How long for you to brew?

[jmward21]

I've only made 1 batch and it took 6.5 hours. 90 minute mash turned into 2 hours because I didn't start my sparge water in time. Everything else went pretty smooth though. It was a 10 gallon batch with a 90 min mash and a 90 minute boil. I could easily drop and 1.5 hours off that time for a 5 gal batch with a 60 mash/60 boil.

 

[MagicMatt]

The water in my city is too hard! Ranging from 250 to 600 in some places.

The idea is to lower its hardness a bit (half by boiling) and help in eliminating any chlorine residue (I filter it with charcoal anyway).

Hose and pots is a good idea, but my wife is not too fond of sugar residues calling for ants... those little devils like to invade my house :/

Hm I've always heard that boiling can only reduce the bicarbonate levels by ~70ppm, and that's with near-perfect conditions, which includes immediately decanting the water from the settled CaCO3. Just seems like a big energy expenditure for little gain in hardness reduction. Not to mention the hassle of trying to decant the boiled water before more CO2 from the atmosphere enters the water via diffusion and thus redissolve the settled out CaCO3.

I just use DI or RO water and dilute the tap water to appropriate hardness levels (~35ppm), then add salts as necessary to bring the other numbers back to spec.

 

[ChucknBeer]

Hm I've always heard that boiling can only reduce the bicarbonate levels by ~70ppm, and that's with near-perfect conditions, which includes immediately decanting the water from the settled CaCO3. Just seems like a big energy expenditure for little gain in hardness reduction. Not to mention the hassle of trying to decant the boiled water before more CO2 from the atmosphere enters the water via diffusion and thus redissolve the settled out CaCO3.

I just use DI or RO water and dilute the tap water to appropriate hardness levels (~35ppm), then add salts as necessary to bring the other numbers back to spec.

Maybe boiling will not cut hardness by 50% (I wrote that by memory), but it was good enough, according to a simple test I made using aquarium GK/HK testers. I compared boiled tap water vs unboiled tap water vs carbon filtered boiled tap water vs mineral water X vs mineral water Y.

The most cost effective option for using a "softer" cheap water was carbon filtered tap boiled water.

In my country, the law doesn't force town halls to include mineral % in the water reports, so unless you pay a lot of money you are kind of blind in that aspect. I know I will never get the perfect ratio of minerals/hardness this way, but what can you do (DI/RO might be an option, but not quite yet at my 4th batch).

Cheers!

 

[Vamptrump]

This weekend (which was a bad example):

Started at 10:00 AM, Finished at 6:30 PM

Breakdown:
10:00 - 11:00 - Unloaded equipment and started to clean. Had to wait for liquor store to open near me to get caps for bottling.
11-11:30 - Shopping trip
11:30-12:00 - Finished cleaning, sanitizing, and then reflected on life, the universe, and everything with friends (aka started drinking)
12:00 - 12:30 - Bottling
12:30 - 1:00 - Cleaned, milled grains, heated water.
1:00 - 2:30 - Mash
2:30 - 2:45 - Sparge
2:45 - 4:30 - Prayed for my wort to start boiling and the boil
4:30 - 5:00 - 30 min hopstand
5:00 - 5:15 - Cooled wort
5:15 - 5:30 - Transfer to carboy
5:30 - 6:30 - bsing, clean, and tear down.

 

[dwhite60]

So it sounds like you agree that it takes the better part of a day? I thought you were disagreeing for a second there. I guess you're wondering how people do it in less time?

Well, no, I wasn't agreeing. I sleep 6.5 hours a day. That leaves 17.5 hours for me per day on the weekend. It takes 4.5 hours to cook up a batch of beer. This leave 13 hours.

I don't think 4.5 hours comes close to taking up most of a day, hardly. Thus, I was wondering why it took people so much longer.

All the Best,
D. White

 

[MagicMatt]

In my country, the law doesn't force town halls to include mineral % in the water reports, so unless you pay a lot of money you are kind of blind in that aspect. I know I will never get the perfect ratio of minerals/hardness this way, but what can you do (DI/RO might be an option, but not quite yet at my 4th batch).
Cheers!

Yeah it's hard sometimes when they limit the info on water source. You can always send a sample to Ward Labs (I'm pretty sure country of origin doesn't matter) to analyze and provide you a water quality report for around $25 I think. That may or may not be worth it to you though.

Well, no, I wasn't agreeing. I sleep 6.5 hours a day. That leaves 17.5 hours for me per day on the weekend. It takes 4.5 hours to cook up a batch of beer. This leave 13 hours.

I don't think 4.5 hours comes close to taking up most of a day, hardly. Thus, I was wondering why it took people so much longer.

Oh I get it. I think most people aren't counting all 24 hours when they say "most of the day". At least I know I'm not, and (as I stated above) it takes me about 5 hours to brew, and I definitely consider that "most of the day".

To me, "the day" would be usable waking daylight hours, which for me would be 10am - 6pm. That's 8 hours, meaning 5 hours for brewing is "most" of it.

