Grainfather!!

[elreplica]

I use reflectix also, but a roll was given to me for free from a guy in my homebrew club. Works for me!

I have a spare Reflectix jacket with a glued on Velcro strip...it worked fine and I've enough material for another - all free from a friend. When the Graincoat showed up for $60 CDN, there was no question about it going on my machine.

 

[PCL]

Thanks to all contributors regarding the GF. I'm strongly looking into purchasing one because I love brewing INSIDE with my family not out in the driveway for 3 hours.

One question I have is what kind of "water in" attachments come with the GF? Heard perhaps there were several

TIA- PCL

 

[elreplica]

PCL, there are several attachments. I however had to jury rig one for my "designer" tap in the kitchen, as its one of the jobbies with an aerator on a pull down flex hose. I use a butterfly quick clamp and a small piece of hose adapter to lock on to the cold water in for the chiller. A simple adapter but one that only comes with necessity. If you have a standard faucet you'll likely not need anything for your chiller attachment. If you have a Moen style, you'll need a homemade adapter like mine. I'd be happy to share pics.

 

[PCL]

Elreplica: thanks! I do have a moen, and greatly would appreciate a pic.

 

[TBC]

My grainfather came with 3 different connections. One for a hose hookup, one for a faucet and I'm not sure about the third. I use the faucet hookup in either of my bathrooms because it will fit on my moen faucets in there. I have a moen kitchen faucet but the threads are recessed in and I can't get a good connection. Actually considered getting the wife a new kitchen faucet for her that would just happen to work for my grainfather.

 

[elreplica]

Here it is...View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1483103065.111951.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1483103089.367153.jpg
I unscrew the aerator and slip the tube over the "o" ring threaded end, tighten up the butterfly clamp, attach it to the chiller and away we go...

 

[PCL]

Thanks guys. And greatly appreciate the pics elreplica.

 

[acarter5251]

Has anyone sour mashed in their grainfather? How did you go about keeping the grainfather sealed from oxygen?

 

[MilwaukeeBrewGuy]

Does anyone know the difference between a Gen 1 vs Gen 2/3? I bought one from a seller and it was sold as a Gen 1.

 

[skraeling]

Does anyone know the difference between a Gen 1 vs Gen 2/3? I bought one from a seller and it was sold as a Gen 1.

Here are some of the changes that have been made that I could find. regarding gen 3.

REDESIGNED PIPEWORK
We have modified a few things on the pipework to take into consideration the feedback that we have received about a better connection option for the chiller and the nuisance of the brass cap.
We have changed the thread to a much more robust coarse thread. This makes it much quicker to connect and disconnect, eliminates the chance of cross threading and provides a more substantial seal for the connection.
The rubber O ring has been changed to a silicone O ring so it is much more hard wearing.
We have fitted a shut off valve that is opened when the connections are fitted and closed when they are removed to eliminate the need to fit the brass cap.
We have moved the ball valve to the outlet pipe from the counter flow wort chiller so that it is much easier to control the flow of wort when cooling.
SILICONE TUBES
We have also redesigned the silicone tubes that connect the pump to the pipework. These tubes are now moulded so cater for the different diameter outlet on the pump and the inlet and outlet pipes. This should eliminate any chance of leaks.
GRAINSTOPPER
We have included the new Grainstopper that replaces the aluminium cap used on top of the overflow pipe while adding grains. This conveniently fits inside the overflow pipe and the rolled top ring prevents the top pipe from being over extended.

 

[elreplica]

Thanks guys. And greatly appreciate the pics elreplica.

You're welcome "Grainbro"[emoji106]. HNY!

 

[sillysauce]

Has anyone sour mashed in their grainfather? How did you go about keeping the grainfather sealed from oxygen?

I've done a kettle sour in the grainfather. I put syran wrap over the wort and set the GF to maintain specific temperature for a few days. It certainly wasn't "sealed" from oxygen, but it worked.

 

[dibbz]

I've done 3 now, I starsan and glad wrap the lid & pump after counter flowing it down to around 40c, the first 2 times I flooded it with co2 but didn't bother this last time which turned out fine also. Souring with pro-biotic IBS lacto plantanum capsules for around 40 hours @ 34c.

