What do you use to hold your mash temp?

[kgx2]

So this was my first biab session coming from exclusively extract. I'd read a few things/ideas on holding mash temp. I used an emergency blanket and a sweat shirt. Worked ok till i tried to bring the temp up some. It shot over the range i was trying for ending up at 170°. Tried to lower the temp back down but wasnt easy. Any better ideas/ suggestions? Hope it didn't kill the batch...

 

[kgx2]

Pic of the process.

 

[enkamania]

I use a water heater blanket wrapped around the pot.

 

[DonH]

I Use a beach towel! usually drop about 3 degree's total on a 60 minute Mash. some times I Add a little flame for about 40 seconds which raises it back up if I fall below the 148 mark which doesnt happen much

 

[Hamaki]

I recirculate through a ghetto herms in my HLT using a $20 12V pump & 25' of3/8" copper tube. The closed cell foam (sleeping bag pad) was not enough to keep me from losing 5 - 7* during a mash.

 

[res291que]

Hamaki how about some picks of your "getto" rig?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[TexasWine]

You shouldn't need to add heat during your mash. Insulate a little better next time and you won't overshoot the temp. I use a sleeping bag and several towels for my set up. This weekend I'm going to mash in the oven on the warm setting @ 150F.

 

[Hamaki]

Hamaki how about some picks of your "getto" rig?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

I don't currently have a functional camera but it's this pump http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HFVSDPQ/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20 threaded onto my MLT outlet. This pumps wort at about 1/2 gpm or less through a 25' immersion chiller style coil heat exchanger that I set in my electric HLT and discharges back onto the top of my grain bed. For power I use a 12V power supply from an old toy train we had. I control water temp manually with a pulse width modulator/solid state relay and watching the thermometers in the HLT & MLT. I do conventional rather than BIAB but the same concept can work with RIMS if one does not have a second vessel. With a RIMS setup you'd probably want a PID or similar for better temp control.
Hope the explanation is clear enough - sorry again for my lack of photo capability

PS - I do not recommend this particular pump. For my needs it's underpowered and gets unpleasantly warm by the end of a brew session. I understand that there are other, perhaps better options in the same price range.

 

[vNmd]

I use a down winter jacket that is totally warm but I don't like the way it looks so I don't wear it in public. In the winter I lose a couple degrees so I add heat about half way through so it keeps a narrow temp range. In the summer I don't usually need to add heat.

 

[jCOSbrew]

I started with recirculating BIAB and had couple issues with restricted pump flow resulting in burnt grains or bag.
Keeping the heat off and adding insulation to kettle is an easy solution. If I need to add a little heat I stir while heating.

I do recirculate while heating the strike water for an accurate temp reading. I find that the large volume of water and "preheated kettle" only needs to be a few degrees higher than my target mash in temp.

 

[pricelessbrewing]

I used two sleeping bags yesterday, 6 gallon water +8 lb grain bill in 7.5 g pot. Lost 2 degrees over 60 minutes.

 

[LeftyRighty]

I wrap furnace heat duct insulation (cheap at Lowe's-HomeDepot) around pot, double layer. Blanket on top. Only lose a few degrees in an hour.

 

[Slenderman]

This'll knock off everyone's socks.

I don't use any sort of insulation because I find that I dont have enough heat loss to worry about it. I have around 10 lb of grain in my batches, using a 10gal aluminum stock pot. I live in Sacto, Ca. It's 100°F outside. I could mash by leaving my kettle in the middle of the cul-de-sac for a couple hours.

Furthermore,(true story) my grandmother's grandfather didn't use any sort of insulation, he used a thermometer. If it got cold, he added some heat. Super simple stuff.

 

[SixDemonBag]

Same here, no insulation. I'll fire the burner with every time I give it a stir (every 20 mins or so). Got a probe thermometer with a seperate LCD that gives me the mash temps all the time.

 

[Culln5]

I use reflectix that has been fitted to my kettles. Below is both my 8 gallon and my 15 gallon kettles. I lose 1-2° over the 60 minute mash (with opening it for stirring).

The 8 gallon is one long sheet but I wasn't a big fan of spinning around the hot kettle. The 15 gallon is 4 interlocking sheets.

I would love to make a two piece, split, expanded foam insulating case for it.... But that will be another post.

George

 

[djt17]

A super simple sleeping bag...no monitoring temp, no adding heat. I lose a couple degrees over 60 min.

 

[Yesfan]

.....Furthermore,(true story) my grandmother's grandfather didn't use any sort of insulation, he used a thermometer. If it got cold, he added some heat. Super simple stuff.

Wouldn't that make him your great great grandfather? If so, then you either have to be too young to be brewing or your great great grandfather has found the secret to immortality.


When I was still BIAB brewing, I just used a couple of thick blankets wrapped around the kettle. I might of lost 1 degree during the summer months, but about 3-4 degrees in the middle of winter.

