BlackDog-Brewery
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Dec 17, 2013
- Messages
- 86
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There are hours of postings on BrewTalk about how to build a HERMS / RIMS, but very little about how to tweak it when efficiency is not correct.
I am not hitting the OG numbers that I expected by switching to a HERMS on the last 3 batches, which was the whole idea of the making the investment.
Here is my procedure. Please let me know what I am doing wrong . . . .
- First I fill the MLT with all of the pre-heated strike water amount according to the mash-to-grain ratio calculator recommendations.
- Then before I add in the grains, I recirc through the HERMS until the recommended mash in temp is achieved in the MLT. This allows all of the equipment to heat up to the strike water temperature before adding the grist.
- Then I shut off the pump, and dough in.
- If the grain bed is not covered by enough strike water, then I manually add more heated strike water from the HLT.
- Once I am all doughed in and the mash is covered by 1 of strike water, I vorloft 2 quarts.
- Then I turn the pump back on to begin recircing through the HERMS for 60 minutes.
- During the recirculating mash in, I am also poking my manual thermometer throughout the grain bed to ensure that I am close to the desired mash in temperature of lets say 151 as a double check.
- After 60 minutes of HERMS recirculation, I shut off the pump.
- Then I drain the wort from the MLT to the BK until the MLT grain bed is dry.
- After there is no more wort to drain, I close the drain valve on the MTL, and then start to fill the MLT with 180 of sparge water until the water level covers the grain bed. Ive found that I need 180 sparge water not 170 because the grain and the equipment cools off real fast while I am draining the wort to the BK.
- I then slowly open the drain valve on the MLT to the BK until I achieve the desired 6.5 gallons of pre-boil volume.
Any suggestions about what I am doing wrong?
I am not hitting the OG numbers that I expected by switching to a HERMS on the last 3 batches, which was the whole idea of the making the investment.
Here is my procedure. Please let me know what I am doing wrong . . . .
- First I fill the MLT with all of the pre-heated strike water amount according to the mash-to-grain ratio calculator recommendations.
- Then before I add in the grains, I recirc through the HERMS until the recommended mash in temp is achieved in the MLT. This allows all of the equipment to heat up to the strike water temperature before adding the grist.
- Then I shut off the pump, and dough in.
- If the grain bed is not covered by enough strike water, then I manually add more heated strike water from the HLT.
- Once I am all doughed in and the mash is covered by 1 of strike water, I vorloft 2 quarts.
- Then I turn the pump back on to begin recircing through the HERMS for 60 minutes.
- During the recirculating mash in, I am also poking my manual thermometer throughout the grain bed to ensure that I am close to the desired mash in temperature of lets say 151 as a double check.
- After 60 minutes of HERMS recirculation, I shut off the pump.
- Then I drain the wort from the MLT to the BK until the MLT grain bed is dry.
- After there is no more wort to drain, I close the drain valve on the MTL, and then start to fill the MLT with 180 of sparge water until the water level covers the grain bed. Ive found that I need 180 sparge water not 170 because the grain and the equipment cools off real fast while I am draining the wort to the BK.
- I then slowly open the drain valve on the MLT to the BK until I achieve the desired 6.5 gallons of pre-boil volume.
Any suggestions about what I am doing wrong?