Oktoberfest Ale.
Batch size 1.75 gallons
I fingured 0.25 loss to the 3.26 lbs of grain &
0.75 gallon loss to the boil

So I added 1.75 + .25 + .75 = 2.75 gallons
Grain loss was right on. (advantage of working w/a small package I can really
squeeze the every last drop out of it.)
But I only lost .5 to the boil. Guess I didn't have it "rolling" enough.

Result was 2 gallons but due to high BH Eff (79%) my OG was 1.068 which was 13 points higher than BeerSmith estimated I didn't boil it lower.

I'm a happy camper.
 
Couple further questions after reading through this thread (new BIAB brewer here).
Here's what I gather so far in researching the proper way to convert a traditional all-grain recipe to BIAB:

You will need a brewpot that can accommodate the higher strike volume necessary for BIAB.
Sparging and mashing out become optional but can increase efficiency.

So my questions regarding volume and temperature:

1. I want to brew 5G batches, but have a 5-6 G brewpot and will not be purchasing a bigger one. To make up for this will mashing longer than the recipe calls for or double-crushing my grain be useful?

2. Mashout temp: I am assuming that adding heat while the bag is still in the wort is not advisable. So how does one increase to mashout temp when doing BIAB? My thought was adding boiled water but then that means I'd have to leave mashing volume lower as as result, which would take me back to my first question again...

3. Given my mashing volume, it seems as though sparging is the clearest way to get back up to volume and probably a good idea efficiency-wise. When and when do you not choose to sparge?

To sum up, I'm concerned about following all-grain recipe temp instructions with BIAB because of potential damage to the bag. And am also wondering how to proceed with BIAB given the volume of my brewpot.
 
I brew in a 5 gallon pot and output 4 solid gallons up to 1.099 with 10% invert sugar to the fermenter. I'm pretty sure I've maxed my system at both mash and pre-boil volumes.

20220108_131258.jpg


Loss to grain absorption, boil-off, loss to transfer have been minimized.

I use a room temp single dunk sparge with no mash out. 1st and 2nd runnings are roughly equal. Normal beers get 85-92% efficiency depending on OG.
 
I brew in a 5 gallon pot and output 4 solid gallons up to 1.099 with 10% invert sugar to the fermenter. I'm pretty sure I've maxed my system at both mash and pre-boil volumes.

View attachment 807574

Loss to grain absorption, boil-off, loss to transfer have been minimized.

I use a room temp single dunk sparge with no mash out. 1st and 2nd runnings are roughly equal. Normal beers get 85-92% efficiency depending on OG.
You need to up your game, that foam isn't even above the lip of the pot. :cool:
 
Couple further questions after reading through this thread (new BIAB brewer here).
Here's what I gather so far in researching the proper way to convert a traditional all-grain recipe to BIAB:

You will need a brewpot that can accommodate the higher strike volume necessary for BIAB.
Sparging and mashing out become optional but can increase efficiency.

So my questions regarding volume and temperature:

1. I want to brew 5G batches, but have a 5-6 G brewpot and will not be purchasing a bigger one. To make up for this will mashing longer than the recipe calls for or double-crushing my grain be useful?

2. Mashout temp: I am assuming that adding heat while the bag is still in the wort is not advisable. So how does one increase to mashout temp when doing BIAB? My thought was adding boiled water but then that means I'd have to leave mashing volume lower as as result, which would take me back to my first question again...

3. Given my mashing volume, it seems as though sparging is the clearest way to get back up to volume and probably a good idea efficiency-wise. When and when do you not choose to sparge?

To sum up, I'm concerned about following all-grain recipe temp instructions with BIAB because of potential damage to the bag. And am also wondering how to proceed with BIAB given the volume of my brewpot.
1. The biggest impact on mash efficiency is the quality of the milling of the grain. Double crush is one way to improve that milling quality. A longer mash can help if the milling is not quite a fine as it could be. It takes longer to gelatinize the starches in larger grain particles. There is a limit to how much the longer mash can do for you.
2. Mashout only increases the mash efficiency if the starches are not fully converted. Mill fine and mashout does nothing.
3. Sparging is always part of my regimen. With my 5 gallon pot there is a limit to how much water plus grain it can hold and when I remove the bag of grain I am no where near the amount of wort I want. The only disadvantage is that it takes a little more time and cleanup.
4. The people who only do a conventional mash are limited at to the mash efficiency because they need intact grain hulls to form the filter bed which limits how small of particles they can deal with and not get a stuck mash. With a BIAB bag, you can mill to near flour and still separate the grains from the wort. Add a sparge and you can increase your lauter efficiency. Use as much of the pot volume as you dare. Notice how close to the top of the pot DBHomebrew has his wort? I do the same and use a wire whisk to knock down the foam as it approaches or exceeds the rim of the pot. Remember the old adage, "a watched pot never boils"? When you have the level of the wort so close to the top you better be watching the pot. Turn your back for 2 seconds and you will be doing lots of cleanup.
5. Once you have maxed out the pot as shown above, you only get a batch size of about 4 gallons. Want a 5 gallon batch? Adjust the grains for that, make a slightly concentrated wort and when the boil is done, use top off water to adjust to the 5 gallons.
 
5. Once you have maxed out the pot as shown above, you only get a batch size of about 4 gallons. Want a 5 gallon batch? Adjust the grains for that, make a slightly concentrated wort and when the boil is done, use top off water to adjust to the 5 gallons.
The best way to sparge in this case is a dunk sparge in a 5 gal plastic bucket, using cool sparge water. You can then adjust your sparge volume so that you have more wort than will all fit in your kettle. After some boil off you can then add more of the sparged wort to the kettle. You can do this several times, right up to the end of the boil. This will be more efficient than adding top-up water after the boil. You may still need to add a little water after racking to the fermenter to get your target volume, but the less of this you have to add the better.

You want to tune things so that you add the last bit of sparged wort at the end of the boil, with none left over. To do this predictably, you can use trial and error, or measure your grain absorption and boil-off, and then the proper volumes can be calculated after a single brew run.

Brew on :mug:
 
Last edited:
Not really related to your question, but somewhat...
How are you going to remove the bag? It will be heavy!
There is about 6 -6.5 kg grain plus all absorbed water to lift
Although most just lift the entire bag full of grain, there is no reason you could not scoop some out to reduce the weight. If you want to save all the wort you could line a colander with a cloth filter (voille curtain material) and have that sitting in a bowl to catch the wort as it drains out. Lots of ways to skin this cat.
 
I have a few BIAB batches under my belt, and have done them a few ways. The last one was simple full volume mash with no sparge at all. I was as close to my numbers as I have gotten, and the beer came out good, so no complaints. I have done the dunk sparge method and that worked out pretty well too. Still working on consistency, but I am still a novice. I am going to move to a cooler mash tun here soon as I want to see how that works out. So far, the only brews that I have made that did not hit the mark were because I screwed up the process
 
The best way to sparge in this case is a dunk sparge in a 5 gal plastic bucket, using cool sparge water. You can then adjust your sparge volume so that you have more wort than will all fit in your kettle. After some boil off you can then add more of the sparged wort to the kettle. You can do this several times, right up to the end of the boil. This will be more efficient than adding top-up water after the boil. You may still need to add a little water after racking to the fermenter to get your target volume, but the less of this you have to add the better.

You want to tune things so that you add the last bit of sparged wort at the end of the boil, with none left over. To do this predictably, you can use trial and error, or measure your grain absorption and boil-off, and then the proper volumes can be calculated after a single brew run.

Brew on :mug:
PERFECT, thanks!!
 
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