How much do you start a 10g keggle batch boil with?

[zanemoseley]

So I just went from brewing AG in split pots in the kitchen where I started the boil with 6.5 gallons to end with 5. I did my first outdoor keggle batch recently and tried to start with 13 gallons but ended up with too much wort. Problem is that I don't know how much extra. It was very cold and I don't have a wind screen yet so I didn't get a really vigorous boil. I'm brewing again Sunday and it is suppose to be close to 70 out :rockin:but I'd like to get closer on hitting my 10g volume after 1hr. What do you guys boil off in an hour with a 10g batch in a keggle. I also hope to get a better boil going this time, last time is was in the low 30's.

 

[Suthrncomfrt1884]

I'm pretty sure you're over-thinking this. Boil-off rates are going to be constant, regardless of volume. It really depends on the temps outside, your altitude, intensity of boil, etc.

If you boil off a gallon and a half to hit 5, then start with 11.5 gallons to hit 10.

 

[zanemoseley]

No offense but you're overthinking this talking about altitude. Last checked altitude only affected the boiling point anyway. When I brewed on the stove I didn't worry about much, I know I'd boil off about 1.5 gallons on a 5 gallon split batch. Now since I'm twice the volume and one vessel I'm not so sure of the "magic number". Just looking for someone to tell me about what I can expect to boil off in 60 minutes with a 10g batch with a regular boil.

 

[OLDBREW]

I'd start off thinking between 1.2 and 1.5 gals. per hour using a keggle. How much humidity in the air will change your rate, as will how vigrous the boil really is. The thing I do is pre fill the kettle enough so my pickup tube siphons then drain. That gets rid of dead space. Then you have to figure with hops how much is absorbed and left behind when your siphon stops for me it is around 2 qts. If you use pellets you can get a clogged screen so hop bags help.

 

[zanemoseley]

I'm siphoning straight from the bottom of the keg with no screen. I leave the hops/trub/break behind in the primary where others try to prevent this. I'll shoot for 1.5 gallons this time and see what happens.

 

[twoodward15]

I get about 14 gallons to boil down to 11. When it's cold outside I get 14.5.

 

[bandt9299]

I also start with 14 and boil down to 11, I split up the batches so it leaves me 5.5 gallons each, perfect.

 

[zanemoseley]

Wow you guys get that much boil off. I was thinking 3 gallons last time and it didn't happen. Perhaps I'll try somewhere in the middle and see what happens like maybe 12 gallons for 10 finished.

 

[mmb]

Depends on how hard you boil. Just breaking the surface of the wort or are you really rolling that boil?

 

[Bobby_M]

I lose 1.5 gallons per hour no matter how much I start with.

 

[RLinNH]

I need 14 1/2 gallons to wind up with 11 1/2 gallons when I am done a 90 minutes Boil (that includes Hot Break).

 

[IrregularPulse]

I lose 1.5 gallons per hour no matter how much I start with.

Same her 1.5G/hr.

Simple test to be sure before brewing. set your keggle and burner up, pour in 5 G of water and boil it for an hour, see whats left. It will be the same with wort regardless of beginning volume. It's not a percentage.

 

[shortyjacobs]

I use about 13.5. That boils down to 12, I lose 0.75 to trub/deadspace in the keg, and get a bit over 5.5 into the fermenters...

 

[OLDBREW]

Depends on how hard you boil. Just breaking the surface of the wort or are you really rolling that boil?

Yeah.. Some homebrewers have boils that look like a volcanic eruption, where others look like a rolling wave before it actually peaks. Your boil doesn't have to be so violent that it squirts up at you Micros boils are almost like a simmer.
The one guy on the Jamil show when they were doing the troubleshooting question answers thing, commented that homebrewers boils are so much more violent, that he believed that we didn't need to do boils over 60 minutes.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

12.5 Gallons. 1.5 to 2 for boil off. .5 for the brew house angels.

 

[RLinNH]

Yeah.. Some homebrewers have boils that look like a volcanic eruption, where others look like a rolling wave before it actually peaks. Your boil doesn't have to be so violent that it squirts up at you Micros boils are almost like a simmer.
The one guy on the Jamil show when they were doing the troubleshooting question answers thing, commented that homebrewers boils are so much more violent, that he believed that we didn't need to do boils over 60 minutes.

My boil used to be just that, a slight simmer. Had a buddy of Mine come over early in my AG days because I had dropped to around 55% Eff . Anywho, I am about 20 minutes into my Boil, and he asks when I was planning on starting my boil. I ramped up the heat, and I got my Rolling Boil. Bumped my Eff by 10 points right there.

I was so worried about Boil Off, that I was trying to boil as softly as possible. Nowadays, I configure my recipes knowing that I lose 2 gallons per hour of Boil.

 

[phatuna]

I used to burn 2 per hour, then I turned down my burner so I'm getting a slow roll. Now I burn 1.5 / hour.
I start w/ 12.5 and boil to 11.

 

[OLDBREW]

My boil used to be just that, a slight simmer. Had a buddy of Mine come over early in my AG days because I had dropped to around 55% Eff . Anywho, I am about 20 minutes into my Boil, and he asks when I was planning on starting my boil. I ramped up the heat, and I got my Rolling Boil. Bumped my Eff by 10 points right there.

I was so worried about Boil Off, that I was trying to boil as softly as possible. Nowadays, I configure my recipes knowing that I lose 2 gallons per hour of Boil.

yep If you burn off more water during your boil your gravity points do climb but your volume also lowers.

I think if you made a graft of all the brewers using a keg with a 12" cutout in the top, you'd land around 1.5 gal an hour average. I brew mostly indoors now so I don't deal with the climate /wind as much so once I get that volcanic eruption going on and the break phase passes, I'll dial it back some and add my first dose of kettle hops. I don't do simmers I do a nice rolling boil.

Someone on another board had figured out about what different diameter pots/kettles did as far as evaporation, saying it had to do with surface area and tension and some other equated factors.

 

[Suthrncomfrt1884]

No offense but you're overthinking this talking about altitude. Last checked altitude only affected the boiling point anyway. When I brewed on the stove I didn't worry about much, I know I'd boil off about 1.5 gallons on a 5 gallon split batch. Now since I'm twice the volume and one vessel I'm not so sure of the "magic number". Just looking for someone to tell me about what I can expect to boil off in 60 minutes with a 10g batch with a regular boil.

I realize you meant no offense in the statement, and that's why I'm not going to get defensive. I was trying to help you out.

As many others have pointed out, your boil-off rate will be the same regardless of what volume you have (unless you're using a different pot/burner/etc.)

As you said, altitude is not a huge deal because it only effects boil points. BUT, if it takes you longer to get to a boil, you'll lose more wort. You're evaporating wort the entire time you're trying to get to a boil.

Start with 11.5 gallons and go from there.