We have two customers that brew all-grain but don't want to spring for a cooler tun. They work at a restaurant and use bulk cheesecloth for their bags. Sounds like a holy mess but they seem to be happy with it. They want some tips on how to improve their efficiency (i think they get about 60%) but I'm far from a bag expert!

Anyone out there mash in a bag? I told them to kind of sparge with with 165 degree water, poured over the bag but past that I'm at a loss.

Send them up two posts...

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=4650

It should have everything and more then you need to understand BIAB.

However from what I have picked up after 2-3 BIAB batches... The grain can be more finely milled as their is not as much of a risk of a stuck mash (maybe throw their grains through the mill twice). Also, there is no sparge step, all the water is added initially for the full mash. They should be able to up the efficiency with a finer crush, but I'd tell them the key step is to do the same thing each time for consistency.

Hope this helps,

Sean.

Jeezus. How friggin' cheap can you be?

There is a dedicated forum for BIAB users at www.BIABrewer.info, if your customers sign up, the forum users will be more than willing to provide any help necessary.

For reference, on my latest BIAB batch with 10LB of grain I mashed in with 37 qts (9.25gal?), and ended up with 80% efficiency into the boiler. That is without any sparge step, but with a direct heated mashout to 169 F while stirring to distribute the heat. Larger grain bills will result in less efficiency though, and the size of your kettle (mashtun) can become a problem at that point.

great stuff guys. This info should really help them.

I've learned in my short time working in retail sales that the customer is always right... cliched, i know, but let me explain it a bit... while I feel like the customer is WRONG every now and again, to themselves they know it all, so there's no reason to argue with them, trying to change their mind is a lost cause. So if someone want to brew in a bag, or in a washing machine (and no i did not make that one up) I just try and help them accomplish the goal. If they're gonna do it, I try and help as much as i can.

Where are your customers milling their grains? If it's at your place, you might do well to tighten the gap on the mill just a tad. Otherwise your customers may be asking you if they can double crush their grains to get them milled finely enough. The extent of crush is the number one biggest factor with efficiency problems.

Now that's intriguing. You'd have to rig a custom circuit to control water temp/volume and cycle timing. Then use the wash cycle to stir your mash, rinse and spin cycle for your sparge. I bet you'd get crazy efficiency!!!

Use the delicate cycle for blonde ales and heavy-duty for IIPAAs.

I wonder would the spin cycle cause tannins to be extracted by compressing the grains during sparge? I bet it would be a real PIA to clean too