I'm sure there are plenty of "how do I bump my efficiency" questions but I have suddenly come across a head scratcher with my brewing system.
When I started to pay attention to BH efficiency (3-4 years ago), I had pretty constant numbers:
Paler beers hit 72-75% efficiency. Darker beers hit 82-84% efficiency.
I was using my tap water (Chicago) with no treatment except for a camden tablet. For years my efficiency stuck within these numbers. Last year, suddenly, my numbers dropped:
Paler AND darker beers hit 59-65%.
My equipment has not changed. I, for the most part, hit my temp aside from the occasional not low enough temp, in which case I stir down to the target temp. Over the course of the 60-90 minute mash, I occasionally lose one to two degrees. The water, while not exact every time, has been very consistent given the chemical analysis report. I mill at my LHBS and it appears that the crush is correct. I spoke with them about it and we determined that it was possibly my mash pH that was the problem. Even though I had better efficiency before and the water was fairly constant, I figured that it was still possible. Regardless of this conversation, for the last year, I had been taking pH readings anyway to see where I stood at mash pH as I was starting to understand water treatment. On average, I was at 5.4-5.7.
The last three batches that I made, I actually treated my water beyond the camden tablet with gypsum, calcium chloride and lactic acid. I made a saison (6.8 SRM), stout (43 SRM) and IPA (7.6 SRM). My efficiencies were:
Saison - 69.8% (did not take a mash pH reading)
Stout - 65.1% (mash pH 5.40)
IPA - 59.4% (mash pH 5.46)
Does any of this make sense? I still have my suspicions about the crush but in appearance it looks correct. It's a bit frustrating cause I'm missing my target gravities by 10-15 points.
Any possible explanation in why a constant brewing system would drop in efficiency?
When I started to pay attention to BH efficiency (3-4 years ago), I had pretty constant numbers:
Paler beers hit 72-75% efficiency. Darker beers hit 82-84% efficiency.
I was using my tap water (Chicago) with no treatment except for a camden tablet. For years my efficiency stuck within these numbers. Last year, suddenly, my numbers dropped:
Paler AND darker beers hit 59-65%.
My equipment has not changed. I, for the most part, hit my temp aside from the occasional not low enough temp, in which case I stir down to the target temp. Over the course of the 60-90 minute mash, I occasionally lose one to two degrees. The water, while not exact every time, has been very consistent given the chemical analysis report. I mill at my LHBS and it appears that the crush is correct. I spoke with them about it and we determined that it was possibly my mash pH that was the problem. Even though I had better efficiency before and the water was fairly constant, I figured that it was still possible. Regardless of this conversation, for the last year, I had been taking pH readings anyway to see where I stood at mash pH as I was starting to understand water treatment. On average, I was at 5.4-5.7.
The last three batches that I made, I actually treated my water beyond the camden tablet with gypsum, calcium chloride and lactic acid. I made a saison (6.8 SRM), stout (43 SRM) and IPA (7.6 SRM). My efficiencies were:
Saison - 69.8% (did not take a mash pH reading)
Stout - 65.1% (mash pH 5.40)
IPA - 59.4% (mash pH 5.46)
Does any of this make sense? I still have my suspicions about the crush but in appearance it looks correct. It's a bit frustrating cause I'm missing my target gravities by 10-15 points.
Any possible explanation in why a constant brewing system would drop in efficiency?