Austin_
Well-Known Member
I have a process similar to Screwy. I recirculate hot PBW water through the system for about 15 minutes. I then dump out the liquid, wipe everything down, and then spray it out. Looks like new.
High Gravity Custom eBIAB System
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I also recirculate but at about 170 for 20 minutes. Then I rinse with cool, clean water and air dry.
PBW and cold water is pretty worthless, the packaging even recommends 100-160 degrees.
I use these to clean my Boilcoils:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BAT8PM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1
I cut them in half/quarters and I've only gone through a couple of pads in ~6 months. Just a quick wipe down after cleaning, followed by one more rinse before drying it all off. Worth the $12.
My wife has caught wind of these too and has stolen a bunch for around the house.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BAT8PM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1
I cut them in half/quarters and I've only gone through a couple of pads in ~6 months. Just a quick wipe down after cleaning, followed by one more rinse before drying it all off. Worth the $12.
My wife has caught wind of these too and has stolen a bunch for around the house.
I use the green version cut in half. I wrap them half moon around the coil and start at one end and follow along until I reach the other. Then swap the half moon the other way and repeat. Comes out perfectly clean every time.
Latest brew day update- went great but efficiency still sucked.
Ditched the basket and let the brewbag rest directly on heating coils. No scorching! Kept the worthog controller on the whole time with mash set to 150. Ditched the spray nozzle and used loc-line sparge attachment with pump on low. Worked great. I usually stir every 20 min, but didn’t get around to stirring until 40 min into mash.
Anyways, raised the bag, let it drip dry, I even used a stainless steel hop spider basket during the boil that a friend gave me. Altogether very pleased with how brew day went, and probably the cleanest wort I’ve racked into fermentors in a long time. But 67% efficiency???!? Cmon... I know I can do better!
I’m not obsessed with efficiency, but I’m used to getting high 70’s with BIAB. I’m starting to wonder if my 20 gal kettle is too big? I figured with recirculating the mash, the efficiency would be great. I double mill my grains. Any advice is appreciated thanks.
Ditched the basket and let the brewbag rest directly on heating coils. No scorching! Kept the worthog controller on the whole time with mash set to 150. Ditched the spray nozzle and used loc-line sparge attachment with pump on low. Worked great. I usually stir every 20 min, but didn’t get around to stirring until 40 min into mash.
Anyways, raised the bag, let it drip dry, I even used a stainless steel hop spider basket during the boil that a friend gave me. Altogether very pleased with how brew day went, and probably the cleanest wort I’ve racked into fermentors in a long time. But 67% efficiency???!? Cmon... I know I can do better!
I’m not obsessed with efficiency, but I’m used to getting high 70’s with BIAB. I’m starting to wonder if my 20 gal kettle is too big? I figured with recirculating the mash, the efficiency would be great. I double mill my grains. Any advice is appreciated thanks.
I guess the next logical place to look would be your grain crush and stirring the mash. Our systems don't have arms that turn to agitate and keep the grains from clumping together. I've thought about running the loc-line straight down the center of the grain bed. From the outlet in the top to the bottom of the grain bed. In the hope that the streams of moving wort are enough to agitate the grain bed keeping it nice and loose.
Finally got my whole system together. Wound up getting a pickup tube and whirlpool arm from Brewhardware. I have the 15 gallon 240v version which has the BrewBuilt kettle. The pickup tube fits between two of the coils, touching, but should be fine. I ordered the whirlpool arm with the 18" length and male camlock attachment. Going to test it all tonight and setup my Beersmith equipment profile.
I also put this together last night for a brew cart. It's a beast. Will try to get some pictures of the setup tonight.
I also put this together last night for a brew cart. It's a beast. Will try to get some pictures of the setup tonight.
I love that brew cart!
Why didn't you ask Dave to get the pickup tube and whirlpool arm for you? He's extremely reasonable with stuff like that.
I agree with ScrewyBrewer that stirring is the key to a better efficiency. Even before I went electric but still doing BIAB, I made sure to stir at least every 12-15 minutes.
Why didn't you ask Dave to get the pickup tube and whirlpool arm for you? He's extremely reasonable with stuff like that.
I agree with ScrewyBrewer that stirring is the key to a better efficiency. Even before I went electric but still doing BIAB, I made sure to stir at least every 12-15 minutes.
The whirlpool arm was a last minute consideration, but the system shipped without a pickup tube. When I asked HG they said they would get back to me. That was about 10 days ago so I just pulled the trigger with BrewHardware.
