Simple BIAB Calculator

[MarkD]

This is great, and the problems I've had have been due to my noob mistakes, not the calculator. (I had the diameter of my pot slightly wrong the first time, next I was wrong on my boil-off rate and I spilled some wort once.) I use a stainless steel ruler to measure volumes and last time I was within a quart of hitting my target volume into the fermenter. It was snowing out, and I probably missed the boil off rate due to a cold propane tank.

This has everything I need, and nothing I don't. I would consider going back to extract kits without it. Thanks again.

 

[mrgstiffler]

This is great, and the problems I've had have been due to my noob mistakes, not the calculator. (I had the diameter of my pot slightly wrong the first time, next I was wrong on my boil-off rate and I spilled some wort once.) I use a stainless steel ruler to measure volumes and last time I was within a quart of hitting my target volume into the fermenter. It was snowing out, and I probably missed the boil off rate due to a cold propane tank.

This has everything I need, and nothing I don't. I would consider going back to extract kits without it. Thanks again.

Were you a quart high or a quart low?

 

[Bigscience]

Nice! Do you mind sharing the constants you're using for grain and hop absorption? Also, another nice tweak may be to have one for pellet and one for whole hops as I believe they are different (although I only use whole). Solid work work though.

 

[mrgstiffler]

Nice! Do you mind sharing the constants you're using for grain and hop absorption? Also, another nice tweak may be to have one for pellet and one for whole hops as I believe they are different (although I only use whole). Solid work work though.

Sorry it took so long. I read your post and then forgot to reply.

Grain absorption: .125 gallon/lb
Hop absorption: .0365 gallon/lb

The grain absorption is tricky for BIAB. Lifting up the bag puts more pressure on the grains so less wort is retained. People also squeeze to different levels. .125 gallon/lb should be about right if you lift the bag and hold it there until the drainage slows to a drizzle.

 

[mrgstiffler]

UPDATE: Metric units are now supported. Should help all of our international BIAB friends.

 

[daksin]

UPDATE: Your avatar is still from a really terrible webcomic drawn by a really talented artist! What are you doing to improve this feature?

 

[mrgstiffler]

UPDATE: Your avatar is still from a really terrible webcomic drawn by a really talented artist! What are you doing to improve this feature?

lol, Least I Could Do has surprised Calvin and Hobbes as my favorite comic of all time. Lar deSouza is a fantastic artist. Ryan Sohmer may come off as a bit of a sexist but I think that's more just pandering to his audience. I identify with Rayne because he does what he wants but always stands up for his friends and what's ultimately right. Plus, it's funny as hell.

 

[ArcLight]

Nice calculator - thank you.

A suggested enhancement -
display how much volume the grain displaces.
So 16 lbs may displace 4 quarts, meaning instead of X inches, you will end up with Y inches.

This rather nice calculator shows it. (I didn't write it)
http://www.buildabeer.org/beerquickcalc.php


I will have to experiment more with the wort retention by the grain. Is it as high as 0.125?
I thought it was more like 0.1.
Its not easy to squeeze big bags, but smaller bags can be SCOOBED
For them I wonder if the wort retention is more like 0.075
(Squeeze the Crap Out Of the Bag)

 

[mrgstiffler]

I can absolutely do that. Would definitely be useful.

Grain absorption for BIAB is difficult because everyone has their own methods. Some people squeeze that crap out of their bags, others hang them and just let them drain. The calculator uses .125 and to hit the preboil volume I usually have to squeeze a decent amount.

 

[normnmiles]

Is there still an offline option? Will the link you posted in reply #5 download the most current version? Thanks for making such a useful tool.

 

[mrgstiffler]

Is there still an offline option? Will the link you posted in reply #5 download the most current version? Thanks for making such a useful tool.

That will still work yes, but it doesn't include the addition of metric units. I'll zip up the new version when I get the chance. The link will be the same.

 

[SkipWankman]

Quick question, what is the grain temperature? Are we talking just like ambient temperature? Or if somebody stores the grains in the refrigerator or something? Sorry if this is a dumb question.

