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Glottis posted:I get confused with what exactly "brewhouse efficiency" means, but my mash efficiency was 70%. Previously, using single infusion mashes with a sparge volume roughly equal to the original infusion volume, I was hitting exactly 70% each time. This is the second batch I have tried no-sparge with, the first one was a Kolsh that hit 78% efficiency, the first time I've gotten over 70%. "Brewhouse efficiency" is basically taking the volume in your fermenter and multiplying it by gravity points (so 5 gallons at 1.050 would be 250) divided by the potential gravity points in the grain. 2-row, for example, has 37PPG potential, so 10 lbs of 2-row can potentially make 370 gravity points. 250/370 = ~67% brewhouse efficiency. This accounts for all losses (except boiloff, because that doesn't change the total gravity points).
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May 1, 2014 21:10
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more falafel please posted:"Brewhouse efficiency" is basically taking the volume in your fermenter and multiplying it by gravity points (so 5 gallons at 1.050 would be 250) divided by the potential gravity points in the grain. 2-row, for example, has 37PPG potential, so 10 lbs of 2-row can potentially make 370 gravity points. 250/370 = ~67% brewhouse efficiency. This accounts for all losses (except boiloff, because that doesn't change the total gravity points). Ah, ok. I thought sometimes it used the volume of how much you got into the serving system (bottle or keg) to take into account how much you lose when transferring out of the fermenter. When I'm calculating my efficiency I'm generally only concerned with what I'm doing with the mash, as the amount I leave in the kettle and fermenter are very consistent.
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May 1, 2014 23:51
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I'd definitely be happy with 70% no-sparge. We finally got all of our kegging stuff set up tonight and have 2 kegs under pressure right now. Learned a lot, primarily that sanke kegs are made by Satan himself.
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May 2, 2014 03:43
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Okay I just racked my first mead. Kept everything super sterile, washed with bleach and boiled water and starsan, etc. I gave my mead a little taste and it was dry as gently caress, so I sweetened it with some honeyed water. Problem is that I don't really notice the flavors of clove, cinnamon, or orange that I'd added during primary fermentation. I'd like to make a mead with some floral teas I have, but I'm worried that the flavors will "cook off" during primary when the yeast gets it bubbling like crazy. Any recommended ways of preventing this?
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May 2, 2014 09:34
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ShadowCatboy posted:Okay I just racked my first mead. Kept everything super sterile, washed with bleach and boiled water and starsan, etc. Add more in secondary. Adding things in primary usually helps in terms of flavor extraction, but you're right, most of the aroma will go out the airlock. Add some more in secondary to get those aromas back/ in. Tea and mead makes some pretty nice results. I did one with Rooibos tea that was pretty darn good.  EDIT: I'm straying away from the Amber Dubbel to do a full on Amber. Does anyone have a solid tried and true recipe?Double edit because I'm an idea changing spaz: Gonna do a Baltic Porter Marshmallow Blue fucked around with this message at 16:26 on May 2, 2014 |
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May 2, 2014 13:44
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I need some advice on co2 tanks. I have a 10lb co2 tank, and a couple of old paintball 20oz tanks. I also have a spare adapter like this for my paintball co2 tanks : http://www.discountpaintball.com/Empire-Universal-Paintball-Fill-Adapter-Pro-Gas-Fitting_p_5090.html I'm trying to figure out the cheapest (safe) way I can rig up a connection between my 10lb co2 tank and my paintball tank using that adapter. There are some cheap kits on ebay - but they include the fill adapter - http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-RAGE-Pa...=item2ebfe693f5 - and also I'm not sure what kind of braided metal line they're using there. I obviously don't want to jury rig something that is going to explode in my face the minute I subject it to the pressures in my large co2 tank - and I don't know much about the PSI ratings of various tubing/connectors/etc. Can I pick up some poo poo from homedepot and pull this off?
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May 2, 2014 22:16
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Hey guys - I'm selling 1 lb bags of hops for $10 each over on SA Mart. Here's the link: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3631153 I cleared this with a mod before posting, so hopefully you all don't mind the shameless self promotion and take advantage of some cheap rear end hops.