 

[RM-MN]

I mill my grains fine for BIAB and then cut the mash time so I don't have to worry about the temperature falling. With a fine milling (I use a Corona style mill) I have full conversion by the iodine test in less than 10 minutes. I usually still run the mash for 20 just to be sure.

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

I use Reflectix from Home Depot. It is a foil backed bubble wrap. Three wraps around my BK held in place with velcro tape keeps my temps within 1F for an hour.

 

[masscarriers]

My solution might be very different than most folks here, I use an unmodified rectangular cooler with the bag inside. Usually not a single degree loss over an hour. The process briefly is to hit strike temp before dumping the bag of grain inside the cooler and heat the sparge water inside your brew kettle meanwhile. When it's sparge time, just transfer the bag in the kettle and pool the wort together.

The cool thing with this method is that it combines the simplicity and ease of use of BIAB and the temp stability of a cooler mashing. If you have a cooler around and don't want to invest in it or modify it like in my case, this was the easiest way I found and proves to be efficient after several batches.

The only flaw with this method, besides that you need that cooler if you don't have one around, is that you can't heat the cooler water once the grain is inside but by being careful to reach strike temp before adding the grain I never had an off-temp.

 

[Zzyzx3]

Used Reflectix a few times and it works great like others have mentioned. If you have valves or ports on your kettle you can cut holes to customize the fit.

 

[milldoggy]

I have a eherms and use reflectix too. Speeds up heating the water and maintains more constant temp.

 

[firerat]

I use a water heater blanket and bungy chords wrapped around my kettle.

I butchered an old Styrofoam cooler to put on top of the lid to keep heat from escaping through the top. Before I did this I would lose maybe 2-3°F with a 60 minute mash.

Since incorporating my butchered cooler lid thingy, I've done 90 minute mashes and lost 1°F if anything.

Side note: If you wrap your kettle with a blanket and use propane as a heat source, do be careful if you want to add more heat to the kettle. My blanket has some nice charring on the bottom.

 

[TopherM]

I use the hot FL sun in the summer. Just brewed last Saturday on a 96F day. Unmodified 44qt Bayou Classic kettle. Lost a tad under two degrees during my mash without insulating the pot at all.

In the winter, I do wrap the mash in an old moving blanket.

 

[WoodJRx]

I'll have to get a picture the next time I brew, but I carved up a camping mat (you know, those blue foam ones?) to make a wrap and a lid. I lose less than 3 degrees for a 90min mash, which is awesome. An 8$ pad, and 2$ in velcro tape to keep it closed. Works like a charm!

 

[DrummoRC]

Hot Water Heater blanket and duct tape... I wrap that rascal between steps. I use a multistep BIAB mash process most times. I don't hold it at one temp so the heater wrap comes off and on a few times.

I live in Delaware and brewing out on the covered but open deck in January you have to have some type of thermal wrap and or heat source!

I always love to see the different ideas and pics.

 

[Doed]

I use an old sleeping bag. Brewed this past Sunday and didn't use anything. Lost 1° over the course of a 60 minute mash, it was 89° outside so that helped.

 

[rwgaro]

I do smaller batches and my pot fits in the oven - so I heat oven to 170-180, then turn off and put pot in warm oven to mash...

 

[Calichusetts]

I do smaller batches and my pot fits in the oven - so I heat oven to 170-180, then turn off and put pot in warm oven to mash...

This...obviously not possible with larger batches but if you can fit your mash tun in your oven, you are golden. Mine usually holds perfect the entire time or raises a degree or so. My new oven has a temp probe in it so its the perfect system.

 

[RM-MN]

Apparently most of you ignored what I said about mash times. If your milling is decent, your conversion is over in less than 10 minutes and holding the temperature longer than that doesn't do anything. If your milling isn't decent, why not? Corona mills are cheap and the results are superb. 10 minute mash at 85% efficiency every time I brew unless I get scared and go for 20 minutes.

 

[wyowolf]

Hmmm thats interesting, would save a lot of time on brew day.

Apparently most of you ignored what I said about mash times. If your milling is decent, your conversion is over in less than 10 minutes and holding the temperature longer than that doesn't do anything. If your milling isn't decent, why not? Corona mills are cheap and the results are superb. 10 minute mash at 85% efficiency every time I brew unless I get scared and go for 20 minutes.

 

[RM-MN]

Read through this thread. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f13/cutting-brew-day-time-time-challenge-487453/#post6328469

I used iodine as an indicator and showed conversion was over in 3 minutes but I was informed that the alpha amylase could have converted the starches to long chain sugars and that the beta amylase would take much longer to do its job. According to Owly055, using a refractometer, the conversion really is complete in about 5 minutes. Here is his analysis. "I conducted the amazing 10 minute mash test and was shocked at how rapidly the conversion took place.