EDIT: It's actually sort of odd to ship this system without a pickup tube. It's about 2 gallons left behind without one.
My mill is pretty beat up. I have to run it through twice. First gap is very wide. Second pass i set the gap at credit card width. I’ve used the same crush on my old setup, which was mashing in a igloo cooler. Efficiency was 72-78%. New setup with the single vessel BIAB system is around 67-68%.
Next brew I’ll definitely stir the mash more.
Sweet! I love the bar to hold the control unit too!
It's this one here. I had to mount the controller onto a piece of wood so I could attach it to the VESA mounts. Would have been great if I could attach it directly but it's works well.
So rookie mistake. I did a PBW cycle of the recommended amount at 160° for about 45 minutes. Had it filled up to about 12 of the 15 gallons. Ran several boil tests, etc. BUT I didn't do it with the basket in! So first brewday yesterday was scrapped when I pulled the basket after the mash and there was gray/greasy residue on the side of the basket and the inside of the kettle.
After the failed brewday I redid the PBW cycle with the basket in, scrubbed it all down and rinsed it all after.
Fast forward to tonight and when I pulled the basket there was still some grayish (more of a gray/brown, not remotely as bad as yesterday) residue. It tastes grainy so I'm probably going to finish the brewday.
Anyone else have this issue?
After the failed brewday I redid the PBW cycle with the basket in, scrubbed it all down and rinsed it all after.
Fast forward to tonight and when I pulled the basket there was still some grayish (more of a gray/brown, not remotely as bad as yesterday) residue. It tastes grainy so I'm probably going to finish the brewday.
Anyone else have this issue?
Austin_
Well-Known Member
Did you clean it out with TSP first? Did you then passivate with an acid?
Initially, on the kettle only, I used PBW and scrubbed then passivated with a star san soak and left to air dry.
Then I did the same with the basket after the initial brew day fail.
I've never used TSP on my stainless, always had good luck with just PBW and elbow grease.
Likely just that the basket with all it's holes needed special attention and perhaps TSP would have been more effective.
Then I did the same with the basket after the initial brew day fail.
I've never used TSP on my stainless, always had good luck with just PBW and elbow grease.
Likely just that the basket with all it's holes needed special attention and perhaps TSP would have been more effective.
I've lost count on how many brews I've done on my HG system now......maybe 12??? Today's brew day went 100% perfect. Can't complain about 1 damn thing except the 3 hours of a huge downpour (I brew outdoors but under a huge, aluminum roof).
I did grind a bit finer this time and will likely keep it the same going forward. I added about 1/2 lb more base malt and hit my number dead on. I really think the key to fixing my earlier problems of rising liquid with the pump running was fixed but letting things sit the first 10-12 minutes then stir a bit then turn on the pump on a low speed. Never had a problem since I've done that.
Temps stayed perfect and after I chilled to 180, the temp stayed rock solid at 180 for the 30 minute whirlpool. Much, much easier than before I had this system.
Oh, did a Cashmere Summer Hoppy Pale. New hops for me to try.
I did grind a bit finer this time and will likely keep it the same going forward. I added about 1/2 lb more base malt and hit my number dead on. I really think the key to fixing my earlier problems of rising liquid with the pump running was fixed but letting things sit the first 10-12 minutes then stir a bit then turn on the pump on a low speed. Never had a problem since I've done that.
Temps stayed perfect and after I chilled to 180, the temp stayed rock solid at 180 for the 30 minute whirlpool. Much, much easier than before I had this system.
Oh, did a Cashmere Summer Hoppy Pale. New hops for me to try.
Austin_
Well-Known Member
I had a really good brew day yesterday as well. I had been having issues with the temperature being off, so I looked up how to adjust the EZBoil temperature readings. Easy enough adjustment. Worked great. I brewed an old school west coast IPA.
Going this route tomorrow. I bought a false bottom from Brew Hardware but by the end of the boil only 1/3 to 1/2 of the coils of my wort chiller will be submerged. And the false bottom is such a tight fit with the boil coil that I can’t easily remove it after the mash.
I can play with my dead space numbers or get a different chiller but I’ll see how this works first.
This worked quite well. No issues with the bag on the element or the recirculation throughput.
Austin_
Well-Known Member
Did you use the bag that came with the system?
I did. My Wilserbag is too small (only works with the basket). The stock bag worked but I will probably get a new Wilser.
I love both the Brew Bag and Wilser and while I can't swear to it, it appears the Brew Bag gave me some problems with recirculation that the Wilser didn't but I made other changes as well so who knows. I know what I've done lately works for me and that's great.