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May 3, 2014 20:22
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I'm getting ready to do my first two batches of all grain later this week or next weekend. Should I bother messing with water adjustments or just focus on the basic process the first couple times out? I've done partial mash brewing up to this point. I live in Austin, and based on what I'm seeing in the water report, the tap water appears to be pretty alkaline (pH of 9.6) and the Calcium content seems very low (15 ppm). edit: http://www.austintexas.gov/sites/default/files/files/Water/WaterQualityReports2013/wqs4q2013.pdf M.C. McMic fucked around with this message at 23:18 on May 3, 2014 |
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May 3, 2014 23:10
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With water that alkaline, you might want to start with some beers with a good portion of darkly roasted malts in the grain bill - stouts and the like. The dark malts will add some acid and should help get your mash pH into the low-mid 5s. You could also try some 5.2 mash buffer to keep things under control, or add a bit of acid malt to your grists. Overall, though, I'd say (while of course deferring to any brewgoons from Austin) that your water is extreme enough that you will probably want to take some special measures to make sure that you're in the right ballpark as far as mash pH. Even if you choose not to invest in a pH meter right now, some good pH test strips might be worth looking into.
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May 3, 2014 23:33
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Our basement flooded during the heavy rains monday-wednesday last week...only a couple of inches, but we still got to stay up until 0200 thursday night tearing out all of the carpet and filling the place with industrial fans and dehumidifiers to keep it from getting all moldy. If you have any experience with dehumidifiers, you know they can warm up a room a bit. Well, these things have pushed the basement temps up to the mid-80's for the past few days! Not just miserable for sleeping, but also bad for fermenting anything other than belgians...I'm suddenly very glad that all of my fermenters weren't full, especially since all of that stuff(along with all of the furniture and everything else) is going to have to be moved out of the basement before we can redo the floors. I'm really glad I'm going to be on vacation for the next week, and won't have to deal with any of that, but I also hope they wait until I get back before doing anything with that room. loving weather...
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May 4, 2014 15:45
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For anyone in the UK: brewuk homebrew site is selling liquid yeast 5 for £10 'lucky dip'. £10 for 5 liquid yeasts which will be no more then 4months out of date (so make a starter  !) when normally they're £6.80 a pop. Even if I just got 3 ale yeasts out of it I think it'd be worth it!Edit: Sold out just as I hit post. 
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May 4, 2014 17:19
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M.C. McMic posted:I'm getting ready to do my first two batches of all grain later this week or next weekend. Should I bother messing with water adjustments or just focus on the basic process the first couple times out? I've done partial mash brewing up to this point. total alkalinity - what you really care about - is actually pretty low at mid-fifties ppm. I'd bet Austin intentionally adjusts pH up to protect plumbing but the low alkalinity won't buffer it enough to stay high in the mash - which is good. Your mash pH would be decent (roughly 5.5) without any adjustment (and lower with much dark malt). For a pale beer some would add a little phosphoric or lactic acid, or much easier just add 2-3 ounces of acid malt to the mash. You have pretty low calcium and sulfate levels so you could also add calcium chloride to increase perception of malt sweetness or calcium sulfate to do the same for hop bitterness depending on the beer and either of those would pull pH down a hair if you added a teaspoon of one or the other.
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May 5, 2014 07:46
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Hey guys, I want to recommend you check Mud Sharks thread he posted earlier for the hops he's liquidating. I bought 3 of the 1lb bags and an 11lb bag from him. It came out to ~81¢ an ounce on the 1lb bags I bought and ~55¢ an ounce on the bulk bag I got, and that accounts for shipping too. That's less then half what I pay per ounce at the homebrew store so I'm pretty happy with the transaction, and so are some local homebrewing friends who went in on the bulk bag with me. Just a cost breakdown by ounce for anyone interested: 1 bag = 94¢ 2 bags= 84¢ 3 bags= 81¢ 4 bags= 80¢ 5 bags= 79¢ You should get at least 2 bags if you're going to do it, but 3 bags still gives you a little extra bump in savings per ounce before you start seeing diminishing returns. If any of you are part of an active club, you might want to consider the 44lb bags he has too, his quoted price was less then half of what the first google result for "44lb cascade hops." I wanted to get it, but I'm not in any club and don't know enough brewers to make it worth it personally.