 

[mrgstiffler]

Quick question, what is the grain temperature? Are we talking just like ambient temperature? Or if somebody stores the grains in the refrigerator or something? Sorry if this is a dumb question.

Yes, it is the temperature of the grains, which is usually ambient. This is important for calculating strike temp.

 

[SkipWankman]

Yes, it is the temperature of the grains, which is usually ambient. This is important for calculating strike temp.

Thank you. That is what I figured, I just wanted to be sure. Thanks!

 

[mrgstiffler]

Thank you. That is what I figured, I just wanted to be sure. Thanks!

No problem. Let me know how it goes for you.

 

[SkipWankman]

Will do. Not sure when I am going to brew but it will be soon. I have to see how those measurements (in inches) are going to work. In my pot I have an indented ring near the bottom where a grate sits on, I think it is for steaming tamales, so the measurements are going to be a little off. At least I have the gallon measurements.

 

[kzimmer0817]

I tried this calculator. It is certainly easier to use. The numbers came out a little different than those from using the calculator from the Biabrewer website that someone else had mentioned.

I tried to go to the link with the downloadable zip file and I get that "404 Not Found" error. Has this been moved?

Thanks,
Keith

 

[mrgstiffler]

Yeah, the numbers will be slightly different but pretty close. Make sure you read the bullet points about strike water temp and volume.

I'll check into the zip not being available.

 

[kzimmer0817]

I just clicked on it again this morning and got the "404 Not Found" error. It's this link in posting #5 of this thread.

http://www.gregstiffler.com/biabcalc/biabcalc.zip

I even added "simple" to 2 logical places in the link and still got the error. It's odd that no one else is reporting a problem.

Thanks,
Keith

 

[mrgstiffler]

I just clicked on it again this morning and got the "404 Not Found" error. It's this link in posting #5 of this thread.

http://www.gregstiffler.com/biabcalc/biabcalc.zip

I even added "simple" to 2 logical places in the link and still got the error. It's odd that no one else is reporting a problem.

Thanks,
Keith

Here you go. Looks like it didn't make the transfer when I moved to the new domain.

http://simplebiabcalculator.com/biabcalc.zip

 

[lactardjosh]

Any chance you could make a mobile browser version of this? The pop up with the calculations gets cut off and isn't scrollable on Chrome on my phone; the background page scrolls instead.

EDIT: Here's a screenshot.

 

[KIAKillerXJ]

That would be great. Kinda stopped using this, although my favorite, since i do most my work on my iPhone and te page doesn't work correctly on safari either.

 

[mrgstiffler]

Interesting. Thanks for letting me know. I use it on my iPad but the resolution is large enough that I've never seen that issue. I just tried on my iPhone and it looks exactly like your Android screenshot. I'll get that fixed up for you.

 

[lactardjosh]

Cool, thanks.

It works pretty much as expected on my Nexus 7 in portrait orientation. In landscape, the top and bottom of the pop up get cut off (which means the Done button is inaccessible until I go back to portrait).

 

[ishredthecello]

I'm new to BIAB...had a problem with my first attempt and ended with too much water.

what does the mashout entail? Do I pull the grains out and raise the temp of the wort to 170 and drop grains back in for 10 mins? I am confused with the calculator asking me about this?

 

[themox]

hey mate, this is a great tool. i use metric units though and noticed that once you've submitted your details it gives some of the (i think) hard coded answers in F and not C; and inches, not centimetres etc. can this be changed at all?

 

[mrgstiffler]

hey mate, this is a great tool. i use metric units though and noticed that once you've submitted your details it gives some of the (i think) hard coded answers in F and not C; and inches, not centimetres etc. can this be changed at all?

Hm, I'm not sure what's going on with that. I just did a test using metric units and the results still show metric units. Can you give me a screenshot? Or are you referring to the notes at the bottom?

 

[mrgstiffler]

I'm new to BIAB...had a problem with my first attempt and ended with too much water.

what does the mashout entail? Do I pull the grains out and raise the temp of the wort to 170 and drop grains back in for 10 mins? I am confused with the calculator asking me about this?

