Water to grain ratio
#1
Posted 05 March 2015 - 07:22 AM
#2
Posted 05 March 2015 - 07:27 AM
I typically will vary between 1.5-2.0 qts/#. It will mainly be determined by the amount of grain I have. This is up in recent years, when I first started to use my RIMS system I was always at 1.35 but I have been experimenting with a thinner mash. I will even go into the 3's so I can do a no sparge but 1.5-2.0 is more normal.
#3
Posted 05 March 2015 - 07:43 AM
My new MO has been to push the water:grain ratio as high as I can and still fit everything in my mash tun. Typically this means well over 2.5 qt/lb depending on how much grain we are talking about. I've been embracing the minimal sparge. It's a little easier on my setup to do this versus a more typical batch sparge amount b/c I am just dumping the sparge water into the cooler. So if I only have to dump in 1-3 gallons that is easy lifting with minimal risk of me scalding myself with hot water . I haven't seen a significant hit in efficiency and the beer has been great so I think I'll continue with it.
#4
Posted 05 March 2015 - 07:51 AM
3ish. I only no-sparge now.
#5
Posted 05 March 2015 - 08:01 AM
#6
Posted 05 March 2015 - 08:02 AM
1.3 - 1.5 quarts per pound while always attempting to have equal amounts of both mash and batch sparge water at pre-boil
that's essentially what I used to do. no problems there either.
#7
Posted 05 March 2015 - 08:07 AM
#8
Posted 05 March 2015 - 08:36 AM
#9
Posted 05 March 2015 - 08:38 AM
Depends on the OG for me do to space contraints in the tun. Also, since I started fly sparging I don't want too much liquid in the mash because when you set the grain bed you end up with a lot of head pressure from wort sitting above the bed. You want to sparge on about 0.5" - 1" of wort/water. All that water over the bed can cause it to get too thick, it will ruin lautering/efficiency, and possibly stick the mash.
For my hefe last weekend I started out at 1qt/lb for the ferulic acid rest, then I added boiling water to get to 150 deg and 1.83 qt/lb.
If I'm doing a single rest I aim for 1.5qt/lb.
#10
Posted 05 March 2015 - 08:38 AM
On the thin side... 1.8qts/lb to a little over 2qts/lb. I used to sweat that detail until I heard of many, many brewers mashing thinner. Also, I wanted to make my sparge volume less so I upped my mash water volume which accounts for the thinner mash.
for people with ken like water who are worried about the sparge pH being too high doing a minimal sparge is kind of nice b/c it removes or reduces the need to treat the sparge water.
#11
Posted 05 March 2015 - 09:26 AM
Typically 1.5qt/#. Likewise if I have a large grain bill, lower to fit it all in the tun. (Igloo 10 gal)
#12
Posted 05 March 2015 - 09:41 AM
No sparge BIAB, anywhere from 1.9-3.8qt/#
#13
Posted 08 March 2015 - 07:39 PM
I wish I could tell you I measured such things! Haha.
For most average beers, I strike with as much as I hope to go into the fermenter (so for a 5 gallon batch, I strike with 5, then sparge with about 2-3). If I am doing a big beer, I just add more water.
You could call me a brew-by-feel brewer. I don't really measure volumes other than the rings on the keggle, and I don't measure gravities any more either unless it is something special. The only thing I measure really is grain and hops. I even add my salts by feel now as well.
#14
Posted 09 March 2015 - 05:54 AM
I only knew my ratio by going back and figuring it out. It's not the type of thing I know for each batch. I also don't check OG or FG anymore either. I am very careful with mash temp and also with pH throughout the process and I'm also very careful about measuring out hops, grains and salt additions mainly because I want to be able to reproduce a beer that may have come out nicely. Most of my beers come in around the same gravity so I pretty much always filter and measure out the same amount of water.I wish I could tell you I measured such things! Haha. For most average beers, I strike with as much as I hope to go into the fermenter (so for a 5 gallon batch, I strike with 5, then sparge with about 2-3). If I am doing a big beer, I just add more water. You could call me a brew-by-feel brewer. I don't really measure volumes other than the rings on the keggle, and I don't measure gravities any more either unless it is something special. The only thing I measure really is grain and hops. I even add my salts by feel now as well.
#15
Posted 09 March 2015 - 06:25 AM
I wish I could tell you I measured such things! Haha.
For most average beers, I strike with as much as I hope to go into the fermenter (so for a 5 gallon batch, I strike with 5, then sparge with about 2-3). If I am doing a big beer, I just add more water.
You could call me a brew-by-feel brewer. I don't really measure volumes other than the rings on the keggle, and I don't measure gravities any more either unless it is something special. The only thing I measure really is grain and hops. I even add my salts by feel now as well.
*sigh*
For my small batch BIAB and normal sized batches on my regular rig, I shoot for 1.5 qt/#. However, I will adjust as needed for mash tun volume. For example, I did a double batch last Friday, and I mashed for all 20 gal in the cooler. So, I had 42# of grain mashing in there. I stared at a ratio of 0.8 but had a little extra room at the top, so I added a little more water. I probably ended up at 0.85-0.9 qt/lb. It was a thick mash that was a bear to stir. It all worked out fine though.
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