What's your gap on your barley crusher?

[Yooper]

I used the factory settings (.039 I believe) and liked the look of the crush. My efficiency has always been around 72%. Well, I'm always hearing "crush till you're scared", so today I tightened it up a bit. What's yours set at?

 

[chumprock]

Factory default, and I'm too chicken to muss with it.

 

[CyclingCraig]

Just brewed over the weekend,

Was at gapped at .034 Eff was about 72 - 75.

Tightened gap down to .029 eff went up to about 85% (Into boiler). (Mash in a cooler with a Hot water heater braided line in a loop for a manifold). No problems with a stuck mash.

 

[SavageSteve]

I tightened mine to .035, based on the recommendation of a post here on HBT. I had to adjust it anyway, since the rollers weren't quite parallel when I got it, so I figured I'd tighten it up.

I think it gives a very good crush, but I've never actually tested different settings. I've only used it on two brews so far, both a partial mash with double-batch sparging. Didn't get stuck, and I got ~80% efficiency.

-Steve

 

[BeerPressure]

I think this has been done before, but .036

 

[cubbies]

.037 pretty consistent 75% efficiency.

 

[mmb]

I'm at .030 (checked with feelers) and get around 78% with a double batch sparge at 180°F. If I stir a few times during the mash (60 min) I've found I can get up to 83% efficiency, but I'm lazy.

 

[wildwest450]

Factory default and 80%+ on every batch.

 

[SpanishCastleAle]

I'm just a tiny bit tighter than factory so about .036".

I think that it's a worthwhile test (or series of tests) to measure your conversion efficiency and keep tightening the gap until you get >98% conversion efficiency (before you even start lautering/sparging). Once you're converting everything close to 100% there is no need to go any tighter imo. You'll still lose a bunch of efficiency points in the lauter/sparge but at least now you know exactly where you're losing efficiency because the mash was near 100% converted.

FWIW, @ .036" gap I get ~99% conversion efficiency. I don't get anywhere near that into-the-fermenter though. I lose efficiency in the lauter/sparge, in reserved wort that doesn't go into the kettle, whole hops, etc.

 

[enderwig]

Factory default and 80%+ on every batch.

Same here....

 

[menschmaschine]

.035 for me. I wouldn't go any tighter than that based on the crush I get from .035. I get high efficiency, but it's partly due to my system. I could probably go up or down a few .001s and wouldn't see much of a difference.

 

[HoppyDaze]

.33 for regular grains & .20 for wheat

 

[BrewBeemer]

.33 for regular grains & .20 for wheat

Don't forget to add a .0 before your specs BobcatBrew unless your mashing right out of the sack as .33 is rather wide unless your cracking peanuts.
Slight corections needed that's all.

 

[weirdboy]

I use the default setting and got over 90% efficiency on my last batch.

 

[Yooper]

Thanks- I went with .035 today. I had more trouble with my sparge- it never really stuck, but clogged up a bit and I had more bits of grain come through even with vorlaufing.

I have a false bottom in an Igloo 10 gallon cooler. It was more of a pain to sparge today than ever before. I'm not sure I like it a bit finer!

 

[Hotspur]

Same here....

Same here.

 

[wildwest450]

Thanks- I went with .035 today. I had more trouble with my sparge- it never really stuck, but clogged up a bit and I had more bits of grain come through even with vorlaufing.

I have a false bottom in an Igloo 10 gallon cooler. It was more of a pain to sparge today than ever before. I'm not sure I like it a bit finer!

Sounds like you'd be better off at factory spec. If it aint broke don't fix it.

 

[mmb]

I have a false bottom in an Igloo 10 gallon cooler. It was more of a pain to sparge today than ever before. I'm not sure I like it a bit finer!

I put a chore boy stainless steel scrubby under my false bottom to provide another filter. Nair a stuck sparge since, even on oatmeal stouts of 12% oats.

 

[Evan!]

Thanks- I went with .035 today. I had more trouble with my sparge- it never really stuck, but clogged up a bit and I had more bits of grain come through even with vorlaufing.

I have a false bottom in an Igloo 10 gallon cooler. It was more of a pain to sparge today than ever before. I'm not sure I like it a bit finer!

That's why I never messed with it. I get mid-to-high 70's for efficiency at factory settings. At the silly low prices I pay for grain (50 cents/lb), it's simply not worth slow/stuck sparges, husks in the runnings, etc., for a couple extra gravity points.

 

[Yooper]

That's why I never messed with it. I get mid-to-high 70's for efficiency at factory settings. At the silly low prices I pay for grain (50 cents/lb), it's simply not worth slow/stuck sparges, husks in the runnings, etc., for a couple extra gravity points.

Yeah, I understand that and will probably go back to the factory settings. I do ok with regular 5 gallon batches, but with my "bigger" beers and 10 gallon batches, I was really not happy with my efficiency- which dropped into the mid-60s. I was hoping a small change would help, but it's not worth the pain of dealing with it.

 

[HenryHill]

Hard water hurts efficiency, too.

 

[Big10Seaner]

I always base my recipes using 75% efficiency, and I always use the factory setting. It always come out very close to my anticipated OG. I did try to screw with it at one point but found it was a little too fine and didn't like seeing bits of grains still after vorlaufing.

 

[mmb]

Hard water hurts efficiency, too.

Figures. Mine comes out of the tap almost solid.

 

[humann_brewing]

Default settings and 83% brewhouse efficiency

 

[HoppyDaze]

Don't forget to add a .0 before your specs BobcatBrew unless your mashing right out of the sack as .33 is rather wide unless your cracking peanuts.
Slight corections needed that's all.

oops ...typo

 

[Catt22]

I never pay much attention to high efficiency claims. They too often resemble fish stories and you know how those go.

 

[wildwest450]

I never pay much attention to high efficiency claims. They too often resemble fish stories and you know how those go.

Beep, beep, beep. Broad sweeping generalizations coming through. What would you consider to be "high" efficiency?

In my case these numbers are solid for the last 20+ batches.

 

[HoppyDaze]

Beep, beep, beep. Broad sweeping generalizations coming through. What would consider to be "high" efficiency?

In my case these numbers are solid for the last 20+ batches.

Its usually the guy who responds like this who is the one telling tall tales...my two cents

 

[B-Dub]

Until the other day the factory settings and 83% eff on beer smith would peg my SG.

Last week however I had to widen the gap to mill some Vienna. First time that has happened in 2 years.

Now I want to hit the auto shop for some gauges!

 

[wildwest450]

Its usually the guy who responds like this who is the one telling tall tales...my two cents

Here's my last 10 batches, if you need more proof I have more.
View attachment recipes.xml

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