I keep thinking of getting a mesh basket but besides the cost, I'm not sure I want one. I'd love to hear how things worked out for those who do have one.
Austin_
Well-Known Member
I've eyed the mesh baskets, too, but I've been scared of the price. Next brew day I might try and overcome my fears and go with just the bag on the element. I've got an extra bag in case anything goes awry.
Austin_
Well-Known Member
Mashed with the Brew Bag on the element with no basket with no problems. I didn't do a step-mash like I normally do, so it never ran at full power while holding the temperatures. Circulation never once slowed and I kept it pumping a pretty good clip.
Glad to hear this. I think I'm fine with what I'm doing but may try this. I am still concerned about the weight of the grain on the element.
I'm still trying to talk myself into going back to commando hopping but so far, the beers have been very good using the SS strainer. Doesn't appear to affect the flavor and aroma at all. And, keeps the beers very much cleaner going into the fermenter.
I'm still trying to talk myself into going back to commando hopping but so far, the beers have been very good using the SS strainer. Doesn't appear to affect the flavor and aroma at all. And, keeps the beers very much cleaner going into the fermenter.
Last weekend I brewed a 10 gallon batch using 12 pounds of malt, 9 pounds of torrified wheat and 2 pounds of flaked oats. The OG was 1.052 and there were no issues with recirculation. But I was glad to have help lifting the wet grains up out of the wort they weighed a ton.
I use a mesh grain bag inside the basket for extra support. When I tried lifting the bag up to toss out the grains, without the stainless steel basket, the bag just kept stretching and stretching.
I use a mesh grain bag inside the basket for extra support. When I tried lifting the bag up to toss out the grains, without the stainless steel basket, the bag just kept stretching and stretching.
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Austin_
Well-Known Member
I ditched the stainless basket and bought another brewbag, one that was made for my 20 gal kettle. Left the controller on during mash so it rested right on coils, no prob. Pump running on low output and recirculated just fine.
End result was 78% efficiency on my 10 gal batch. Couldn’t be happier.
End result was 78% efficiency on my 10 gal batch. Couldn’t be happier.
78% is great. What was your mash thickness, do you remember?
That's good to hear but I wonder about it sitting on my temperature probe and giving inconsistent readings. For now, things are working for me and the beers have been better than ever so I'm sticking to the basket and bag. I still expect challenges from time to time but that's just brewing.
I really, really love this system!
Did your heating element have a lot of carbon buildup with the bag resting on it?
Austin_
Well-Known Member
Brewed today. I think I need a new temperature probe. It was boiling at 235. I don't live that far below sea level.
@austin in an unpressurized vessel like your boil kettle I doubt the temperature could get as high as 235F. My HG system has the temperature probe mounted in the lid, which I leave off during the boil. I never get to read the temperature of the actual boiling wort with the configuration, but I would be surprised if it were that high. Did you compare the 235F reading with another thermometer?
I guess the concern is that a 152 mash would actually be 129 (assuming sea level).
I took the chance on Father's Day and brewed in the morning and went out to a local pub in the afternoon. It's exactly what I wanted to do and was a great day.
The brew day went extremely well though my mill is having trouble with the rollers loosening but I still was almost exactly what the recipe called for (all Strata hops!)
For a second I thought about going without the basket then decided, 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' and glad I did.
I still think mashing in without recirculating for the first 10 minutes or so has made all the difference for me. I'm still right about 80% in efficiency in my pales and 76-78 in my larger beers. I'm ecstatic with that!
The brew day went extremely well though my mill is having trouble with the rollers loosening but I still was almost exactly what the recipe called for (all Strata hops!)
For a second I thought about going without the basket then decided, 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' and glad I did.
I still think mashing in without recirculating for the first 10 minutes or so has made all the difference for me. I'm still right about 80% in efficiency in my pales and 76-78 in my larger beers. I'm ecstatic with that!
@Beer-lord I've been stuck in the 68-73% efficiency range my past three brew days. I know my grain crush is too fine because after the mash it's been hard getting the wort to drain from the hoisted grain bag. In the meantime I ordered a Bayou Classic false bottom and will ordered the @wilserbrewer Grand Slam package with heavy duty duel ratchet pulleys. It's good to hear you've worked through your earlier issues.
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I’m only getting 68-70% as well. I’ve been stirring every 15 mins for a one hour mash. First time I did this I hit my numbers dead on. Since then it’s dropped each time (2 brews).
Not sure how others are getting 78-80% with this setup. [emoji2373]
Not sure how others are getting 78-80% with this setup. [emoji2373]
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