Full Boil for Extract Kits

[ipabrewer25]

I have searched the forum and found enough info to make my head spin.

When brewing extract and since most extract recipes say to start steeping the grain and boil in a small amount of water, then add water at the end.

I have a 10 gallon pot and have a decent gas turkey fryer type burner. So is there a recommended method for my setup?

I made 1 batch so far and steeped in 5 gallons and boiled that. I only had to add 1/2 gallon to top off 5 gallons.

Also, for full boils, so i start with 5 gallons of water or more? I would assume if i started with 6 gallons as i have read from some people, my batch would have been more of a 5.5 gallon batch

 

[Toy4Rick]

Hey ipabrewer25,

The general rule of thumb is to steep grains in about 1.5 qts of water per lb of grains, then add enough water to get to pre-boil volume. In my 8gal pot, I start with 6.5, boil off about 1.25 gal in one hour and lose the other .25 gal to hops and other stuff for a full 5 gal ferment.

If you go full boil, your hop utilization will be higher, some say as much as 10%, YMMV

Give it a go and adjust on future batches until you get it dialed in the way you like it

Toy4Rick

 

[bobbrews]

There is no volume rule for steeping. And temp. rules are very lax.

Mashing requires more stringent rules for volume/temps/times.

You're okay with steeping the grain (in a mesh bag) in any volume of 150-165 F water for 30 minutes. Once done, remove the grain bag, bring to a boil, add your extract and bittering hops. Proceed as normal.

You have a large kettle so I would say the most important thing to do is a full volume boil. DO NOT top off with any plain water after brewing. As for the boil start volume, you really have to go by what the recipe is projecting for OG/FG and factor in your boil off rate. Boil off evaporation is usually 1 gal per hour give or take.

 

[gannon]

On my next batch i plan to steep my grains 3gal on my stove top in a 22 qt stainless. Then transfer to 60 qt aluminum pot and add extract and water to make 6gal. im a newbie by the way. if what your saying is correct i should probably bring the volume to 6.5 so i will have 5.5 to put in the primary after the boil. after initial fermentation i should have about 5 gal for the secondary. Is there any logic to my method or am i way off base? I am trying to do a full boil for my next batch where as my first batch was a partial.

 

[DurtyChemist]

I start with 6 for my first "full boil". Tat hot break can be messy in a small pot. I'd suggest turning the heat down when you see 200 degrees F. I've had about 6 boil overs at different levels of OH NOOOOOOOO!!!!

 

[Chief1973]

I normally steep in 2-3 gallons, fill pot up to 6.5 gallons +- , then boil and brew away. (Maybe try some FermCap to help with the boilovers, but plan on being pretty busy the first 30 minutes or so tending to the boil)

 

[Johnrmcnary]

They might be leaving room for a few things:
1. Leaving room for cold water after the boil. Most beginners don't have a wort chiller.
2. They're probably assuming a lot of extract brewers don't have a full size brew kettle.
3. Leaving some water behind to sparge with.