I'm doing 2.5 gallon all grain brewing. Im doing this to get my techniques down. One issue that I am having is getting my mash temperature at the target. Im using a 5 gallon igloo with false bottom. Im use Beersmith to calculate strike water. For 5.85 lbs, BS recommended 8.82 qts of strike water at 169.4 F. Took grain and tun temp both at 74F. Added strike water to to tun. Let rquilibrate for 5 minutes. Added grain and stirred. Temp at 150, but recipe called for 154 ( wheat beer). Added 32 oz more water at 180F. This didn't change much. Did not use Mash Adjust. So what do I need to do for future small batches?
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Adjusting mash temperature
- Thread starter richnbad
- Start date
Maine Homebrewer
Grandmaster Brewer
The easiest way to raise the temperature without adding water is decoction. Remove a portion of the mash, bring it to a boil on the stove, and mix it back in. When it comes time to mash out I do that with a third of my mash. Brings the temperature up to 165-170. Use a smaller amount for smaller adjustments.
Mofo
Grandmaster Brewer
richnbad said:
Use Mash Adjust.
However, since you're going grain-to-water, set your "Mash Tun Specific Heat" to "0.00". By doing so you're telling BS to calculate what the water temp should be in your tun (as opposed to a calculation based on both grain and tun temp factors). Should be more accurate.
Scott Ickes
Grandmaster Brewer
Mofo said:
+1 for suggesting setting your "Mash Tun Specific Heat" to 0.00 when adding grain to water. This is how I do it too.
I put my water into my mash tun about 7-10 F. hotter than my mash strike water temperature, as calculated by Beersmith. Then I stir it and monitor the temperature until the temperature falls to my strike temperature exactly (thus taking the specific heat of the mash tun out of the equation). Then I pour the grain in and stir to get the mash temperature equalized and all of the clumps broken up. It is (always!) dead on at my mash in temperature doing it this way.
jtoots
Grandmaster Brewer
My half-fast method is to overshoot by a few degrees, then stir to bring it down to temp. If it's looking like stirring will take a while to hit temp, I'll add in a bit of cool water which comes out of the sparge volume.
Scott Ickes said:
Good stuff Scott! I have my specific heat set to .12 and need strike water to be 17-20 degrees above my rest temperature. I think I'll give you way a go for my next brew. Out of curiosity, do you have "Adjust mash temp for equipment" checked?
Mark
Scott Ickes
Grandmaster Brewer
I don't have "adjust mash temp for equipment" checked. I set my specific heat to zero, since I'm not using it.
Just put your mash water into your mash tun about 15 F. hotter the first time and see what it drops down to. This will give you an idea of how far it will usually drop. Please be aware, that if your grain bill is large, then you'll using more water, so your temp won't drop as much as a small grain bill water amount will drop.
I'm usually 3-5 F above my mash in temperature when I add the strike water and start stirring. It doesn't take that long to come down that 3-5 F. As you get used to the characteristics of your mash tun, you'll eventually know about what temp to bring your strike water up to, so that it settles at slightly above your intended mash in temp.
Just put your mash water into your mash tun about 15 F. hotter the first time and see what it drops down to. This will give you an idea of how far it will usually drop. Please be aware, that if your grain bill is large, then you'll using more water, so your temp won't drop as much as a small grain bill water amount will drop.
I'm usually 3-5 F above my mash in temperature when I add the strike water and start stirring. It doesn't take that long to come down that 3-5 F. As you get used to the characteristics of your mash tun, you'll eventually know about what temp to bring your strike water up to, so that it settles at slightly above your intended mash in temp.
Scott Ickes said:
Understood. I would hope that BS accounts for a larger grain bill and adjusts the strike water temperature accordingly. I forgot to mention that my mash tun is a keggle with false bottom so I can heat the mash if necessary.
Thanks.
Mark
Mofo
Grandmaster Brewer
Scott Ickes said:
The +1 should be Scott's. I learned it from his post of several months ago and copy-pasted it into my brewing notes. Been hitting target temps ever since. Thanks again, Scott!
Cisco
Brewer
I'll reset mine to 0 in hopes of getting a more accurate initial temp. Thanks!!
BlueWingPig
Apprentice
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If my mash temp is too high I will sometimes add several ice cubes to lower the temperature, that way the mash volume is not affected very much.
Scott Ickes
Grandmaster Brewer
BlueWingPig said:
That is a wonderful idea! +1
Thanks all for your help. I used the methods descibed to over shoot the BS, add to tun and adjust with ice. Worked like a charm. Also made another cover from insulated foam to reduce the deadspace in my tun as Im doing small batches. This agian worked grat as the temp only dropped 2 degrees in 60 minutes.
Hi Rich'n'Bad
I'm probably misunderstanding your post, but is it possible you're confusing "deadspace" for the term "headspace"?
I just can't see how an insulated foam cover could affect the volume of deadspace in the mash tun.
Cheers
I'm probably misunderstanding your post, but is it possible you're confusing "deadspace" for the term "headspace"?
I just can't see how an insulated foam cover could affect the volume of deadspace in the mash tun.
Cheers
Oginme
Grandmaster Brewer
merfizle said:
BS does adjust the strike temperature based upon the amount of grain in the recipe.
I have a 5 gallon Igloo mash tun and Im doing a 1.25 gal batch. So I have about 18 inches of space from th top of the grain to the the top of the cover. I was loosing 8 degrees over 1 hour. I read about about using an insulated cover the fits lower in the mash tun, thus providing less space between the top of the mash and the cover. I guess that is "deadspace"
Hi Bad Boy
Yeah, although it's a term that's more often applied to a fermenter, you're referring to the "headspace".
The "deadspace" usually refers to the amount of liquid left over when you drain your mashtun. For example, measure out 3 gallons of water (and call this the initial volume). Then open the tap and measure the volume of water that drains out, and call this your final volume. Then the
Deadspace = Initial Volume minus Final Volume
This is the amount to enter in the Equipment Profile for the mash tun.
Cheers
Yeah, although it's a term that's more often applied to a fermenter, you're referring to the "headspace".
The "deadspace" usually refers to the amount of liquid left over when you drain your mashtun. For example, measure out 3 gallons of water (and call this the initial volume). Then open the tap and measure the volume of water that drains out, and call this your final volume. Then the
Deadspace = Initial Volume minus Final Volume
This is the amount to enter in the Equipment Profile for the mash tun.
Cheers
Scott Ickes said:
I also do the exact thing with one twist. The night before I will check the possible temperature for my area. As I have a dedicated brewery that is not temperature controlled I recalculate Beersmith with my anticipated grain bills temperature and it works very well.
Maine Homebrewer said:
Are you doing a traditional decoction for a mashout (very thick)? I read somewhere that for mashing out with decoction, you should simply use a very thin amount of the mash (essentially no grain).