Biab #1

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rehab

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So today at NZ time 9.45 I prepped up and got my strike water to mash temp (or so I thought). Strike temp was meant to be 76 to get 67 BUT I only just got a thermometer and I had the cover on without realising it so really it was over 80 I was to discover when my mate Salt came over to check up on me!) I also had a fun time when during putting the grain in I had the bag slip off twice and some grain had escaped (I was later to find it was a semi decent amount in the hundreds of grams of grain). So after the mash was complete I then had to remove from my kettle and run the liquid through a sieve to get rid of all the loose grain. This lost a considerable amount on temp and so it took quite some time to get to the boil. Next time I do this I will have an over the side element for sure! Once at the boil all seemed to go well. A bit of a weaker boil but a boil none the less. I was going to try the BBQ to get the boil going but it poured down with rain by the time it was in the mash so I flagged it. Awesome fun even though it is 6 1/2 hours to the fermenter instead of about four as I thought I would take!

Just thought I would share this. Even though Im knackered I really really enjoyed doing the BIAB =)

Cheers all

Chris
 
Its all lots of fun. I think everyone will remember their first AG brew. I didn't think of clamps for the silicone tubing from my kettle to the counterflow chiller. Hot sticky wort was dripping everywhere!! Ended up with 15 L instead of 20.
 
Cheers man, I ended up with 18 ltrs in fermenter instead of 20 in the bottle! OOOps! All good. Fun times as I said =)
 
coulod be worse mate... I just did my first BIAB with a mini brew. Wanted 10L ended up with 5L... I'm thinking the pot should have been more covered.
 
What about when steeping and after the boil?
 
What about when steeping and after the boil?

By steeping i presume you are talking about mashing.
Keep the lid on during mashing, this keeps the heat in.

after the boil......... leave the lid off
I usually let the brew sit for a good 5-10mins after boil just to make sure all the trub has settled nicely and have never had an ill effect
 
Hey again,
Have seen a few responses. Didn't mean to have the lid on but wouldn't boil at all if I had it off so tried to have it on and crack it as much as possible and post-boil I removed it all together.
I hit 1.054 (aiming for 1.058 at 80% efficiency) and I think I have earlier said I mashed way too high as I misused my thermometer (don't ask.. amateur mistake!) causing it to come out of the mash at around 72 degC as opposed to 67. It has been a week at 22deg in a steady summer heat and it hasn't gone under the orange line yet. Just wondering if this is normal or weather I should think about pitching a new starter as I expected to start dry hopping by this point and it was directed this shouldn't happen until 1.020.
I know about being patient and all but if this is abnormal then I would rather fix it now and get it cranking again. Samples are tasting better than expected for the first BIAB effort if a little sweet but way better than I expected!

Chris
 
get an old camp matt and wrap it around the kettle to isulate and it should boil better because not so much heat will escape. also get a over the side element to help bring it to boil. wat sort of heat source u using?
 
get an old camp matt and wrap it around the kettle to isulate and it should boil better because not so much heat will escape. also get a over the side element to help bring it to boil. wat sort of heat source u using?


I wanted to try out the BBQ and put it right on two of the panels but as I went to prep the BBQ for the Boil after the mash it POURED down with rain which didn't let up for the rest of the day. I ended up "boiling" it on the stovetop (an old ceramic one). As if it wasn't bad enough I had it cranking a lot of the day it got so hot that the glue started to melt into the drawer below...yeap this was a first up BIAB to remember!
I will have a crack at sourcing a camp mat to wrap around the kettle. I also am pretty keen on shipping one of those elements to NZ. Would be a lot more efficient!
 
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