• Welcome to the new forum! We upgraded our forum software with a host of new boards, capabilities and features. It is also more secure.
    Jump in and join the conversation! You can learn more about the upgrade and new features here.

Efficiency Details Confusion

D

Dan Holmes

I just brewed my first all-grain batch with. I'm a little confused on something. Is the Brewhouse Efficiency entry supposed to be my estimate of what I think my efficiency is? It's not a calculation that Beersmith makes since I'm entering the figure....correct? If so, isn't "Efficiency as calculated from Actual Volume" my actual Brewhouse Efficiency? And, if so, should I enter the figure for "Efficiency as calculated from Actual Volume" into Brewhouse Efficiency for my next batch?

Here are the stats:

rewhouse Efficiency Based on Target Volume********
Actual OG: 1.075
Actual Efficiency: 66.4%
Estimated OG: 1.079
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70%

Efficiency into Boiler*********
Volume into Boiler: 8.00 gallons
OG into Boiler: 1.059
Planned Boil Volume: 7.89
Estimated OG into Boiler: 1.050
Efficiency into Boiler: 83.6%

Efficiency into Fermenter*********
Actual Batch Volume: 5.25 gallons
Planned Volume: 5.00 gallons
Efficiency as calculated from Actual Volume: 69.8%

Also, "Efficiency into Boiler" is the same as Mash Efficiency right?
 
Dan,
 Yes, the brewhouse efficiency is a number you enter that represents the total efficiency of your system including losses.  It is used for planning purposes to estimate the OG of your brew.

 In your case, you used an estimate of 70%, and your actual efficiency based on your measured volume was 69.8%, so basically you are right on target.  The only thing that was off a bit was that you finished with a little more wort into the fermenter than planned, so the beer was thinned a bit resulting in a value a few points below your target OG.  Next time you might want to work on hitting the target volume, or changing your target volume to 5.25 gallons.

 Considering this was a pretty high gravity beer, and it was your first all grain batch, your performance is actually pretty high.  Generally higher gravity beers result in lower efficiency.  You should be very happy with this batch!

Cheers,
Brad
 
Oh, one more thing. So should I enter 70% for my Brewhouse Efficency for next batch. Should I always be adjusting this number based on the previous batch efficiency.

And, my mash temp was a bit high...158 instead od 154. How should I adjust this for future batches?
 
Dan,
 I would go with 70% and work on the water management to try to hit your final volume a bit closer.

 If you temps were actually a bit high, you can adjust your equipment settings slightly (the Mash Tun Specific Heat number down a bit).

Cheers!
Brad
 
Back
Top