My bill has 9% acidulated in a 3.4kg 23litre bill 70min boil (10 before souring and 60 after) lands me around 4.5ph for the souring also.

 

[MilwaukeeBrewGuy]

I landed an open box display model for $490 US shipped. Is that a good deal?

 

[jrcrilly]

I landed an open box display model for $490 US shipped. Is that a good deal?

 

[phishie]

Does anyone use Brewersfriend.com with the Grainfather? I've been trying to dial in my equipment profile while using Brewersfriend.com with my Grainfather and am not having much luck. It would be helpful to see what values like kettle deadspace, boil off rate, grain absorption, etc are working well for others.

 

[elreplica]

I landed an open box display model for $490 US shipped. Is that a good deal?

What you really mean..."is that a good steal?"🤓

 

[RedlegEd]

Does anyone use Brewersfriend.com with the Grainfather? I've been trying to dial in my equipment profile while using Brewersfriend.com with my Grainfather and am not having much luck. It would be helpful to see what values like kettle deadspace, boil off rate, grain absorption, etc are working well for others.

Hi. Yes, I built a GF profile using Brewersfriend and I'd be happy to share it of you'd like. Let me have a look to see the easiest way to provide it. Also, I use a slightly modified mash/sparge formula that syncs up almost perfectly with my GF profile. Ed

 

[RedlegEd]

Does anyone use Brewersfriend.com with the Grainfather? I've been trying to dial in my equipment profile while using Brewersfriend.com with my Grainfather and am not having much luck. It would be helpful to see what values like kettle deadspace, boil off rate, grain absorption, etc are working well for others.

Hi. Yes, I built a GF profile using Brewersfriend and I'd be happy to share it of you'd like. Let me have a look to see the easiest way to provide it. Also, I use a slightly modified mash/sparge formula that syncs up almost perfectly with my GF profile. Ed

Ok, here's what I use in my Grainfather profile. I set Brew method to BIAB and Equipment Profile to Grainfather. Hope this helps. Let me know if you have questions. Ed


Equipment Settings:

1. ​
   Boil Evaporation Rate: 2 qt/hr
2. ​
   Grain Absorption: 0.4 qt/lb
3. ​
   Hops Absorption: 0.05 qt/oz
4. ​
   Kettle Dead Space: 2.8 qt
5. ​
   Misc Losses: 0 qt
6. ​
   Cooling Shrinkage: 4%
7. ​
   Chilling Method: CFC

All Grain Brewing:

1. ​
   Average Efficiency: 80%
2. ​
   Default Mash Thickness: 1.68 qt/lb
3. ​
   Mash Water Unit: Quart
4. ​
   Mash Tun Volume: 31.7 qt
5. ​
   Mash Strike Heat Loss: 0°F
6. ​
   Lauter Dead Space: 0 qt

Mash/Sparge Formula (round up answer to nearest 0.1 gallon)
Mash (Gal) = (Pounds Grist*0.3255)+0.9
Sparge (Gal)(60 min boil)= (6.5-Mash)+(# Grist*0.1)
Sparge (Gal)(90 min boil)= (6.9-Mash)+(# Grist*0.1)
Sparge (Gal)(120 min boil)= (7.3-Mash)+(# Grist*0.1)

 

[phishie]

Ok, here's what I use in my Grainfather profile. I set Brew method to BIAB and Equipment Profile to Grainfather. Hope this helps. Let me know if you have questions. Ed


Equipment Settings:

1. ​
   Boil Evaporation Rate: 2 qt/hr
2. ​
   Grain Absorption: 0.4 qt/lb
3. ​
   Hops Absorption: 0.05 qt/oz
4. ​
   Kettle Dead Space: 2.8 qt
5. ​
   Misc Losses: 0 qt
6. ​
   Cooling Shrinkage: 4%
7. ​
   Chilling Method: CFC

All Grain Brewing:

1. ​
   Average Efficiency: 80%
2. ​
   Default Mash Thickness: 1.68 qt/lb
3. ​
   Mash Water Unit: Quart
4. ​
   Mash Tun Volume: 31.7 qt
5. ​
   Mash Strike Heat Loss: 0°F
6. ​
   Lauter Dead Space: 0 qt

Mash/Sparge Formula (round up answer to nearest 0.1 gallon)
Mash (Gal) = (Pounds Grist*0.3255)+0.9
Sparge (Gal)(60 min boil)= (6.5-Mash)+(# Grist*0.1)
Sparge (Gal)(90 min boil)= (6.9-Mash)+(# Grist*0.1)
Sparge (Gal)(120 min boil)= (7.3-Mash)+(# Grist*0.1)

Awesome, thank you so much!