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May 5, 2014 18:25
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I think I've run into some dilemmas. 1. There's floaty white stuff on the surface of my red ale, my first beer. It's been in the secondary for nearly 2 weeks (bottling day would be this Wednesday) and I just noticed that these little floaties sprang up a couple days ago. They don't appear to be fuzzy, and I don't think they have any tendrils hanging down below the surface. There was no issue when it was in the primary, so this is a fairly recent development. Am I looking at mold here, or is this salvageable? (Excuse the crud on the outside of the carboy in the first photo. Click for huge.)    2. I started a porter the other day and there have been zero signs of fermentation since it was pitched 36 hours ago, the airlock is sitting completely still. The yeast packet I used did puff up as intended, but not as much as the yeast for my red ale did despite making sure to smack and shake it well. Is it possible the yeast didn't take, or could the fermentation just be delayed? Millions fucked around with this message at 18:50 on May 5, 2014 |
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May 5, 2014 18:42
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Yeast can look really nasty it's probably just some yeast clots or whatever. Hard to seen from those pictures. My beers have usually started fermenting within 24 hours when I have pitched a smackpack. Don't worry though, it could be a little slow or there is a little leak somewhere so you don't see any activity in the waterlock.
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May 5, 2014 18:49
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I've seen some weird stuff from yeast too. Co2 is always in your beer and it can bind to your yeast cake and shoot it up back to the surface. That could be what the pics are.
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May 5, 2014 19:08
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Need some "shut up stop worrying" and/or "you're an idiot" kegging advice re: keg carbonation. We put our first (4) kegs on gas last 4 days ago. They spent the first 2 days @ 30psi, then we released the pressure and dropped them to 12psi. This is all from the advice of a friend / watching YouTube videos. 1 of the beers is super foamy, and 3 are kinda foamy, but nothing is really that carbonated (it definitely IS, just a way lower volume than is appropriate for any style). I checked for leaks and couldn't find any, so my question is: does carbing up take longer than 4 days? I'm assuming without aggitation it's probably the same as bottling and maybe I've just led myself to believe otherwise. e: or is there a better way (in general) to do this
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May 5, 2014 20:08
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fullroundaction posted:Need some "shut up stop worrying" and/or "you're an idiot" kegging advice re: keg carbonation. The foaming and loss of carbonation could be from your lines. How long are your beer lines/what I.D. are they?
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May 5, 2014 20:42
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fullroundaction posted:Need some "shut up stop worrying" and/or "you're an idiot" kegging advice re: keg carbonation. 2 days at 30 and then 2 days at 12 will definitely get some gas in the beer, but I always find that it takes a while longer to really get the beer carbonated the way I want it. Mostly, I use the super-lazy method of hooking up the gas at serving pressure (12-13PSI) and then leaving it alone for a couple weeks.
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May 5, 2014 20:47
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more falafel please posted:The foaming and loss of carbonation could be from your lines. How long are your beer lines/what I.D. are they? 5ft, http://www.kegconnection.com/beer-hose-clear-3-16-id-x-7-16-od-sold-by-the-foot/ I've read that more feet help with the foam, but people in my homebrew club seem to think that's BS, so I just went with 5. Jo3sh posted:2 days at 30 and then 2 days at 12 will definitely get some gas in the beer, but I always find that it takes a while longer to really get the beer carbonated the way I want it. Mostly, I use the super-lazy method of hooking up the gas at serving pressure (12-13PSI) and then leaving it alone for a couple weeks. I was thinking of doing that, I'm just too excited/anxious because babby's first keg.
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May 5, 2014 20:50
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fullroundaction posted:Need some "shut up stop worrying" and/or "you're an idiot" kegging advice re: keg carbonation. http://www.brewersfriend.com/2009/07/18/getting-a-good-pour-kegged-beer-co2-line-length-and-pressure/ Although trial and error will usually get you to the right value.
