Sparging?

[gibbocore]

Hey guy's, do many of you use a spargig arm or a bunch of fancy equipment to mash? Or can i just drain and add more water then drain again and boil off any excess water i used to sparge with?

Or how do you guy's do a mini mash?

[chris.]

can i just drain and add more water then drain again and boil off any excess water i used to sparge with?

Yes sir you can

[rwh]

I've worked this up from this thread: viewtopic.php?t=3323

All Grain Technique

Steps for 23L batch, 5kg grain:

* Preheat mash tun
* Mash in with 2.5x weight of grain (12.5L @ 75°C)
* Ensure temp is 65°C (low body) to 68°C (high body), adjust with hot/cold as necessary
* Leave for an hour or more, stirring every 15 minutes to avoid cold spots, checking temp each time
* Mash out with very hot water (8L @ 100°C) to raise temp to ~82°C, stir
* Drain and recirculate, all of the wort out
* Add sparge water (15L @ 82°C), stir, leave for 10 mins
* Drain and recirculate, all of the wort out
* Total, 30L
* Do boil, chill with wort chiller, syphon into fermenter, leaving cold break behind

What I do is, mash in with 2.5x weight of grain; I.e 5kgs grain 12.5 litres of water. Your grain will absorb 5litres of water and you will lose some to evapouration, trub etc. You need to know more or less what evapouration and loss to trub you will get, a good evapouration figure is 9-15% and a couple of litres to trub, I'm digressing.

So you mash in with 12.5 - 13 litres of water wait for an hour or perhaps a little longer. Mash out using very hot water (near boiling) stir leave for about 10mins, stir to disolve as much of the sugars as possible. (how much mash out water to add?) What I suggest is to try and get two equal run offs from first runnings and sparge water. Lets just say for ease of arguement that you are aiming for 30 litres of wort preboil, i.e Two equal run offs of 15 litres, so in our example we added 13 litres - 5l (loss to aborption) plus dead space in mash tun (estimating 1l) so we have a max. total possible run off of 7 litres, but we are aiming for 15litres; therefore add 8litres during mash out. Drain and recirculate into kettle, close your mash tun tap then add hot water to sparge 15 litres. (Temp should be in the 90s) I'm talking about batch sparging here not fly sparging as the technique is different.

Anyway digressing again, so we've added the sparge water, stir and allow to settle for 10 minutes, recirclate then drain into kettle. You should have 30 litres preboil, but will have 9-15% evaporation during the boil, loss to trub, etc and should end up with around 23l for the fermenter.

[Dogger Dan]

It will depend if you batch sparge or fly sparge.

I fly sparge and I just use a 1 L measuring cup to add the water, but my grain bed is over 12 inches thick. (I have a 19 litre circular esky for a tun).

If you batch sparge I understand you just add the water stir and go.

So that is all the fancy kit you need, a 1 litre measuring cup and a spoon for batch sparging, just the cup if you fly sparge.

be a bit different if you recirc I think.

Dogger

[lethaldog]

Hey hes risen again

Im with dogger, i have a 20 litre circular esky for a tun and i always fly sparge ( using a 1 litre measuring jug), i cant comment on batch sparging cos i am yet to do one, i have been to happy with my results to bother changing but i will do one sooner or later just to say i have

Apart from a couple of bits and pieces most ppl will probably already have everything they need to do a full mash lying round the house

[rwh]

Cheap mash tun construction: http://cruisenews.net/brewing/infusion/page1.php

[Dogger Dan]

Cheap mash tun construction: http://cruisenews.net/brewing/infusion/page1.php

Thats a similar set up to mine rwh, nice.

Dogger

[Boonie]

Welcome back Dogger

Great link rwh. Added to my internet favourites for when I get off my lazy arse and build one, oh an read read read, which I have not done in the past.

Cheers

Boonie

[Cortez The Killer]

Batch sparge here

I could imagine fly sparging taking a while to do

But time alas... is not on my side

Cheers

[Dogger Dan]

one litre a minute is the magic number.

Dogger

[Swifty]

I've only batch sparged so can't comment on fly sparging, but have had good results. My brew day is already a long day so I probably won't end up trying fly sparging.

[Dogger Dan]

A brew day is 5 hours here, thats from drawing the wqater to the last pot cleaned up.

Dogger

[Swifty]

I have a pretty primative setup at the moment and have only recently started using the no chill method which has saved a bit of time. But I'm still doing split boils on the electric stove, it takes ages to get both 15L boiling when the pots can't sit flat on the stove-top. I must get a burner and a 40L pot, but money is scarce at the moment.
Time is becomming as scarce as money too

[Dogger Dan]

Swifty,

If you lived down the street I could help you out. I have my first pot and a burner that I would give away.

Time you will have to fix

Sorry man

Dogger

[Swifty]

Thanks for the offer Dogger Dan. I'm content with my setup, it's cost me bugger all and produce's bloody nice beer, but a pot and burner is something I must get. I can handle using the no chill method but the stove-top boil is annoying. I have just saved up and will be ordering a keg setup very soon so the next thing on the list is a big pot and burner.

[velophile]

Thanks for the offer Dogger Dan. I'm content with my setup, it's cost me bugger all and produce's bloody nice beer, but a pot and burner is something I must get. I can handle using the no chill method but the stove-top boil is annoying. I have just saved up and will be ordering a keg setup very soon so the next thing on the list is a big pot and burner.

Hey Swifty

I saw some cheap large aluminium pots in Sydney Rd Brunswick recently. Look in those asian sell-everything tat type shops. A 30 - 40 litre pot should be about $60 max. Get some fabric (for brew in a bag!) at Spotlight while you're there.

Cheers
V (AG pusher, first taste free)

[Swifty]

Thanks Velophile, I might be around there on the weekend and check it out. $60 is a good price. Haven't contemplated the brew in the bag thing though.

[velophile]

Once you have a pot big enough for a full volume boil, you are set.
You can do extract brews & add your own bittering hops etc or step up to All Grain with Brew-In-A-Bag!

A boil pot would be the second bit of equipment to purchase to expand any brewery. I'd say a fermenting fridge & temp controller would be first, then step up to a full boil pot.

[Swifty]

I've got the Fridge and Fridgemate and boy is it great, but then along came the cold weather and so I'm brewing inside again with the immersion heater (saves carrying the fermenter outside). I've done about 7 all-grains now and loving it, sometimes I don't have the time so I'm catching up on the K&K recipe's I've been getting off here. I made a cheap mash tun out of a 25L esky and except for some temperature control problems it's working a treat. I have actually done an extract yet. I currently use 2 19L pots and do a split boil so a 40L and burner would make brew day so much better. Can't wait to go check some out.

[beerdrinker]

Does fly sparging have a superior second runnings? Batch sparging seems so much easier,im wondering why a lot of brewers use this method? cheers!