Malt grains in basket BEFORE or AFTER water ?

[Barão]

In Single Vessel pans... First malt grains inside the basket, before the water... or first water in the basket and then malt grains ?
In Brewzilla gen 4 I have been looking at forums that : A couple of pro tips to wrap things up. First, is to make sure you add your grains to the malt pipe BEFORE you lower it into the vessel. This ensures the weight of the grain keeps the bottom plate in place, so that as you lower it down, the water doesn’t push the bottom plate out of position and create a sneak path for whole grains to get through

 

[kevin58]

With an all-in-one system like that I would heat my water up to strike temp first then add grains. There is a technique called underletting where hot strike water is pumped in from the bottom of a mash tun filled with grain but that is usually done in a multi-vessel system.

 

[psehorne]

In Single Vessel pans... First malt grains inside the basket, before the water... or first water in the basket and then malt grains ?
In Brewzilla gen 4 I have been looking at forums that : A couple of pro tips to wrap things up. First, is to make sure you add your grains to the malt pipe BEFORE you lower it into the vessel. This ensures the weight of the grain keeps the bottom plate in place, so that as you lower it down, the water doesn’t push the bottom plate out of position and create a sneak path for whole grains to get through

I have read that adding water to the malt encourages clumping. I am not familiar with Brezilla. I have a BrauMeister which also has a malt pipe. I have always submerged the malt pipe and slowly poured grain into the malt pipe pausing frequently to stir. Never have a problem with clumping.

 

[psehorne]

With an all-in-one system like that I would heat my water up to strike temp first then add grains. There is a technique called underletting where hot strike water is pumped in from the bottom of a mash tun filled with grain but that is usually done in a multi-vessel system.

My BrauMeister pumps water/wort up the malt pipe from the bottom.

 

[fluketamer]

i put grains in basket first then lower the basket into the water while applying some pressure to the drain pipe in the middle to prevent the bouyancy of the grain from letting the bottom pan come up.

with a thick mash it will require a stir or two. with a thin mash it basically just floods the grain .

i find it easier for many reasons.

i got 6 gallons of 1.053 wort from 11 pounds of grain. so my efficiency is fine for me.

 

[BeerNsteadofH2O]

I use a brewzilla, bring my strike water to 5 degrees above desired temp, turn the recirculation pump to.low, add grain scoop by scoop, stirring as needed, adjusting recirculation as needed, once the malt tube is full, and desired temp is reached( checked with a thermometer in the center and sides of the mash) I set my timer.. the results are consistent every time.

 

[kevin58]

My BrauMeister pumps water/wort up the malt pipe from the bottom.

You can do the underletting scheme if you have a way to heat the water up to strike temp first.

 

[psehorne]

You can do the underletting scheme if you have a way to heat the water up to strike temp first.

The BrauMeister allows step mashing. I set the first step to 35C. Upon reaching this temp the BrauMeister holds this temperature and prompts me to add grain. When finished adding grain I press a button that lets the BrauMeister know that the grains have been added. It then raises the temperature to the first of the four mash steps, holds at the new temperature for the amount of time I have programmed for that step and then moves through the other steps in the same manner.

 

[the user]

I have a Brewzilla 4.1 with the sight glass. I just put the malt pipe into the Brewzilla prior to filling my water. I then fill with my strike water, heat, then mash in. No worries about the malt pipe bottom coming up at all that way.
Also, if you have or are considering a Brewzilla Gen 4/4.1 I highly recommend the pulley setup, especially if you have the 65L. It's just a 2:1 system with a couple carabiners, but the price was fair enough. It makes lifting / sparging a breeze and I don't worry about the feet on the malt pipe at all.

 

[Willy]

I have a Brewzilla Gen 4.1 with extender collar. Most batches are between 7-11 gal. I don't use the mash pipe anymore - and opted for a Wilshire BIAB for bigger batches. Got a hoist to lift it out easily and am moving to more no sparge batches to save a step. (Lose some efficiency but no a big deal). I put the bag and and slowly dump the grains in, mixing... Dump more, mix.
And do a few stirs during the mash too.

The Braumeister is a super nice AIO. The Braumeister product line is pretty much the pioneer and "Cadillac" of the AIO options. Premium level awesome.

 

[kevin58]

The BrauMeister allows step mashing. I set the first step to 35C. Upon reaching this temp the BrauMeister holds this temperature and prompts me to add grain. When finished adding grain I press a button that lets the BrauMeister know that the grains have been added. It then raises the temperature to the first of the four mash steps, holds at the new temperature for the amount of time I have programmed for that step and then moves through the other steps in the same manner.

Not exactly what the OP asked and I replied to but OK. Good for you.

 

[LuukGx]

Brewzilla 3.1.1, I always get my water a couple degrees over strike temp and then pack the grain in. I haven't seen any difference in efficiency whether I throw in all at once, or in steps, as long as it's agitated.

 

[odie]

if you dump grains into hot/warm water it will clump, so you have to stir and break up dugh balls.

If you dump grain into cold/room temp water, it will cl;ump not so much but still want to stir it.

If you fill the basket with grain and lower it into water, the water will come up thru the grain bed and not be clumped or have air pockets and such. This is basically "under letting".

I've been doing this with my BIAB basket/malt pipe. I place the basket in the kettle and let is slowly sink just by gravity. I have had no clumping issues, I don't have to stir anything. Nice even mash grain bed.

 

[psehorne]

If you fill the basket with grain and lower it into water, the water will come up thru the grain bed and not be clumped or have air pockets and such. This is basically "under letting".

I will try this on my next brew.... sometime in the next 10 days, I hope.