Although you've listed in non-metric units I'm guessing you have the 220V version (seeing 2.00 qt/hr boil evap rate)? Everywhere I've read online (including GF FAQ) says the 120V version gets 0.4 gal/hr boil evap rate (or 1.6 qt/hr).

You're regularly seeing 2.8 qt of wort left behind in the kettle dead space (or are you including wort loss in the fermenter too)?

 

[RedlegEd]

Awesome, thank you so much!

Although you've listed in non-metric units I'm guessing you have the 220V version (seeing 2.00 qt/hr boil evap rate)? Everywhere I've read online (including GF FAQ) says the 120V version gets 0.4 gal/hr boil evap rate (or 1.6 qt/hr).

You're regularly seeing 2.8 qt of wort left behind in the kettle dead space (or are you including wort loss in the fermenter too)?

1. Nope, 110v version. I use a Graincoat (with some extra insulation underneath) so I'm getting a pretty good boil off rate (closer to 2 qt/hr v. 1.6 qt/hr.)(I also tend to round up slightly as it's often better to have a little too much than not enough.)
2. The 2.8 qts is not really left behind, it's the wort under the grain basket and I believe it's used by BF to calculate water requirements. I just put that there so the BF water figures more closely match mine. If you'll notice the mash formula uses +0.9? I think that's the way they account for the wort in the dead space under the grain basket. Ed

 

[phishie]

Also, after about 6-8 batches on the Grainfather I have only been getting 56-60% total brewhouse efficiency.

Then after reading the Grainfather FAQ last night I noticed this:

We recommend a medium sized crush for the Grainfather. We have found that the roller mills on a setting of 1.27 – 1.4 mm (0.05 – 0.055 ") to provide the best crush. Roller mills also tend to keep the husk more intact while still crushing the grain effectively.

So now I think it must be my grind because I've always used mostly base grain in my grian bill (have brewed with 2-row and Pilsner), I've mashed from 144-158, always mashed for at least 60-90 minutes with a good stir halfway through, mash PH has been 5.2-5.4, and my thickness is never less than 1.3 qt/lb.

I never suspected it was my grind because I condition my grain with water (2% of the grain bill by weight) and grind pretty tight (cereal killer mill is set almost as tight as it can go). Has anyone else had similar problems with improper grind causing bad effic. w/ the Grainfather?

This same condition+grind process used to net me 80%+ effic on my Igloo Cooler + Stove Top system.

 

[skraeling]

Also, after about 6-8 batches on the Grainfather I have only been getting 56-60% total brewhouse efficiency.

Then after reading the Grainfather FAQ last night I noticed this:



So now I think it must be my grind because I've always used mostly base grain in my grian bill (have brewed with 2-row and Pilsner), I've mashed from 144-158, always mashed for at least 60-90 minutes with a good stir halfway through, mash PH has been 5.2-5.4, and my thickness is never less than 1.3 qt/lb.

I never suspected it was my grind because I condition my grain with water (2% of the grain bill by weight) and grind pretty tight (cereal killer mill is set almost as tight as it can go). Has anyone else had similar problems with improper grind causing bad effic. w/ the Grainfather?

This same condition+grind process used to net me 80%+ effic on my Igloo Cooler + Stove Top system.

im no expert on anything, but that almost doesnt look fine enough at all.

 

[phishie]

im no expert on anything, but that almost doesnt look fine enough at all.

Yeah I totally understand why it would appear that way.

I do have the mill set to a gap slightly smaller than a credit card, which is nearly as small as it will go.