* One gallon test brew using 2 pounds of 2 row and some crystal. Double crushed, the
second pass done at .010 spacing.

* Dough in at 130 tap water temp, and crank the heat up

* When the mash reached 145, I turned the heat down to prevent it running through
the mash range too fast, as this is a very small batch

* Stirring constantly, the conversion started happening big time at around 149. I could
actually see it happen. The milky liquid cleared and thinned into a nice clear wort.
Meanwhile the brix jumped rapidly up to 10, and stopped just shy of 12. Post boil brix
I mashed with 1.5 gallons of strike water for a one gallon brew (excessive), and the
brix well above my target. The actual conversion took about 5 min. There is
absolutely no doubt that I achieved complete conversion.


I learned a few things here, one, perhaps the most important is that conversion can happen very very rapidly..... as I was told, two is that when you are watching, you can visually see it happen. Stirring appears to be important....... at least I think so. I also learned that the iodine test is a waste of time. As riot suggested, the refractometer is extremely effective. When the brix quits rising, conversion is obviously complete.

In conclusion, it's pretty obvious that my steady heat program will work fine as long as I monitor temps and stir through the mash range. That puts my 2 hour brew cycle within easy reach. It also alleviates the boredom of waiting. I will have to stir through the heating cycle until I hit 165 or so, then I'll have an hour boil to wait through.

This test brew is in the boil now. I will boil it down to 3/4 gallon, and ferment it in a one gallon ice tea jug, adding sterile water to make up the gallon after the krausen has fallen. Hopped with Motueka fwh and Motueka 30 min and Nelson Sauvin 5 min. (4 grams each) The extra long boil to boil it down to 3 quarts throws my hop additions all out of whack, but who cares! As long as it tastes decent (and it will), and has IBUs between 30 and 60 (and it will), I'm happy. It should give me 6 half liter bottles of good ale, easily.


H.W."

 

[wobdee]

So what kind of FG are you seeing with these short mashes? I could see this working for the higher Alpha ranges since they work faster than Beta but will that lead to a less fermentable wort?

 

[Squad1Guy]

I do smaller batches and my pot fits in the oven - so I heat oven to 170-180, then turn off and put pot in warm oven to mash...

This is what I usually do. I tried to do the "blanket" method and lost about 3-4 degrees over an hour. I will be going back to the "oven" method

(FWIW...I have an 8 gallon SS mash/brew pot. We recently got a new stove, and I had my tape-measure in hand to make sure I had enough room for my pot to fit in there!)

 

[badmajon]

RM-MN, do you ever have problems with stuck mashes?

 

[Owly055]

So what kind of FG are you seeing with these short mashes? I could see this working for the higher Alpha ranges since they work faster than Beta but will that lead to a less fermentable wort?

This is exactly the problem......... and I've upped my mash time to 20 minutes, ultimately hoping to find the sweet spot. I was .006-.007 high on my FG, or slightly less than 1% ABV below typical. More residual sweetness. Surprisingly good considering the extremely brief mash.

H.W.

 

[RM-MN]

RM-MN, do you ever have problems with stuck mashes?

No, but I've never had more than 60% rye or wheat in my mash. I'm thinking about doing a 100% rye in the future.

 

[craigmw]

This is exactly the problem......... and I've upped my mash time to 20 minutes, ultimately hoping to find the sweet spot. I was .006-.007 high on my FG, or slightly less than 1% ABV below typical. More residual sweetness. Surprisingly good considering the extremely brief mash.

H.W.

That's kind of what I figured would happen. The tools we have to determine "conversion" aren't really suited to testing the fermentability of the wort. Instead, they simply reflect the level of starch extraction and breakdown of these to shorter polysaccharides. So, in the end, while it might be possible to get good starch extraction and breakdown, the generation of maltose and other mono- and di-saccharides, which is what give rise to fermentability, are going to be limited by temperature vs. time. I can appreciate the interest in reducing brewday times, but the downside is repeatability, especially with published recipes.

 

[Swiller]

Yup, conversion can happen in a short period of time, but my attenuation suffers. I stick to 60 regardless... 90 if I want a really fermentable wort.

 

[Owly055]

Yup, conversion can happen in a short period of time, but my attenuation suffers. I stick to 60 regardless... 90 if I want a really fermentable wort.

I have been mashing in the range of 20-30 minutes now. What I've done in 30 minutes shows exactly the same attenuation as I get with a courser grind for an hour or more. Lower attenuation was expected with the 10 min mash, and I was surprised how good it actually was. I haven't fermented a 20 minute mash out completely yet, but expect it to come in pretty close. There is a "sweet spot", and I'm going to nail it down. Clearly a 30 minute BIAB mash with the .010 crush is more than sufficient.

H.W.