Absolute BIAB novice

[hoggyafc]

Hello everyone

I've decided that BIAB looks as though it's for me. I've brewed a few kits now but the excitement has worn off a wee bit. I want to brew smaller batches, I'm thinking around 10/11 litres (around half of the size of the kits you get here).

I have a 17 litre aluminium pot in the house which I thought I could use.

The problem I'm having is that the more I read on forums, the more confused and worried I get about things. Home brewers can be quite intense.

Really, all I want to know to kick off is:

1. How much water should I start off with to end up with 10/11 litres?

2. Can I use my 17 litre pot and if not what batch size could I use it to make (I don't want to get a new pot until I've had a few goes and if it means making even smaller batches then so be it)?

3. If I scale down an all grain recipe and more water boils away during the boil, can I just top the level back up with water before fermenting?

4. When I scale down recipes, should I still mash and boil for the same length of time?

5. What's the deal with sparging and how will it affect the amount of water I start out with in the mash?

I've downloaded brewtarget. Can anyone give me tips for setting up BIAB in the equipment list.

I appreciate that these might be pretty simple questions but the more I research them the more confused I'm getting.

Thanks very much.

[killer]

First off, welcome to Jims.

Once you brew your first BIAB you'll realise how uncomplicated it is. And yes, homebrewers can definitely be intense... So RDWHAHB (look it up if you don't know it !)
Your questions are good ones. I'll have a go at answering them and others may be along to chip in.

1) I'm not completely sure. You could look at the Aussie BIAB website. They have developed a calculator to help with BIAB volumes etc. Your vessel should be fine for 10/11L with minimal topping up. There is a technique called maxi-BIAB. This technique involves topping up at various stages -sparging, topping up during the boil or after the boil - and works very well - I do it myself on a larger 29L vessel.

2) You should easily be able to make 10/11 L with a 17L vessel. In Australia, many people use maxi-BIAB to get 23L brews from a 19L vessel.

3) Yes. But for you it might be easiest to sparge a couple of litres after you pull the bag out of the mash. Lets say you fill the pot to the brim with the grain (~ 2.5kg for your 10/11L scale). After the mash, when you pull the bag you might have 12L left in the pot. You could then sparge your grain bag with about 2.5 - 3L water and add this to the boiler. Your losses to the evaporation of the boil will depend on your pot. But you can top up with water 15 min from the end of the boil to your desired volume if you need to.

4) Yes. The times used are based on enzyme/ chemical reactions that occur during the mash and the boil. They are relatively independent of the scale you are working on. Even at 10000L the mash and boil can be carried out on the same timescales.

5) Sparging removes sugars that are left in/on the wet grains. When you pull the bag from the boiler, a certain amount of sugars remain in the bag. By sparging (rinsing) the bag with say, 2L water, you can get more of these sugars out. This increases your efficiency and potential alcohol content.
You should use the maximum amount of water possible in the mash. Use sparging to top up your vessel volume before the boil.

I haven't used brewtarget.

Hope this helps.
Happy brewing.

[jaberry]

Join biabrewer forum too as it is dedicated to BIAB brewing and will answer a lot of your question

[hoggyafc]

Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions so clearly. You've really set my mind at ease.

I'll get in about it and see what happens.

[Clibit]

I do 10 litres in a 15 litre pot. But I mash in some of the water and batch sparge with the rest. I use about 17 litres in total, with around 2.75 to 3 litres of water per kg in the mash, and then the same again to sparge, and then the rest (if any) I pour over the grains through a colander above the pot. I aim for about 11-12 litres in the FV, to allow for losses, and top up the boil if necessary - I know my pot well enough to know where the water level needs to finish, but you could put a notch on a wooden spoon or something to check the water level. You can also top up in the FV if necessary, but check your OG first.

I use Brewmate, I preferred it to Brewtarget but can't remember why. It's also Aussie and is well set up for BIAB - though I don't use the BIAB setting myself as I don't do strict BIAB, which has all the water in the mash.

[Cpt.Frederickson]

First off, welcome to Jims. Once you brew your first BIAB you'll realise how uncomplicated it is....You could look at the Aussie BIAB website.

Join biabrewer forum

Chipping in my tuppence worth...have a look HERE at the guides on BIABrewer as suggested by killer and jaberry. It was where I started out learning the process and it stood me in good stead.
The Calculator available on the site is an excellent tool for working out your volumes etc, and I used that for well over a year in combination with some other brewing software.
Eventually, it may be worth having a go on their BIABacus, but it does seem a little complicated at the beginning...
Good luck with your brewing, and most importantly...enjoy yourself!

[RobWalker]

howdy.

have you thought about doing an extract test run? it'll give you an idea of how the boiling process goes without the mashing.

[john_drummer]

you could also download BrewMate from www.brewmate.net

Set your defaults to BIAB and 19 litres; key in the recipe for 19L, then change the finished volume to 11L. This will then give you (a) the amount of each grain you need and (b) the strike water volume. It also has mash & boil timers that beep according to the late additions in the boil or mash

[hoggyafc]

Thanks for all the straightforward advice. I'm looking forward to having a crack at BIAB now.

The BIABrewer site looks like it has a lot of good info and that Brewmate software looks very user friendly.

Doing an extract run is a good idea too. Could I just try boiling water to get a rough idea of how much will boil off?

[Bribie]

A "wet run" with just water is a brilliant idea as you are doing a smaller volume and it shouldn't cost you too much, do some dishes or something with the remainder

I've been BIABbing for five years this month using a 40L urn and I never measure out my water anymore, I have a couple of marks on the sight tube of the urn and just go by them. You could do something similar by just using either a dowelling rod or (probably better): a big steel ruler from the hardware shop and mark off your start and finish volumes in permanent marker.

Remember to leave room for initial foaming as the "real" wort comes to the boil.

[hoggyafc]

Well, I finally had a go at a wee sMasH recipe with just some Pale malt and some WGV hops that I picked up on the cheap.

It came out better than any kit!!

Thanks for all the advice, I'm now a complete convert to BIAB.