It looks like the grain isn't crushed because by conditioning the grain beforehand with water the hull doesn't shred, it just sort of rips open.

I wish I had better pictures, it's only the top layer that looks like that, the grain gets progressively more crushed "looking" as you go down deeper.

Either way I'm going to recheck the gap with a gap checker this weekend now that I've found that suggested gap size from Grainfather.

 

[RedlegEd]

Also, after about 6-8 batches on the Grainfather I have only been getting 56-60% total brewhouse efficiency.

Then after reading the Grainfather FAQ last night I noticed this:



So now I think it must be my grind because I've always used mostly base grain in my grian bill (have brewed with 2-row and Pilsner), I've mashed from 144-158, always mashed for at least 60-90 minutes with a good stir halfway through, mash PH has been 5.2-5.4, and my thickness is never less than 1.3 qt/lb.

I never suspected it was my grind because I condition my grain with water (2% of the grain bill by weight) and grind pretty tight (cereal killer mill is set almost as tight as it can go). Has anyone else had similar problems with improper grind causing bad effic. w/ the Grainfather?

This same condition+grind process used to net me 80%+ effic on my Igloo Cooler + Stove Top system.

im no expert on anything, but that almost doesnt look fine enough at all.

I agree with @skraeling, it really doesn't look that fine. I also condition with ~1% (by weight) and I use a Schmidling Maltmill with default factory settings (~0.042-0.045) and mine comes out much more shredded than yours. I typically get high 90% conversion and ~80% BH. I've found if you mill too tightly, the wort doesn't flow very well through the grain basket and conversion suffers. Ed

 

[phishie]

I agree with @skraeling, it really doesn't look that fine. I also condition with ~1% (by weight) and I use a Schmidling Maltmill with default factory settings (~0.42-45) and mine comes out much more shredded than yours. I typically get high 90% conversion and ~80% BH. I've found if you mill too tightly, the wort doesn't flow very well through the grain basket and conversion suffers. Ed

Thanks for the input, greatly appreciated. Did you mean ~0.042-0.045 inches for your gap?

I need to do some more checking on my mill this weekend, something must be setup wrong.

 

[RedlegEd]

Thanks for the input, greatly appreciated. Did you mean ~0.042-0.045 inches for your gap?

I need to do some more checking on my mill this weekend, something must be setup wrong.

Yes, sorry about that. Stupid fingers don't always listen! Ed

 

[skraeling]

Also, after about 6-8 batches on the Grainfather I have only been getting 56-60% total brewhouse efficiency.

Then after reading the Grainfather FAQ last night I noticed this:



So now I think it must be my grind because I've always used mostly base grain in my grian bill (have brewed with 2-row and Pilsner), I've mashed from 144-158, always mashed for at least 60-90 minutes with a good stir halfway through, mash PH has been 5.2-5.4, and my thickness is never less than 1.3 qt/lb.

I never suspected it was my grind because I condition my grain with water (2% of the grain bill by weight) and grind pretty tight (cereal killer mill is set almost as tight as it can go). Has anyone else had similar problems with improper grind causing bad effic. w/ the Grainfather?

This same condition+grind process used to net me 80%+ effic on my Igloo Cooler + Stove Top system.

Heres my crush, note im not using a GF though. stark difference though.

 

[phishie]

Heres my crush, note im not using a GF though. stark difference though.

Hmm, that doesn't look all that much different than what mine look like I think, although it doesn't look like you condition your malt so it breaks apart the husk a bit more.

It really makes no sense to me, I have set my mill to just less than credit card thickness and that should be at most 0.030.

I've seen some posts mention there can be issues of one roller locking up on the Cereal Killer mill if it's adjusted inproperly so I need to check if that's my problem. Unfortunately can't test the mill again until Fri.

 

[ReverendJ]

I agree with @elproducto, that doesn't sound normal. Did you contact the folks at GF? If it died after the first use, I'm sure they would be more than happy to make it right. Ed

Yeah, been in touch with the store I bought it from and the company, they're sending me a new pump hopefully that fix the problem, otherwise it's the control box that's busted.

 

[skraeling]

looks like grainfather connects are starting to get closer to reality for us finally.

