Braumeister - Tips & Tricks

[Mr. No-Tip]

Hi I added a can of amber LME late boil to my last big brew but realized I could not take a valid pre-boil gravity reading which is requested in Beersmith for determining mash efficiency. I did add the LME as an ingredient but I am unclear if Beersmith takes into account the fact that I had not yet added the LME. This made me think about adding the LME during the mash rather than at the end of the boil. Has anyone tried this with their BM or can you think of a reason why this would not be a good idea?

Thx, Chris

Beersmith has an 'add after boil' tick box on ingredients. Did you try that?

 

[Charst]

Hey All,

Knocked out my Second Batch on my 20L. Tried leaving the mash at mash out temp for a few hours and seen a massive jump in efficiency compared to my maiden brew.

has anyone that does this noticed there beers dont attenuate as well?

I was supposed to be 21L at 1062 but ended up under boiling and got 23odd @ 1055

But I its stopped at 1015.


Mash was

15 @ 52
45 @ 63
30 @ 68
10 @ 72
hours @ 78.

A Wolfman Ive noticed mine overshoot by half a degree with a Jacket. New Controller.

 

[Blind Dog]

Nope. Same attenuation whether I have a 20 min mash out or an overnighter. I can just get more beer, use less grain or get a higher ABV beer with the longer mash out.

You numbers are still around 73% so depending on yeast, pitch, aeration etc that could be it. You are saying it's done because it's stayed steady at 1.015 for a few days? Do a search for fast ferment test if you want to be certain it's done.

 

[wobbly]

There has been considerable discussion on this topic and others about the weak/intensity of boil with the BM and to some extent this has been improved with the use of a "Hood and Thermal Jacket"

There is also another topic where "Full Volume Mashing and No Sparge" are discussed

Has any one experimented with doing a full volume mash say starting with 30liters in a 20lt Braumeister (flooded malt pipe) with a grain bill of say 5/5.5kgs to end up and do a minimal or no sparge to end up with a preboil volume of around only 24lts and so ending up with a post boil volume of 20/21lts and then topping up with say 5 or 6 lts of tap or suitably treated water WRT to pH depending on what you have set your trub losses to targeting a final volume into the fermentor of say 21lts

By having a small boil volume the intensity of the boil should be more vigorous

What started me thinking about this was a side comment on the Braumeister Forum

Cheers

Wobbly

I understand that it may be necessary to adjust hop rates due to the higher wort gravity

 

[Dan Pratt]

Wobbly,

I've been trying full volume no sparge mashed lately and got good results, however I'm not topping up at end of boil.

I've tried between 4 & 5kg malt bills and anywhere from 29 - 34 litres, usually finishing with 19/20lts into the FV.

My calc my start volume on target FV volume. 20lts plus boil off of 3lts for 60mins, plus trub/losses (depends on hops/style) but usually 4litres for APA or IPA, plus grain absorption and with my crush its about 70% so for 4kg malt plus 3lts.

Start volume 30lts.

 

[Blind Dog]

trub/losses (depends on hops/style) but usually 4litres for APA or IPA,

seems like a lot to lose to trub and hops. Is it deliberate to absolutely minimise trub etc into cube/FV, or just something you live with? Must admit I try to recover most of the wort and the trub heavy stuff at the bottom of the BM is often strained and reboiled and either used for a starter or tipped into the cube. Even if I don't do that, losses to trub are a lot less than 4L - mind you, given I can rarely be bothered bottling the last litre or so of beer still int he FV once the keg is full, its kind of dumb I guess

 

[Batz]

seems like a lot to lose to trub and hops. Is it deliberate to absolutely minimise trub etc into cube/FV, or just something you live with? Must admit I try to recover most of the wort and the trub heavy stuff at the bottom of the BM is often strained and reboiled and either used for a starter or tipped into the cube. Even if I don't do that, losses to trub are a lot less than 4L - mind you, given I can rarely be bothered bottling the last litre or so of beer still int he FV once the keg is full, its kind of dumb I guess

Same, I use a dip tube and are left with around 3.5 litres. This I tip into a large jug and let settle, I then pour off 2 - 2.5 PET bottles and freeze. I then boil this for starters, if your a dry yeast guy I guess this is not important.

Edit: Sorry not answering the O.P.'s question.

 

[Charst]

Help wanted!
Not sure if this is the right thread, but Ive done a batch with the Brau and overshot my Preboil Gravity by 4points.
Mash profile attached but started it at 1:00am last night and sparged at lunch. so it sat @ 78 for 10 hours.

Third batch with Beersmith and I cant seem to figure out how I adjust the est preboil (looking for an actual preboil field) so i can adjust the hopping.

Brau Profile was from the BeerSmith Add-ons section.
Recipe Mash shedule is my own..

any help will be much appreciated.

