First time brewing a Porter. Need help!

[Kunal Vanjare]

Hello guys, I am brewing a Porter (1 Gallon) tonight for the first time. All my previous brewing experiences (4 in total) have been Pale Ales or IPAs. So I guess I could do with some pointers. The recipe is such :-
BIAB
Pale 2-row : 980grams
Caramel 60 : 90grams
Chocolate : 60grams
Roasted Barley : 60grams
Flaked Oats : 30grams

Hops include Cascade & Centennial (target - 36 IBU).
Pre-Boil Gravity : 1.054, Original Gravity : 1.072, Final Gravity : 1.018

The recipe calls for 3.2Ltrs of Strike water & 3.49Litrs of Sparge water. Is this correct? Using the Brewfather app for the first time! Had been using the Brewers Friend tool which does not work anymore and I preferred Brewfather over Beersmith.

My sparging method has been to lift the bag, squeeze it (not too hard to release tannins), and then let it rest on top of a strainer while I add hot water to make up the pre-boil volume. Or is there a better way to sparge with BIAB?

Also, I will be using RO water with salt additions as per EZ-Water. As per the app, I need to add 1gms each of Gypsum, CaCl2 & Baking Soda for a pH of 5.35. Do all of these go into the Strike Water? Or do I divide them proportionally between Strike & Sparge water?

I am sorry if these are too many questions. Help will be appeciated

 

[3 Dawg Night]

What tool is not working on Brewer's Friend? Are you talking about the Mash Calculator? I just checked it, and it seems to be working fine for me.

 

[Kunal Vanjare]

What tool is not working on Brewer's Friend? Are you talking about the Mash Calculator? I just checked it, and it seems to be working fine for me.

I meant I was using their old Beta Software for windows which was working fine but suddenly stopped working last month.

 

[3 Dawg Night]

I meant I was using their old Beta Software for windows which was working fine but suddenly stopped working last month.

Oh, OK. Check out the website. It's really a good setup.

 

[Kunal Vanjare]

Oh, OK. Check out the website. It's really a good setup.

I tried. For the same recipe, Brewers Friend shows 2.83gallons of Strike Water, that's about 10.7 Litres! Why is there such a big difference?

I have adjusted equipment profiles just now on the website. Still there is that difference. Not sure why.

 

[3 Dawg Night]

Hmm, I suspect it's something to do with your equipment profile, but if Grainfather works for you, go with it.

Sorry to hijack your thread!

 

[Kunal Vanjare]

Hmm, I suspect it's something to do with your equipment profile, but if Grainfather works for you, go with it.

Sorry to hijack your thread!

That's fine

I've figured the difference is down to the Boil-Off Rate which is calculated as 1.5Gal/hour by Brewers Friend. That translates to near 5.7 Litre/hour. I have a 10 Litre Kettle with a 9 Inch diameter. I never get that high a boil-off rate!

So I guess I'll stick with Brewfather's specs and hope (and pray) for the best.

Also, when should I add the salts? In the strike water? Or during mashing?

 

[3 Dawg Night]

I add all my salts to the mash. It's easier than figuring out a ratio between mash and sparge. I do add any required acid to both, but Brewer's Friend does that calculation for me.