Questions about BIAB - Robobrew

[Boomer]

How are you guys sparging? I'm using Beersmith to determine my mash volume and then rinsing with enough water to get me to the pre-boil volume; but, I'm seeing my efficiency be pretty bad.

I read that folks are using more water in the mash in order to keep that from happening.

Can anyone share any advice on amount of water per pound of grain to get better efficiency in this thing? I really enjoy using it, I'm just hoping I can get it dialed and then really have some fun.

To be fair, I've only done two batches, so far.

 

[wilserbrewer]

There is no magical amount of sparge water that will substantially increase your efficiency. With BIAB it is simpler to look at total water volumes than water to grain ratios for mashing.

Simply reserving approx. 30% of your total water for sparging should be adequate.

BIAB can be done without a sparge and achieve acceptable efficiency.

My guess is that your crush is too coarse and that is the source of your issues, not your water volumes mash vs sparge. Jmo

 

[whiskeyjack]

I do 1.5qt/lb grain and then do a dunk sparge in another pot at 170. I get 75+ but it's probably your crush. I'd try to get a better crush, if you change to many variables at once you don't know which variable made it better. You could also toss in some dme if you come up short of your pre boil gravity.

 

[RM-MN]

How are you guys sparging? I'm using Beersmith to determine my mash volume and then rinsing with enough water to get me to the pre-boil volume; but, I'm seeing my efficiency be pretty bad.

I read that folks are using more water in the mash in order to keep that from happening.

Can anyone share any advice on amount of water per pound of grain to get better efficiency in this thing? I really enjoy using it, I'm just hoping I can get it dialed and then really have some fun.

To be fair, I've only done two batches, so far.

The milling of the grain makes most of the difference in efficiency. My grain is milled to near flour or corn meal consistency but with the recirculation of the Robobrew you will be limited with just how fine you can have it milled without plugging up the filter with the fine particles. You could try getting the grains milled finer but keep an eye on the level of wort as your system recirculates as it may want to spill over or cause the pump to cavitate.

 

[Boomer]

It has a tube running up the middle of the grain bed that allows overflow wort to drain back down to the bottom to keep the pump from cavitating. That’s honestly what I’m thinking the problem might be. After watching it, I noticed that when I turn the pump on to recirculate, it’s filling up on top of that top screen and then draining through the pipe rather than through the grain bed. I’m wondering if there’s a way to meter that flow through the pump so that it’s only recirculating enough to let the wort keep coming back through the mash, not down the pipe.

Does that make sense?

 

[estricklin]

I agree with the comments about milling smaller.

 

[Morrey]

Robobrew...not familiar but I am envisioning partly based on your comments in post #5 that this brewer is functioning similar to an old fashioned coffee percolator. If the wort is simply running back down the main tube and not recirculating thru the grain bed, no wonder your efficiency is low. Rather than looking only at the water:grist ratio, the grain grind is also critical so the wort can filter back thru the grain bed. Also, this seems more of the traditional way of 3V brewing with mash recirculation instead of being classified as BIAB, so why not throw in some rice hulls to open up the grain bed some?

 

[Jkiefs]

I use the BeerSmith profile from shortcircuited brewers. Check out there you tube and they have a link to download it along with mash profiles, which also tell you the sparge amount . The water to grist ratio on there’s is 1.7 qt/lb, which also accounts for space under malt pipe

 

[Boomer]

I use the BeerSmith profile from shortcircuited brewers. Check out there you tube and they have a link to download it along with mash profiles, which also tell you the sparge amount . The water to grist ratio on there’s is 1.7 qt/lb, which also accounts for space under malt pipe

Perfect. That's exactly what I'm looking for!

If you're using one, do you think there's any merit to tinkering with the unit to try to adjust the flow while recirculating to make sure the wort ISN'T going through the pipe and it's going through the grain bed, instead? Can this be achieved by the valve on the pump line? I'd hate to prematurely wear the pump out by doing something like that...

 

[Jkiefs]

Yeah adjusting the valve helps the flow of the recirculating. Definitely wouldn’t recommend it fully open.

 

[CarolinaMatt]

How are you guys sparging? I'm using Beersmith to determine my mash volume and then rinsing with enough water to get me to the pre-boil volume; but, I'm seeing my efficiency be pretty bad.

I read that folks are using more water in the mash in order to keep that from happening.

Can anyone share any advice on amount of water per pound of grain to get better efficiency in this thing? I really enjoy using it, I'm just hoping I can get it dialed and then really have some fun.

To be fair, I've only done two batches, so far.

I recently switched to doing a 60%/40% method for my brew in a bag instead of full boil amount in the mash. I have experienced an increased efficiency/conversion rate. I take my total amount of water needed for the batch and use 60% of it for the mash -- usually puts me around 2qt/lb of grain (give or take). Once I hit my pre-mash temp I add the grain slowly (about a 1/4 of it at a time) and stir to avoid dough balls. Once stirred and at temp I put my brew kettle covered in a 20 gallon rubbermaid bin and cover with blankets and I stir every 20 minutes. Then the remaining 40% of the water I use to dunk sparge at 170 degrees. I take my bag out of my brew kettle and let it drain. Once mostly drained set it in a plastic bucket and dump the 170 degree water in. Give a good stir and rest for 10 minutes. Then after the 10 minutes I stir the heck out of it for 2 minutes for draining the bag and put the liquid into the brew kettle. I do not really squeeze unless I'm short on my pre-boil target amount. Then on to the boil!

I've really enjoyed this and it works well for my setup.

Have you been able to keep your mash temp consistent?

Sounds like you are on the right path - enjoy!

 

[Boomer]

It's super easy to keep the mash temp consistent on this unit. You just set it and it stays there.

I'm going to try making another batch tonight and see if I can increase the mash volume, decrease the flow of the pump, and up the efficiency.

Details to follow.

 

[Boomer]

Just got through the mash and was able to keep the wort from going down the tube the entire time. If I see a decent increase in efficiency, I’ll chalk it up to that. I also used more water because I like multiple variables!

 

[Boomer]

67.4%. Although, to be fair, this recipe had honey in it and I was pouring it straight out of the jar so I'm not entirely sure I added enough. I'll try it again the same way with a SMaSH this weekend to see if it's any better.