 

[razz]

Just looking at BS Charst I tried changing the total efficiency on the design screen, that changed the pre-boil gravity figure. The first time I overnight mashed I set the BM up for a long 78 degrees rest (like you have done) and I overshot also. The last two batches I have set the BM to sit at 25 degrees for six hours and then keep the other rests the same time frames as I usually would. That kept my mash efficiency the same.

 

[Charst]

Cheers Razz, I think i'll be doing more overnighters so i'll have to dial it in, boil off is still all over the shop also.

I just thought when i got beersmith it would have some on the fly adjustment calculators rather than fiddling with your recipe.


Still made beer.

 

[mckenry]

Da-Da - can I get a high 5? Ive joined the club with a 50L arriving tomorrow. After 8 years on a 3V and god knows how long with the esky mash tun before that, Ive decided to update to the air conditioned, cruise controlled, ABS model..

OK, after 2 days getting through all 44 pages, I have two questions.

1. Now that MHB is no longer in business, where can I buy a pickup tube? Not overly interested in getting someone to make one for me.
2. Whats the go with the boil temp? Its not well explained for a thickhead like me. Seems like everyone is using 102°C to ensure it doesnt flick on/off all the time? Now, I don't have a manual yet, but wouldn't this temp never be reached and therefore the countdown never begin? Bit vague on the reasons.
Cheers bretheren.
mckenry

 

[Brew Matt]

2. Whats the go with the boil temp? Its not well explained for a thickhead like me. Seems like everyone is using 102°C to ensure it doesnt flick on/off all the time? Now, I don't have a manual yet, but wouldn't this temp never be reached and therefore the countdown never begin? Bit vague on the reasons.
Cheers bretheren.
mckenry

What you state here is correct. The programming of the BM however handles this, and as a result, the countdown does begin when 100°C is reached. (I am assuming it is 100°C, and not 99.xx°C), but can tell you that the BM does not get caught in an infinite loop (which is a worry for beginners trying to make sense of things).

 

[razz]

Well done mckenry and welcome to the club. Q1, making a pick up is pretty easy and I even soldered mine together. If you want something of the shelf then you could look at the springer assembly that is on the Braumeister forum and made in Italy. Reasonably expensive when you get freight included. Not sure of any other products out there and I don't recall what MHB had on their site.
Q2. Reaching 102 degrees is beside the point, it does keep the element powered on and I get a good consistent rolling boil that gives me 5lts per hour evaporation rate. The countdown does begin when the temp is steady for two minutes or something like that. Works every time for me so far. I just had a squizz through my instruction booklet and can't find the reference to commencing the boil, I may have read it elsewhere.

 

[Crusty]

It will never reach 102 therefore the element will be on continuously. Don't panic either when it reads 99 & seems to be well & truly boiling as it needs a stable temp before the countdown begins & this can be up to a couple of minutes after you thinks it's boiling. Forget the dip tube, it's really not essential.

 

[brewchampion]

It will never reach 102 therefore the element will be on continuously. Don't panic either when it reads 99 & seems to be well & truly boiling as it needs a stable temp before the countdown begins & this can be up to a couple of minutes after you thinks it's boiling. Forget the dip tube, it's really not essential.

I second crusty,
I dont think the dip tube is needed.
Thats a big gap between the trub and the tap.
Let the cold break in though, give your yeast food!

 

[mckenry]

Is anyone using a little brown pump to push through a plate chiller on the way to the fermenter?
Any pics of how its setup?

 

[Black Devil Dog]

This is my pick up tube. I bought the s/s tube from online brewing supplies and the silicon plug from Full pint, the plug is from a Brewtech conical fermenter.

You might need to buy an el-cheapo s/steel bowl and make a hood, they definitely improve the boil.

 

[Charst]

Kmart has a steel mixing bowl for $6 that does my job perfectly

 

[mckenry]

It will never reach 102 therefore the element will be on continuously. Don't panic either when it reads 99 & seems to be well & truly boiling as it needs a stable temp before the countdown begins & this can be up to a couple of minutes after you thinks it's boiling. Forget the dip tube, it's really not essential.

I second crusty,
I dont think the dip tube is needed.
Thats a big gap between the trub and the tap.
Let the cold break in though, give your yeast food!

So what are the losses to trub and kettle without a pickup tube?
With and without tipping I guess would be good to know. At this stage I feel as if I wont want to tip the kettle. Might be a hangup from 3V though.
Cheers.

 

[razz]

In the 50BM i measured 10 lts loss in the kettle (without tilting the kettle) so that's why I installed a pickup. Now I chill in the kettle, pump everything into the fermenter, allow to settle and rack off a couple of litres of trub after a few hours of chilling. No big deal in tilting the kettle, just watch out for the bottom of the console when doing so.