So if I plan to brew on a weekend day as many of us do, I pretty much can rule out being able to get anything else done during that day. If I start at 11am, and finish around 4pm, that only leave a couple of hours of daylight for other chores - i.e. not much of the day left. Now the night is a different story, but it's not like I'm going to mow the lawn in the dark haha!!! Besides, after a day of brewing, the only thing I look forward to is heading to the casino! Too worn out to really get anything else done. Though that could be because of the day drinking lol.

 

[brewcat]

Between 4 and 5 hours including cleanup. I like starting in the morning so I'm basically done by lunch or a little after. It is hard to beat having boiling wort before noon.

 

[Firewalker11]

I'm a big fan of night brewing, I generally start after dinner and go until midnight. I sleep well and dream of wort.

 

[TinyHands]

Forgot to give my time! I average about 5 hours from the time I step into my garage until everything is cleaned and the yeast is pitched (for a 5.5 gallon batch, 60 minute mash & boil).

When I first started trying to utilize my time more efficiently I created this little number:

Ah, that's what's missing from my brew day prep. A Gantt chart.

 

[eadavis80]

I only do full boil extract batches with steeping grains. I can usually get it done between 12-3 p.m.

 

[MagicMatt]

Ah, that's what's missing from my brew day prep. A Gantt chart.

Yeah it's the SW Developer in me that necessitates such things!

 

[CJ-3]

Today I started heating the mash water at 4:15.
Had a 75 minute mash and a 60 minute boil.
Last of the cleaning up was done by 8:45

So for me it is 4.5 hours. I am hoping to be able to reduce the time it takes to heat the mash water and bring wort to a boil by getting a burner for outdoors and moving away from my stove. Tonight I was boiling and my wife was cooking at the same time. It got a lil crowded.

 

[VegasBrew1]

I take 6 to 7 hours to brew. I enjoy brew day, bottling sux. But that only take s a couple of hours.

 

[AnOldUR]

Damn! Had the house to myself yesterday. Took nine relaxing hours to brew 10 gallons. If I knew it was a race . . .

 

[Iseneye]

Damn! Had the house to myself yesterday. Took nine relaxing hours to brew 10 gallons. If I knew it was a race . . .

Nonono you're doing it all wrong. It should only take 2-3 hours tops. Anybody who takes longer is an inferior brewer

 

[brewbama]

About 4 hrs brewing all grain for me.

 

[MattyIce]

My last brew was a five gallon lager in five hours. Ales can be done in a little under four.

 

[Natdavis777]

My last brew was 5 hours start to finish for a 10gal batch. That included setting up, cleaning up, a 90min mash, fly sparging, AND putting my toddler down for his nap (a 20 min hiatus).

 

[whoaru99]

...
Oh I get it. I think most people aren't counting all 24 hours when they say "most of the day". At least I know I'm not, and (as I stated above) it takes me about 5 hours to brew, and I definitely consider that "most of the day".

To me, "the day" would be usable waking daylight hours, which for me would be 10am - 6pm. That's 8 hours, meaning 5 hours for brewing is "most" of it.

So if I plan to brew on a weekend day as many of us do, I pretty much can rule out being able to get anything else done during that day. If I start at 11am, and finish around 4pm, that only leave a couple of hours of daylight for other chores - i.e. not much of the day left. Now the night is a different story, but it's not like I'm going to mow the lawn in the dark haha!!!

Same here. I don't consider the day as 24 hours in this regard.

 

[Firewalker11]

Nonono you're doing it all wrong. It should only take 2-3 hours tops. Anybody who takes longer is an inferior brewer

And, we should all send our beer to you for disposal as well? ;-)

 

[brewprint]

I do 5 gallon BIAB in 3.5-4 hours. I'm doing it right and there's no other way!

I enjoy starting on a Saturday or Sunday morning heating strike water by 7:30 or 8 and then I'm done by noon. Then the rest of the day is free to drink beer haha!

 

[Canuck137]

I can manage two extract 5 gallon batches, with specialty grains, hops, and additives all finished and cleaned up in 3 hours... Suppose that is an advantage of not going all grain. If I did two batches of all grain it would take 8 hours?!

My buddy does the kits, straight up simple... he can do two kits all cleaned up and going in about an hour... the beer is pretty bad tho lol.

 

[ArkotRamathorn]

I can manage two extract 5 gallon batches, with specialty grains, hops, and additives all finished and cleaned up in 3 hours... Suppose that is an advantage of not going all grain. If I did two batches of all grain it would take 8 hours?!

My buddy does the kits, straight up simple... he can do two kits all cleaned up and going in about an hour... the beer is pretty bad tho lol.

Two kettles + two burners + 2 bags you could do 2 batches of BIAB all grain in 5 hours or so. I don't have two burners BUT if I do an extract batch, and a BIAB batch, I can get them both done in the same time it takes to do two batch.

Heat strike > mash > boil some sparge water and throw it in a water cooler I have handy > heat water in second kettle for extract > boil extract batch and begin chilling > sparge and boil all grain batch > chill all grain

Though this is a hectic schedule and I rarely feel the need to do both at the same time, though you really can do two batches at the same time and not take forever, doing two all grain you jus tneed to get creative with (aka buy extra equipment).