Mash Tun Temp

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archmaker

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Ok, ok, i hit submit and then noted I typed Mach not Mash! It is not going that Fast!! Sorry

I did my first AG several weeks ago and when I used BeerSmith to calculate the water temp I was hoping to achieve 154 and instead hit 149.

11.25 lbs Grain about 65F
14.06 qts Water at 167F
Cooler heated with boiling water an hour before and empty temp was 120F.
Outside temp was about 60 and windy.

Cooler is a 36qt Igloo cooler with a cooper manifold. I lost one degree over an hour - FWIW.

Getting ready to do another batch this weekend and was wondering, if I should raise the water temp up, from the last time, or just do it the same and see if the same results happen, (Not a fluke of the Thermo or something). I believe a one time error is not always enough to make a judgement on.

If I was to raise the water temp what would your recommend? Just a few degrees and that way if I am low I just need to add 1qt or less of boiling water, or try to make up the adjustment all the way.

Thanks.
 
Well your numbers are correct. I would make sure you are stirring the living hell out of the grains and move the thermo around a lot. Other than that, the boiling water only needs to be in the cooler for about 15 to 20 minutes, dump then immediately start your mash. If you still hit low, then you need to adjust for your equipment. Also check your thermo calibration.
 
Your numbers seem to be spot on for 11.25 lbs of grain, a water to grain ratio of 1.25, and a grain temp of 70 F. But you didn't mention your actual grain temp. If your grain was cold this could have thrown everything off.

Edit - just saw your grain temp listed at 65F. My calcs say you would need a strike water temp of 168. 167 shouldn't have resulted in a mash temp of 149.
 
My pre-heat water only stays in there long enough for the strike water to get to temp.
I would play around with the settings in Beersmith until it comes up with the numbers you got on the last batch. Make sure you check the grain temp also.
Once the settings are set and giving you the numbers you got on the last brew change them a little more until it gives you the resting temp you are looking for.
That is what I did and I've hit my temps every time since. :mug:

Changing the MLT's thromo mass and weight makes a huge difference.
 
Did you check the temps of your strike water before you added the grain? I wonder if the cooler chilled down below what you think (especially if it sat for an hour after pre-heating it). If so, your strike water was probably well below 167F when you added the grains.

You might consider using Beersmith to calculate strike water that is hot enough to heat both your grains and your cooler. Just check off the 'adjust temp for equipment' option in the mash profile.

Also note that these adjustments require that you enter in the characteristics (e.g., thermal mass) of your equipment correctly. If you haven't already, set up an equipment profile for your mash tun. It takes a few batches to get it just right.
 
I boiled a qt of water and threw it in there as I was trying to get the 14 qts to temp. Once I was ready to add the grain, I dumped it out and put my grain and water in. I moved it around, stirred it well (or so I thought ).

I added the water from my turkey fryer right into the cooler as soon as I hit the temp.

So what I am going to do, is do the same again, I now have several Thermonitors, and will run a couple at the same time.

If I miss the same direction I will adjust my BeerSmith.

Thanks
 
archmaker said:
I boiled a qt of water and threw it in there as I was trying to get the 14 qts to temp. Once I was ready to add the grain, I dumped it out and put my grain and water in. I moved it around, stirred it well (or so I thought ).

There is your problem.
You have a 36qt cooler and adding only 1qt of water was enough to warmup the bottom of it and the manifold. You then added what 4-5 inches worth of gran and water? The sidewalls of the cooler were not as warm as the bottom and there is where your 5* went.
 
I checked the air temp of the cooler right before I threw in the grains and water and it was hovering around 120 with the lid closed.

Messing around with BeerSmith the tun temp really can make a difference!

I am going to adjust the temp of the tun to room temp and see what happens.

Thanks!
 
My strategy is to overheat my strike water, add it to my preheated mash tun, and stir until it's at temperature, then I add my grain. When I say "my strategy", I mean I've done it once with good results, and the theory seems sound.
 
Kai said:
My strategy is to overheat my strike water, add it to my preheated mash tun, and stir until it's at temperature, then I add my grain. When I say "my strategy", I mean I've done it once with good results, and the theory seems sound.

yes that is also a way to do it.

When you add the strike water check the temp and then you will see if the tun is pulling any temp out of it also.
 
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