Need to find a better way for All-Grain

[bbrim]

I love my RIMS system. The consistency and ease of use can't be beat. I don't care if I miss my mash temp by a couple degrees because it will quickly and automatically be corrected. I was able to set up a RIMS system for about $300. If that is within your budget then it is well worth considering. You just need a pump, heat stick, PID (with thermocoupler), and appropriate tubing.

 

[VanDyke]

I have a rather easy setup, Home Depot round 10gal cooler and a SS false bottom. Something that helps is to fill it up with hot water 2h before mashing, so it heats up the walls. Doing it this way, I am able to measure the exact amount of heat I lose on the mash, it's always been consistent at 12F, so I just heat up the mash water 12F higher than I want. I've been getting at the very least 75% efficiency. At some point I'd like to get a RIMS setup, but not ready to drop the $$ on that yet.

 

[RM-MN]

I had not considered BIAB much until reading some of the replies here. My next USAF job will limit my free time quite a bit, but I would still like to all-grain brew. It seems to me BIAB might be a time saver as compared to the three tier system I was doing before with Gott coolers. While it would be nice to reutilize those coolers, BIAB does look a lot simpler at the cost of mash efficiency.

If the cost was not considered, and 220V/30A service not a problem (and unfortunately it is), what do you think about the new High Gravity eBIAB system? Anyone used it?

How easy/hard is it to step mash using direct fire and a clad bottom like a 10gal Megapot? Any experience there?

Yeah, it's hard to deal with the 80 to 85% efficiency with BIAB when you are used to 70 to 75% efficiency of the confentional tun.

 

[stealthfixr]

Yeah, it's hard to deal with the 80 to 85% efficiency with BIAB when you are used to 70 to 75% efficiency of the confentional tun.

Is that kind of efficiency unusually high for BIAB? I've been reading to expect around 65%. What kind of setup do you use?

 

[RM-MN]

I and a number of others on here that do BIAB have been getting that efficiency pretty regularly. The key seems to be the crush or grind of the grain. I have a Corona style mill and set it to where the plates rub when there is no grain in it. I heat my water to strike temperature in a turkey fryer pot on my kitchen stove, turn off the heat and drop the bag in. Then I stir the grains in making sure I have no dough balls, put the lid on, and wrap the whole thing in a bath towel which keeps the temperature within a degree or 2 for the hour mash (I'm beginning to think I don't need that long since another BIAB brewer says he gets conversion in half that amount of time). Pull the bag of grains out and drain/squeeze the wort out and I'm at 80%. Do a dunk/pour through sparge to get the volume if I'm short and the efficiency goes up to about 85%.

 

[AussieBrewerInColorado]

I love my RIMS system. The consistency and ease of use can't be beat. I don't care if I miss my mash temp by a couple degrees because it will quickly and automatically be corrected. I was able to set up a RIMS system for about $300. If that is within your budget then it is well worth considering. You just need a pump, heat stick, PID (with thermocoupler), and appropriate tubing.

What were the most valuable resources you found when building your RIMS system? I'm also looking at going that route eventually. There's a ton of info out there on it, would be great to weed through it a bit. Cheers.

 

[bbrim]

Aussie:
It is hard to answer this. I did a little research here and there and then tried to piece it together on my own. There were some mishaps. I wish I would have been more thorough in drawing my diagrams and figuring out what hard I would need. Because I went with soft silicone tubing that disconnects I needed quick connects. I finally found camlocks and they are awesome. I had PID issues at first (I tried to buy a cheap one) and ended up going with Auber. Their equipment is top notch. Those were the main difficulties. Their is a post about a portable toolbox RIMS tube floating around that shows a pretty simple approach to the heat stick. Good luck with everything.

 

[AussieBrewerInColorado]

Aussie:
It is hard to answer this. I did a little research here and there and then tried to piece it together on my own. There were some mishaps. I wish I would have been more thorough in drawing my diagrams and figuring out what hard I would need. Because I went with soft silicone tubing that disconnects I needed quick connects. I finally found camlocks and they are awesome. I had PID issues at first (I tried to buy a cheap one) and ended up going with Auber. Their equipment is top notch. Those were the main difficulties. Their is a post about a portable toolbox RIMS tube floating around that shows a pretty simple approach to the heat stick. Good luck with everything.

Thanks! Very helpful, good to learn about others experiences to make things smoother. Cheers!

 

[stealthfixr]

I've boiled down the options some thanks to everyone's responses here. I am now thinking of these all-grain brweing methods:

1) Buy High Gravity eBIAB and be done with it. Pro: good, easy & quick. Con: more than I would like to spend (more correctly--more than my wife would LIKE me to spend ).

2) Buy a 10gal Megapot for a MLT, recirculate via March/Chugger and use direct-fire propane & a RIMS tube for raising and holding temps, respectively. Use one of my Gott coolers with a 110V heating element added for a HLT. Pro: cheaper, conceptually seems like it should work well for either BIAB, step mashing or infusion mashing. Cons: more complicated than #1 and the whole RIMS tube concept a new one for me.

3) Single infusion mash with my existing Gott coolers -BUT- convert the HLT with a 110V heating element and use a temp controller I already have to maintain temps. Maybe buy the Megapot for a boil kettle.

3a) Same as #3 above, except add a thermowell to the Gott HLT as well as the 110V heating element & temp controller. Then add a heat exhanger (copper coil) to the HLT and reciculate the mash for temperature stability and raising to the mash-out.​

Which do you all think will product the best results with the least fuss, money being a consideration but not the main decision driver? Being overseas with the military until June give me a little time to think about this!

 

[Ragtop232]

Just my opinion, but it's hard to beat the convenience, immediacy and quality of #1. I have the EBC SV control unit on a system I sourced and put together and it is fantastic. Of course I'm not a DIY'er either.

Jim

 

[bbrim]

The RIMS delivers awesome consistency but takes more time to clean. The cleaning can be done during the boil, so it is possible to not lose too much time.

 

[Klowe0419]

Hello I'm probably not in the right thread but I'm in need of a answer ASAP lol I am going a all grain kit and it calls for a single infusion with a mash out and I'm wondering if I can do a fly sparge instead ? Please help

 

[1MadScientist]

I've boiled down the options some thanks to everyone's responses here. I am now thinking of these all-grain brweing methods:

1) Buy High Gravity eBIAB and be done with it. Pro: good, easy & quick. Con: more than I would like to spend (more correctly--more than my wife would LIKE me to spend ).

​

Which do you all think will product the best results with the least fuss, money being a consideration but not the main decision driver? Being overseas with the military until June give me a little time to think about this!

I am getting 82% efficiency for my full volume BIAB, so I vote for your #1 list. I am not electric or have a pump, just the basics. I enjoy my brewdays. You can look at my photo link below for what I'm doing.

 

[AussieBrewerInColorado]

Hello I'm probably not in the right thread but I'm in need of a answer ASAP lol I am going a all grain kit and it calls for a single infusion with a mash out and I'm wondering if I can do a fly sparge instead ? Please help

Most likely yes. Depends on what you're making but should be fine.