Biab - Bag Worn Out

[Hoser]

So BIAB users,
How long does your bag last? I use a Swiss Voile polyester curtain material bag that my gf stitched herself. It's been quite sturdy and reliable but the last 3 brews have had a fair amount of small grain bits in the boil. Looking at the bag there are a few small tears at the stitch seams and throughout the bag itself leading me to the conclusion that smaller pieces of grain have snuck through.

It's resulting in a cloudy finished beer so I think it's time for a new one. I've got approx 20-25 brews out of this one which I think is pretty good.

So how long does your bag last? How do you know when it's ready to be replaced?

 

[QldKev]

One of my bags that my boss built for me is 150+ brews, still going strong.

Except I've recently hung up the bag and gone 3V

QldKev

 

[cam89brewer]

Wow if mine lasted that long then I would probably still be doing BIAB! At one stage one from craftbrewer only lasted 5 batches!!!!

 

[ekul]

I think the ones from craftbrewer need a better cleaning regime. The wholes are finer so more shit gets stuck in there, causing the wort to sometimes pool above the grain. NOthing a soak in napisan won't sort out.

 

[Brewer_010]

I've done 6 or 7 brews in mine and apart from some staining, looks as good as new (bought from Daves HB in sydney $15)

As soon as I can I'm getting a stainless steel fb and the bag will be hanging somewhere.

 

[Superoo]

My piece of swisse voile sheet from Spotlight, is not sewn together as a bag, just left it as sheet and its pegged into place, well anyway its lasted me so far about 20 brews, and I dont see any problems with it lasting another 20 or more.

15 bucks worth of material, and easy to clean with a hose over the clothesline or fence, piece of mower starter rope and a hang,ans noose, and it works fine.

I've used bags and they are too fiddly to clean, plus the mesh I reckon might be a bit too fine.

just my 2c

 

[Newbee(r)]

Mine is a craftbrewer bag, and is coming up to 40 brews and going strong - no signs of wear. When I'm doing the clean up, I just give it a bit of a scrub with a brush and haven't noticed any issues with pooling this way either

 

[Hoser]

Hmmmm.... maybe that's not causing my cloudy wort / bits in boil issue. It's got a few small holes so I think I'll make a new one anyway and then hope it gets better. Doesn't hurt to keep it fresh!

 

[Newbee(r)]

Hmmmm.... maybe that's not causing my cloudy wort / bits in boil issue. It's got a few small holes so I think I'll make a new one anyway and then hope it gets better. Doesn't hurt to keep it fresh!

cloudy wort... are you using finings such as kopperfloc at 10 minutes, and chilling down below 30 degrees? My brew today was a classic case with over 130g hops - pellets and cones - and gave the bag a good squeeze - at whirlpool there were small bits and it was cloudy as hell. I gave it a good hard stir after chilling, left it for 30 minutes and came back with all the crap packed down the bottom.

Trying these sorts of techniques if you are not already - makes a big difference to my beers, notwithstanding the bag.

 

[Fish13]

I use an enjo bag. always comes out mega clean and no dust in it at all....

 

[pants]

My bag swiss voile from Spotlight, sewed by my mum (just recently replaced) did 37 triple batches.

 

[Hoser]

cloudy wort... are you using finings such as kopperfloc at 10 minutes, and chilling down below 30 degrees? My brew today was a classic case with over 130g hops - pellets and cones - and gave the bag a good squeeze - at whirlpool there were small bits and it was cloudy as hell. I gave it a good hard stir after chilling, left it for 30 minutes and came back with all the crap packed down the bottom.

Trying these sorts of techniques if you are not already - makes a big difference to my beers, notwithstanding the bag.

Thanks mate. I do use Irish Moss in boil at 10mins. I use a no chill technique but have only noticed the cloudiness come out in my last 2 brews (I've done 25+ BIAB). My latest one this weekend came out clear again so now I'm looking at process. Both brews that were cloudy had a mashout temp that shot up into the high 80's so I think that might be a key contributor (tannin extraction).