 

[Cutterman]

Also, after about 6-8 batches on the Grainfather I have only been getting 56-60% total brewhouse efficiency.

Then after reading the Grainfather FAQ last night I noticed this:



So now I think it must be my grind because I've always used mostly base grain in my grian bill (have brewed with 2-row and Pilsner), I've mashed from 144-158, always mashed for at least 60-90 minutes with a good stir halfway through, mash PH has been 5.2-5.4, and my thickness is never less than 1.3 qt/lb.

I never suspected it was my grind because I condition my grain with water (2% of the grain bill by weight) and grind pretty tight (cereal killer mill is set almost as tight as it can go). Has anyone else had similar problems with improper grind causing bad effic. w/ the Grainfather?

This same condition+grind process used to net me 80%+ effic on my Igloo Cooler + Stove Top system.

I've learned that using my old mash calculations don't work with GF. My efficiency sucked. I tried GF's mash water calculator and efficiency is always over 78 now.

 

[elproducto]

I found once I slowed my drill speed down on my grain mill, my efficiency went from 65 to 80%!

FWIW I used to get 75% with a cooler mlt.

 

[Kampenken]

I presume all eff being quoted are brewhouse. I am 73-75%. Not sure on everyone's process here but I'd suspect the main contributor's here are: (in no order), lauter, water chemistry, crush, sparge runoff usage. The rest is all the same for us with the exception of possible no sparge attempts (I will be attempting this soon). That also assumes you follow GF water calcs, though you can't be that far afield from their mash ratio. I don't believe a 90 min mash will appreciably increase eff over a "regular" 60 min mash.

 

[cowfodder]

248 pages in about 2 days. My wife says I'm obsessed. Looks like I'll probably be ordering a gf for myself soon. Thanks to everyone who's posted tips and tricks so far.

 

[thenewton]

I just ordered one around Christmas direct from the Grainfather site as it included the graincoat. Unfortunately it arrived last week with marks inside the boiler that lined up with the extensions on the bottom of the grain basket, one is just a scratch, the next is a scratch with indentation and the third is a pretty deep gouge. The controller lid was also broken. I have not done anything with it as of yet as I am waiting to hear back from the company, so who knows what else might have taken a hit. I know they are probably a bit busy since just opening back up from the holidays so we will see what happens. Just wondering what others have had as far as interaction with the company on damage. Thanks

 

[MilwaukeeBrewGuy]

Well my first run with the grainfather last night wasn't very smooth. To start with, I neglected to add any rice hulls in my denny conn's wry smile rye ipa, so the mash drain and sparging went real slow and was pretty much stuck. Then, I proceeded to double charge my 60 min addition with Columbus instead of Mt. Hood. So realizing i was going to be real high in IBU's, i decided to do only do a 30 min boil. Then as i am running my chiller to sanitize it, i placed it on the grainfather only to have a boilover!

First impressions:

• No graincoat on a 20A and it boils great.
  
• I wish the chiller hose that connects to the pump was a little bit longer. I had a boilover when it was sitting on the grainfather and had nowhere to put it!
  
• Its wonderful to not have to babysit a propane burner.
  
• Being new to the controls, i wish they highlighted the MASH and BOIL words on the switch. Heck even a light indicator would be nice. I found myself quite a few times, checking to make sure i was in the right mode.
  
• Coming from an Immersion chiller, the counter flow really streamlines things!
  
• I did not use any hop baskets, just threw the hops in naked and with 5 ounces, I did find i had to scrape the filter to get it flowing better. I did take out ball and spring.

So far I love it, just need to tweak some things and spend some more time with it.

 

[Elkobrewer]

It will only get better the more you use it. Congrats on your first Grainfather brew day

 

[Diamonddave74]

Those are not the same but similar learning curves ive had. By batch 3 you'll be a pro

 

[RedlegEd]

[*]I wish the chiller hose that connects to the pump was a little bit longer. I had a boilover when it was sitting on the grainfather and had nowhere to put it!

I did the same thing the first time when I put my lid on. So you know, a standard ball lock corny keg is the perfect height to hold the CFC while you sanitize, and when you chill your wort into the fermenter. Ed