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May 5, 2014 21:19
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fullroundaction posted:I've read that more feet help with the foam, but people in my homebrew club seem to think that's BS, so I just went with 5. Well they're morons then, because it 100% matters. Most kegerators need between 8-12ft of line for a corny keg. 12 would be if you serve a lot of highly carbed styles (2.75+ vol) and 8 would be if you're doing stuff in the 2.50-2.60 range. I split the difference and have 10 ft. It also matters what temp your kegerator is at, I keep mine at 38*F so I need slightly longer lines than I would if it was at 36*. A properly balanced draft system will pour a 16 oz beer in 8 sec, so you can also use that to judge if your lines are long enough or not. As for carbonation I do a combo method of shaking and letting top pressure do the work. I hook my fully chilled keg up to 30 PSI and shake for 45 seconds. Then I take the regulator adjustment and loosen it all the way. Continue to shake the keg until the regulator pressure gauge stops dropping, that's how much CO2 is dissolved in your beer. After 45 sec I usually have 10 psi in there. If not I bump the CO2 back up and shake for 15 seconds and recheck. Once I'm at 10 psi I leave the keg hooked up to between 10-14 psi depending on how carbonated I want my beer. Within 2-3 days my beer is fully carbed and ready to drink. If I'm doing a low carbonation English style that I serve at 10 psi it's usually ready the next day. I've had problems with overcarbonation when trying to shake carb to 12-14psi so I just let the top pressure do the last bit of work nowadays. Here's a great resource if you want to know too much about draught beer: http://www.draughtquality.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/DQM_Full_Final.pdf
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May 5, 2014 21:21
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Thanks for the links/help, super useful info. Also I do not doubt that the people in my club are morons, I just wonder why the default setup on KegConnection (where I ordered my stuff) is for 5 feet instead of something more useful. (I'm using sanke kegs in case it matters)
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May 5, 2014 21:26
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Josh Wow posted:[length of serving lines] 100% matters. Agreed. I get much better pours since I went to ten-foot lines.
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May 5, 2014 21:45
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I'm in the process of building a keezer. It'll be 4 taps eventually, but I'm only putting in two for now. Should I drill the holes for the other two taps now, and fill them with something (insulation, I guess?) or should I wait? I'm going to stain it, but it'll be attached to the lid, so I should be able to remove the lid/collar and make it easier to drill new holes later.
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May 5, 2014 22:48
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I'd probably mark the locations now, but leave it undrilled until you're ready to install. Even though you're going to be finishing it, you don't need to worry overmuch about chipping the wood around the new holes, since each faucet will get a little collar, which will cover up any rough edges. When you're ready, it will take just a few minutes to cut the holes and install the new hardware.
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May 5, 2014 23:00
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Hrm ... this comment on that Brewer's Friend link:quote:This is a great explanation. I own a draft beer company (Kegconnection.com) and we are constantly get people asking us for 10′ of our 3/16 beer line on their systems. I always tell them this is way to much for someone serving beer at 10 to 12 PSI. They read on websites that if they are getting foam they should have more beer line. After working with them we almost always find that they have plenty of beer line, but their beer is too warm. I will be sending people to this link in the future. This is a very simple and easy to understand explaination. I guess that's why their kits default to 5ft? Seems contrary to popular (practical) opinion.
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May 5, 2014 23:42
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Jo3sh posted:I'd probably mark the locations now, but leave it undrilled until you're ready to install. Even though you're going to be finishing it, you don't need to worry overmuch about chipping the wood around the new holes, since each faucet will get a little collar, which will cover up any rough edges. When you're ready, it will take just a few minutes to cut the holes and install the new hardware.  I wasn't thinking about the little faucet collar piece at all. That pretty much settles it.
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May 6, 2014 00:11
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I'm starting my super small batch project tonight. 1 gallon batches, single hopped single malt, one per month, maybe more. I'm using Maris Otter initially because it's my favorite malt, but if I find it too overpowering for a SMaSH pale ale then I'm going to switch to US 2-Row. I'm going to keep a blog that I'll make tonight or so to share my experiences. I'm also going to be bottle carbing in 32 ounce growlers, but in tupperware in-case they explode.
