What am I missing with BIAB?

[cyclonite]

Going to hit BIAB batch #100 within the next couple of months (#97 is currently in primary). I've brewed with friends and my brother on alternate systems. In fact, my brother just setup a sweet HERMS system. While I think it is really cool (ooh, shiny!), I don't envy his cleaning chore at the end of the brew day. Ultimately, I guess I'm a lazy (and cheap) bastard, and because of that I'm happy to stick with BIAB.

If I had any interest in making larger batches, I would almost certainly build a HERMS or RIMS system. But, my BIAB setup makes great beer (which is the point), and I like making 5 gallon batches so I always have something new. So, there is no motivation to switch, and I don't feel like I am missing anything because of it. If you feel like you are missing something, go brew with a buddy on his/her fancy system to get your fix, then come home, BIAB, and RDWHAHB ;-)

Here is the equipment I use:
--
15 gallon kettle (Bayou Classic Aluminum)
Bayou Classic Burner
Barley Crusher Mill (set tight)
Homemade voile bag (Bag is on ~ 60 batches - still the original bag from when I upsized my kettle)
Grate with steamer basket on top of it for draining bag after mash (and silicone oven mitts for pressing it)
Homemade Hop spider
Copper Immersion Chiller (did I mention I'm lazy? No plate or other counterflow chiller for me - too hard to clean/sanitize!)
Drill with paint stirrer that sits on the grate for whirlpooling while chilling (did I mention I'm lazy?)
4-5 buckets for capturing waste water from chilling (used for cleanup: nice hot/warm cleaning water for winter, rest is used to water trees/bushes)
Autosiphon for transfer from kettle to fermenter
- If I want clean yeast, I'll lift and pour through a filter bag on top of my bucket - more work, but beautiful clean yeast cake - absolutely no hops in fermenter. Also aerates like crazy.
O2 tank for aeration (again, lazy)
Temp-controlled wine fridge for fermenting (and cold crashing)

I also almost exclusively use buckets for fermenters because they are easy to clean and carry.

I also don't stir my mashes any more (really lazy).

 

[63belair]

I can't wait to start BIAB, I'm really glad I learned about it before diving into a 'traditional' 2 or 3 vessel system. Now I just need to finish moving and start brewing!

 

[BigFloyd]

Those 4 part game hoists are pretty nice, but just my opinion it is way more lifting power than you need...I also prefer a ratchet pulley that lock and will suspend the bag for draining. I have used a pulley that doesn't ratchet lock, and I felt panicked that if you accidentally lose grip on the rope, the grain bag falls... Locking ratchet pulley FTW.

The cheapo game hoist I use has a little gizmo that locks the rope in place. I hoist the bag to just a few inches out of the wort, lock the rope, and let it suspend there for a few minutes. A few inches higher, lock the rope again and it's ready to be squeezed with a couple of sauce pot lids. By the time it gets moved over to the final drain tub, it's not dripping at all. While all that's going on, I kick the PID up to 100% manual to get the boil going.

 

[wilserbrewer]

I didn't know those cheapie game hoists have a lock feature. A four part hoist with lock could handle a 2-3 barrel batch.

 

[kevreh]

+1000 LOL - that made me burst out laughing

I, too, am an unabashed squeezer (actually more of a presser, as I put the bag in a steamer basket on top of the kettle and press damn near every last drop out of it with silicone oven mitts on).

For OP, you aren't missing anything with BIAB except larger batch sizes IMHO (and even that is doable up to a point with a pulley rig). You gain simplicity, easy clean up, and in most cases, some efficiency. You do get a bit more trub in the fermenter (if you go with a finer crush), but it does not affect quality or clarity.

cyclonite;

What efficiency % do you usually get? I press for a good 10 minutes with two SS trays from ikea. But kind of stuck at ~70%. Thinking of doing a dunk in a separate pot of water as a better way to extract sugars. So instead of doing a full 7 gallons of water in my main kettle, maybe 5 gallons in that one and 2 gallons in a seperate pot.

 

[jamorgan3777]

I just did a 10 gal batch of run of a 1051 gravity pale ale and got 77%. I usually count on 80% efficiency. Adding a little more grain is much easier than multiple dunks in multiple pots ( more to clean up at the end of the session) I have always taken the stance that efficiency is much more about reproducability than getting it as high as possible. My next project is to set up some sort of grain bag hoist. A $15 manual boat winch and a couple of pulleys and we should be all set. I have been hoisting by hand and its not too bad, but can be a little difficult when brewing alone. I am also perfecting my grain bag. Getting the right taper is critical to getting good drainage.

 

[MMJfan]

I can't speak to 10 gallon batches, but I lift the grain bag out of a 5 gallon batch with little problem and I am no muscle man. I never saw the need for a pulley system since I don't sit there and let it drain over the kettle for a long time. I lift it out, hold it for a few seconds while the bulk of liquid pours out, then put the bag in a collander suspended over a bucket. While the bag continues to drain I fire up the kettle. Just before boiling I dump whatever dripped in to the bucket during the wait. I do squeeze the bag a bit. There is very little mess.

Now maybe a 10 gallon batch would require some hauling. IDK

My process works for me and I got it streamlined. I would need some serious convincing to go to a more involved 3 tier system.

I too don't find it all that difficult to lift the grain bag out for a 5 gallon batch. With my equipment, I can't do more than a 5 gallon batch and my biggest grain bill might have been around 16 #'s dry although my typical grain bills are around 13 #'s or so.

I did try to build a pulley using a ladder when I first started BIAB. I bought a turkey fryer basket and it seemed to work pretty well. But the problem I faced is that I use a two kettle system. I mash in a 7.5 gal kettle which the fryer basket fits nicely in. But to achieve my desired pre-boil volume as well as a higher efficiency, I sparge in a 5 gal. kettle and the problem is, my fryer basket is too wide to fit in the 5 gal. kettle so I just scrapped the pulley system and just lift with my arms. And like Cider, I'm no muscle bound guy and I've found it to be no problem to lift the bag and let it drain a couple of minutes over the kettle...

 

[MMJfan]

I went from a year or so of extract to BIAB - currently on my 7th BIAB batch - and while I feel I'm missing out on some of the traditional elements/components of AG brewing I have to admit I enjoy the simplicity.

Seems like BIAB gets looked down on a little and I'm not sure why. Thanks to wonderful forums like this one adjustments in my process - especially a grain crusher and temp-controlled fermentation - have helped me improve efficiency and make better beer.

And at the end of the day that's all I care about....

I started out brewing extract for about a year and I was convinced it was excellent beer that I was making. I actually started out brewing at a Brew on Premise and we brewed extract brews there and my extract homebrews were better than anything I brewed there so that was what I was going off of. Because of this, I wasn't interested in investing the time, money and energy in upgrading to a 3 tier AG system. Then I found out about BIAB and with some reading into it, and the fact that the only additional investment was a bag, I decided to take the plunge.

And now over a year later, I'm so glad I took that plunge! I thought I was making excellent beer , but the AG brews blow away anything I made using extract. Not to mention how much cheaper it is to brew AG as opposed to brewing with extract!

With the quality of beer that I can make using BIAB on top of the convenience it brings, I see no reason to switch my process...