The mashout is a feature that was added on request. It's for people who are mashing in a separate vessel and want to add water to mashout.

 

[captainkirk83]

Great tool for us BIABers

 

[LabRatBrewer]

how are people calculating the fermentation trub variable?

 

[themox]

Hm, I'm not sure what's going on with that. I just did a test using metric units and the results still show metric units. Can you give me a screenshot? Or are you referring to the notes at the bottom?

was referring to the notes at the bottom on the information page (after you've entered and submitted all your details). i think they were in dark grey colour.

 

[mrgstiffler]

how are people calculating the fermentation trub variable?

That's pretty much everything that you're going to lose between pitching and package.

 

[mrgstiffler]

was referring to the notes at the bottom on the information page (after you've entered and submitted all your details). i think they were in dark grey colour.

Yeah, those are just hard coded suggestions I made. I can add suggestions for metric too.

 

[LabRatBrewer]

That's pretty much everything that you're going to lose between pitching and package.

So, that would be a constant (more less) from batch to batch and the amount would be based on prior brews?

 

[mrgstiffler]

So, that would be a constant (more less) from batch to batch and the amount would be based on prior brews?

Yeah, it's a value that you need to set based on experience. I usually do between .5 - .75 gallon.

 

[yourhuckleberry]

I think I'll be using this often.

I do a hard squeeze, the notes at the end of the calculation say subtract 1 inch or more.

1 inch of the water fill height in the pot?

Is there a way you could include in the calculator the Mash and Mashout amounts for a hard squeeze?

Or have a suggestion of a volume to subtract rather than a height?

Thanks

Andrew

 

[yourhuckleberry]

I will have to experiment more with the wort retention by the grain. Is it as high as 0.125?
I thought it was more like 0.1.
Its not easy to squeeze big bags, but smaller bags can be SCOOBED
For them I wonder if the wort retention is more like 0.075
(Squeeze the Crap Out Of the Bag)

Or perhaps have an option to select your own wort retention rate and suggest a number on the scale (No squeezing to SCOOB)

 

[mrgstiffler]

I think I'll be using this often.

I do a hard squeeze, the notes at the end of the calculation say subtract 1 inch or more.

1 inch of the water fill height in the pot?

Is there a way you could include in the calculator the Mash and Mashout amounts for a hard squeeze?

Or have a suggestion of a volume to subtract rather than a height?

Thanks

Andrew

Yeah, I've been thinking about this lately. I really want to make it more accurate for new users, but I don't want to screw up the calculations for existing users. I think I'll sit down with it this weekend and try to come up with a solution that will work for everybody without adding complexity.

 

[idigg]

Need help. I will be doing my first BIAB ever. I have done 30+ AG batches with a cooler mash tun. Looking to do some BIAB.

I have a 10.5 gallon kettle. I'm looking to see how much grain I could put in a 10.5 gal kettle with the water. Any calculator for that? Will I be okay with say 14lbs of grain and 8.5 gallons of water for an IPA during the mash/rest? TIA

Justin

 

[Vellum]

You have to think about the size of the pot. A 10 gallon pot holds 1280 oz. 1 pound of dry grain has a volume of 10 oz. Now work backwards. You want 5 gallons of beer or 640 oz water + expected boil off amount per hour (can assume or measure) * length of boil + grain absorption (you can measure this to be more accurate but assume .25 gal) = total water required. Total water required + grain bill lbs * 10 oz = total volume required (hopefully smaller than your pot).

I made an excel spreadsheet with these formulas so that I just entire my pot size, grain bill, batch size, and boil time and it spits out the water I need. It is set up for my system, what I have measured as boil off and grain absorption but could be modified. I also had it set up when I only had an 8.5 gallon pot to check of it would fit and if it didn't, it would calculate how much water to start with and then tell you how much water to add after the mash to hit my pre boil volume. I hope the math makes sense, typed it on my phone. If you pm me your email address I can email you my spreadsheet.