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May 6, 2014 00:19
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Midorka posted:I'm starting my super small batch project tonight. 1 gallon batches, single hopped single malt, one per month, maybe more. I'm using Maris Otter initially because it's my favorite malt, but if I find it too overpowering for a SMaSH pale ale then I'm going to switch to US 2-Row. I'm going to keep a blog that I'll make tonight or so to share my experiences. The tupperware's a safe bet, as growlers aren't designed to handle the pressures of bottle conditioning, just an FYI in case you weren't aware.
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May 6, 2014 00:24
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wattershed posted:The tupperware's a safe bet, as growlers aren't designed to handle the pressures of bottle conditioning, just an FYI in case you weren't aware. Yeah that was a huge concern of mine. After doing a bunch of reading most people seem to do it fine, but I can't really think of a safer/better option. I guess I could bottle up a 12 pack or whatever, but I hate bottling even on that small of scale so a quick cap wouldn't be bad. I guess we'll see. My recipe can be found here. My goal is to do a FWH with a 30 minute addition and hop burst it with a huge dry hop. That should get me a good idea of each hop profile. The IBUs will be different each time, though I'm hoping to hit around 40. I suppose I'll have to buy some extra hops when doing low AA German and British hops though. My goal is to literally grab any hop that I've never used, no rhyme or reason.
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May 6, 2014 00:40
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fullroundaction posted:Also I do not doubt that the people in my club are morons, I just wonder why the default setup on KegConnection (where I ordered my stuff) is for 5 feet instead of something more useful. My keggerator is set to 42F, and it is 49F at the top of the fridge where the lines exit. I'd recommend anyone building a system put 10ft 3/16" beverage lines in then cut them shorter until you get the pour speed you want. Spoiler: you probably won't cut them any shorter. As far as carbing time, it takes more than a few days more like a few weeks at serving pressure. Even at 20 PSI it takes a couple of weeks. You can find out how close you are to being carbonated by turning the gas allllllll the way down and waiting a few days. The gas pressure will equalize to the level of carbonation in the kegs (assuning you have no leaks).
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May 6, 2014 01:06
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Josh Wow posted:Here's a great resource if you want to know too much about draught beer: Thanks for this. I bought a kegerator a little while back, but have been holding off until I get the cabinets I'm installing around it to set it up. This is a big help for me to read ahead on the setup process.
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May 6, 2014 02:50
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mindphlux posted:I need some advice on co2 tanks. anyone?
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May 6, 2014 03:12
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Midorka posted:I'm also going to be bottle carbing in 32 ounce growlers, but in tupperware in-case they explode. http://www.amazon.com/BrewDemon-Basic-Bottling-System-1-Liter/dp/B00DC8CRKI
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May 6, 2014 03:25
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Syrinxx posted:If it's an ongoing project why not use the Mr. Beer/BrewDemon one liter bottles? They are made as pressure vessels. That's actually a really good idea. Thank you very much for the idea!
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May 6, 2014 03:26
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mindphlux posted:anyone? I don't know the science on filling - i think you'd have to do it by weight as you are filling and just go SLOW. The hose just looks like a braided hose to me, like those for washing machines - with different nozzles. If I were you I'd talk to the guys/gals at your local airgas (or the like) and bring in the canister(s) you want to fill and your Universal fill adapter and let them know you wish not to blow your face off. I'm sure they'd help you find the right fittings.
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May 6, 2014 04:51
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Daedalus Esquire posted:Hey guys, I want to recommend you check Mud Sharks thread he posted earlier for the hops he's liquidating. I bought 3 of the 1lb bags and an 11lb bag from him. If there's anything left, I'll probably grab a pound of the northern brewer and something else(maybe liberty?) Next week. Kegtalk: I think I used to crank mine up to like 30psi for a few days before turning them down to around 10psi for another few days. I seem to recall having issues with the first couple beers of the night being really foamy, but I also only had like three feet of line running to the tap. These are all good things to keep in mind for my next keg setup.
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May 6, 2014 05:23
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New brew rig! Super excited about this upgrade. Was previously using keggles.   Hardware is Blingman toptier and therminator, Stout Tank kettles and tri-clover hardware, march pump. First brew with it this Thursday. Woo!
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May 6, 2014 18:58
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I hate you. :Edit: out of envy. Not just being a dick here.
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May 6, 2014 20:17
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