Dedicated Grainfather Guide, Problems and Solutions Thread

[butisitart]

further note on getting stuck on the bottom of gf.
i don't know if milling a bit too fine helps cause this or not. to date, i don't yet have a mill so have to rely on whatever my supplier does. any scientific finds, observations, refinements on milling differences would probably be appreciated by all.
happy brewing

 

[fotofisher]

I made a video of some of my tips which may (or may not) be helpful for others in the US that are just now receiving their GF units. >>> https://youtu.be/WV8dVWvrpzY.

.fotofisher.

I also published a few DIY Grainfather brewing tips: https://youtu.be/B-Da6HKW1No

 

[welly2]

I also published a few DIY Grainfather brewing tips: https://youtu.be/B-Da6HKW1No

Some good tips in both your videos and I'm enjoying the porn music. It brings back fond memories.

 

[meathead]

Is anyone in Oz selling the upgrade kits yet?

 

[tugger]

I tried biab,ing in the Grainfather.
I milled 10kg of grain but chickened out at 9.5kg. I probably could have fit the lot in, mabee next time.
All went well.

 

[Coodgee]

The bottom of my grainfather never burns and is really easy to clean! This is with preboil gravities of about 1042. Wonder why?

 

[carniebrew]

I tried biab,ing in the Grainfather.
I milled 10kg of grain but chickened out at 9.5kg. I probably could have fit the lot in, mabee next time.
All went well.

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Why are you using a bag?

 

[butisitart]

Posted Today, 05:41 PM
I tried biab,ing in the Grainfather

nope. don't understand that one.
isn't that like tossing the engine out and shoving a donkey under the bonnet?? :unsure:


coodgee - i can only think milling grades. but i can't tell until i get my own mill and start experimenting, unless somebody out there does the hard yards first. i get the odd one that's clean, but most have a crescent moon of slightly burnt powder.

 

[tugger]

Just experimenting.
I have done around 60 brews on the gf the normal way.

 

[WhiteLomu]

The bottom of my grainfather never burns and is really easy to clean! This is with preboil gravities of about 1042. Wonder why?

Your gravity is too low for any scorching. Mine are around 1.06 and there's always a bit of scrubbing needed. Not burnt though.

 

[carniebrew]

Just experimenting.
I have done around 60 brews on the gf the normal way.

Nice. So what did the experiment show? Any advantages or major drawbacks? Would certainly be easier to clean I guess?

 

[tugger]

I was trying to stuff as much grain in as I could for a high gravity beer without having most of the grain end up in the boil through the recurc and side holes.
I added some lme up to 1.095 post boil.
I think it was 1.076 at 27l pre boil.
I had to get 23l into a cube when finished so there was 24.somthing post boil.
It really helps having the graduation marks to know when to stop the boil.
I used the malt pipe with the tube missing so that ment I could use the sparge locking ring and sparge normally with the bag sitting on the bottom plate.
In the mash I could stir old school style while recirculating then recirculated back to the bag towards the end of the mash and in mash out. (Using old school brewing methods, mash stir recurculate drain sparge)
Everything went well.
I would do it again.

 

[acarey]

I was trying to stuff as much grain in as I could for a high gravity beer without having most of the grain end up in the boil through the recurc and side holes.
I added some lme up to 1.095 post boil.
I think it was 1.076 at 27l pre boil.
I had to get 23l into a cube when finished so there was 24.somthing post boil.
It really helps having the graduation marks to know when to stop the boil.
I used the malt pipe with the tube missing so that ment I could use the sparge locking ring and sparge normally with the bag sitting on the bottom plate.
In the mash I could stir old school style while recirculating then recirculated back to the bag towards the end of the mash and in mash out. (Using old school brewing methods, mash stir recurculate drain sparge)
Everything went well.
I would do it again.

The other week I did a DFH 90 min IPA clone with a grain bill of 9.6kg in the grainfather. It was touch and go, I had to disregard the water calcs as I'd tried them before with this amount of grain and it went pear shaped..

I just put a bit of water in initially to cover the bottom of the mash pipe, then gradually added grain and water alternately while stirring until I had reached max capacity. Just as much wort was going down out the side holes as through the centre pipe. I didn't have issues with grain ending up in the mash though (no more than usual anyway, which isn't much).

Then made it up to volume by sparging. Went well in the end but the efficiency took a hit. Ended up with 69% which is ok. that's why god invented dex.

 

[butisitart]

makes sense in the circumstances.
i do a few 46L batches to get my reserves up, so i use around 6-7kg grain, then throw in a 1.5kg pale unhopped malt right on the end of the boil. it then ain't all grain, obviously, but it's pretty convenient. and 6-7kg doesn't stress me or the gf.

that produces around 24L concentrated wort, so 50/50 into each fermenter, then top up with cold water and voila.

(remembering to add enough hops for a 46L brew.) h34r:

 

[Spookism]

So, I brewed some Coopers kit brews a few years ago, so naturally I've made the step up to a Grainfather.
I'm doing much trawling through the interwebs for tips, how to's etc. and this has been a great wealth of information - even if I'm still unsure of some of the terms used.

 

[butisitart]

if you don't know the terms used, just post a list. they'll all be cleared up. and if they aren't clear to you, then they're not clear to somebody else.

 

[nads]

The following will be my next brew but it is a one step mash according to the recipe. Would it be beneficial to do a mashout for say 10 min

.http://beersmithrecipes.com/viewrecipe/732117/dr-smurtos-golden-ale-grainfather

 

[butisitart]

The following will be my next brew but it is a one step mash according to the recipe. Would it be beneficial to do a mashout for say 10 min

.http://beersmithrecipes.com/viewrecipe/732117/dr-smurtos-golden-ale-grainfather

sounds a good brew - but i thought it were funny that an american doing an american ipa with american ingredients and american hops and in american measures, should then turn around and call it 'one of the most widely home-brewed beers in australia' quote-unquote. i would never have known that.
most recipes are best taken as a guide - unless you've found something you know to be really specific (like standard true irish dry stout will probably only have ale malt, roast barley and rolled barley.)
personally - i mashout everything in the gf at 76C for 5-8mins. no particular reason - just habit, and cos i can. but after reading something about mash-out temps from one of the published authors, apparently the 76c mixed with a 78c fly sparge water temp helps the sparge.
so if you feel comfortable with the mash -out, i'd go for it.
you also need to remember that guys who post recipes may be working with a system that gets a bit awkward with step mashing.. so i'd consider if you want the bigger flavour (higher temp mash) or bigger ferment (lower temp) and go with the mash cycle that suits either your experimental learnings, or your gut feeling.
but it do sound like a good one to brew.

 

[nads]

Thanks butisitart I'll take your advice and follow mashout and sparge suggestion. All my previous brews ( 6 ) were step mashed and quite time consuming hence my reason for making this one step mash my next brew.

 

[Coodgee]

for me the multi-step mash capability of the grainfather is one of the key differentiators so I do it cos I can :lol: