Boil times?

[bitter_dave]

90 mins for me

[Scooby]

quite a wide variation on boil times. But what consideration is given to Evaporation.
The longer the time the less liquid.
Is this just topped up with water to the SG required?
Currently I boil to 90 mins as per recommendations from this great forum

I keep sparging until the boiler is to capacity and then I collect more in a seperate bucket and add it to the boil to compensate for evaporation

I do the same adding the spare during the boil.

I only have one boiler so collect the runnings in a 33l FV and transfer to boiler. so I know gravity and volume pre-boil and can work out if any addition will be required I then add this during the boil which I think is preferable to adding post boil

[deadlydes]

i boil for 60mins starting once a rolling boil is achieved.
i have never had clarity problems

[johnmac]

Interesting that most of the written replies are c. 90min. So why does Wheeler recommend 120min for most of his brews? Does he think we get free electricity?

[bitter_dave]

Interesting that most of the written replies are c. 90min. So why does Wheeler recommend 120min for most of his brews? Does he think we get free electricity?

He recommends 90 mins in both the books I have - homebrewing the camra guide and the annoyingly titled real ale recipe book. He's the main reason I boil for 90 mins (it certainly wasn't based on any clear understanding of why I should boil for 90 mins

[johnmac]

In my 1993 copy of Brew Your Own Real Ales At Home, GW gives 90min for most of his mild recipes, but all bitter and stout requires a two hour boil. I don't think he says why.

[bitter_dave]

In my 1993 copy of Brew Your Own Real Ales At Home, GW gives 90min for most of his mild recipes, but all bitter and stout requires a two hour boil. I don't think he says why.

That's interesting, in the 1998 edition he gives 90 mins for all the recipes, unless I've missed one or two flicking through. Perhaps he realised how much electricity he was wasting

[Horden Hillbilly]

90 mins for me, I would be loath to change it because after all the stages, mash/boil/sparging/boiling I always finish up very close to the intended volume of 5 gallons. If it aint broke I am not going to fix it!