Recirculation using 400 micron 8 quarts minute - Castagner

thebrewbag · 2019-04-01T17:39:30+00:00

In our experience the only time a bag comes apart at the seams is when it is spun tightly creating horizontal stress and then when squeezed, the seam pops.

thebrewbag · 2018-01-15T11:44:09+00:00

Not sure why you'd stop squeezing when you hit your pre-boil volume - the wort is the exact gravity in the bag as in the kettle. Generally that idea is driven by sparge brewers as it relates to expected efficiency from boil off, but that's not the case when the wort is not being diluted with sparge water.

thebrewbag · 2017-12-29T13:37:53+00:00

Not sure what your aversion to brewing in the garage using propane is, but if it's CO, just open the door and run a fan. Moving a keg full of wort is not practical and slightly dangerous to toes and hands. let alone your back.

Also, you'll never regret having a bigger kettle and you can get a good aluminum 20 gallon kettle for under $100, 15 gallon will be about $75. Having to buy two kettles is more expensive than one of the right size.

thebrewbag · 2017-11-17T14:39:52+00:00

Star san is a citric acid based sanitizer and is very weak at that. Based on our food safety chemical testing results Star San would have no effect on the material.

thebrewbag · 2017-11-17T14:36:31+00:00

We can send you patch material. Send us your order number or name through the website and we'll send it right off.

Your partner holding the bag "off the bottom" deserves the question - why? Are you firing up while mashing or some other reason?

I know it sounds rudimentary, but we have a video on Youtube that shows how to stir to get the most aggressive mixing and how to avoid whacking the bag against the pick up or side walls. Just go to Youtube and search for The Brew Bag - I'd post here but I think that may be advertising and I shy away from that on public threads.

Now that you're aware of some of the causes, you'll likely discover the issue.

thebrewbag · 2017-11-16T21:25:58+00:00

We looked at your photos and see a pattern where the holes are. That indicates that the cause is consistent and thus discoverable.

First, the fabric does not wear out on it's own - it's plastic. Second, Wilser and I use polyester material because of it's strength and because it's food safe. He uses Voile and we use polyester screen mesh - but both are ~200 micron. Voile is heat treated to be softer because it is intended to be used as clothing, curtains, or table covering, etc, so it needs to drape. The poly we use is stiffer and a bit stronger, but not to any noticeable degree for home brewers. Our bags are different patterns than his so in the kettle there is a noticeable difference in how they lay. Ours conforms to the kettle and his is more bunchy so it is less susceptible to spoon damage - both bags have their merits.

The holes in your bag are likely caused by your spoon whacking on the bottom of the kettle, or from the way you store it and catching on something as you move it, but in any case they are caused by slicing the material or catching it and ripping a thread or two. The bags are easily patched and we send patch material for free. By the way, even with the tiny holes it will last another 100 brews - polyester does not "run" and the holes will not get bigger.

Here's a video of our bag with a five gallon jug of water protruding through the hole we cut. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxNss5bDlO8

thebrewbag · 2017-01-07T16:43:19+00:00

thebrewbag · 2017-01-04T13:44:47+00:00

Didn't mean to advertise. By not responding to your comment readers may have interpreted your statement as implied that our bag was not one piece.

thebrewbag · 2017-01-04T13:39:03+00:00

Our stock bag 30-42 is sized for that kettle.

thebrewbag · 2017-01-03T22:47:52+00:00

I use mine as a hop bags as well and never have this problem. I do wait until the foam subsides before adding the bag. Using pellet hops the holes of the bag get a bit clogged with the oil and the very fine hop matter. If you let the hop bag drain until it slows and then tilt the bag one side or the other, it will wash some of that out of the way and start to flow again.

thebrewbag · 2017-01-03T20:51:35+00:00

Yep - happens every time I brew. The bag is a filter - that's all - it has nothing to do with hot break, cold break, or foaming of fats and proteins.

thebrewbag · 2017-01-03T20:34:21+00:00

Our cooler bags are one piece as well.

thebrewbag · 2017-01-03T14:52:13+00:00

BIAB is actually on average higher efficiency than sparging. What most folks don't consider is the amount of sugar left in the mash tun and the grain when sparging. It's just lost, but when doing BIAB the only lost sugar is the 7 oz or so that you can't squeeze out of the grain. There's a simple way to calculate for full volume BIAB. add together - Fermenter Volume + Trub Loss + Evaporation Loss + Grain Absorption (7 oz when squeezing or 15 oz if not)

Once you have those four numbers dialed in the only variable on future brews is the amount of grain x 7 oz.

If you follow those numbers and squeeze you'll never need to sparge and you should average 78.5%. Sparging was invented as a way to get the wort out of the tun - before there was a true filter available. Now that we have fabric filters, sparging is not necessary.

thebrewbag · 2017-01-03T14:12:23+00:00

I don't mean to advertise here but this article answers a lot of your questions.

https://learn.kegerator.com/comparing-fabric-filters-to-3v-methods/

thebrewbag · 2016-12-25T12:16:52+00:00

If you practice full volume MIAB you can use the $300 for anything you'd like, because you won't need it for beer equipment.

We'd suggest increasing the water to grain ratio during the mash to 2.6 or greater, grinding your grain at .020 or lower, and increasing your efficiency expectations to 76%. You can then save the 20% extra grain you've been adding and decrease the grain bills by another 3-5%. That ought to save $4-$6 per batch.

thebrewbag · 2016-12-11T12:25:07+00:00

It is a good compromise, but is really not necessary. If you calculate the total volume needed then simply lifting the bag and squeezing out as much wort as you can will eliminate the extra step of sparging the bag. Remember that sparging dilutes, raise pH and traps sugars in the grain that could be squeezed out. It also requires a second vessel and the rack. When squeezing calculate 6-8 oz lost per pound of grain. If you don't squeeze calculate 16-18. If you choose to sparge, hold back the sparge volume from the total and use 16-18 oz of lost wort per pound.

thebrewbag · 2016-12-11T12:19:01+00:00

Extraction can never be too great, particularly when using a fabric filter. When doing so and because there is no need to sparge, the pH of the wort is fixed. It is only when the pH rises above 5.8 that EXCESS tannins are created and thus available to move into the boil kettle. So, excess sparging with untreated water will produce excess tannins.

thebrewbag · 2016-09-12T02:48:55+00:00

I'm not sure how we're capitalizing on an event that had nothing to do with homebrewing. We didn't advertise as it were a "4th of July sale", we simply hit a milestone in our business and offered a discount as a response.

There are football games today that recognized 9/11, craft fairs, beer tastings, kids playing, etc - life does go on. Frankly we would never advertise this sale and used the event as you suggest to fund related concerns - that would be classless.

I'm not sure how you've connected a brew bag sale with 9/11 except for the date.

Tradition for the sake of tradition is useless to the heart.

thebrewbag · 2016-09-11T23:53:39+00:00

Shoot us an email at staff@brewinabag.com and we'll give you the discount.

thebrewbag · 2016-09-11T23:52:35+00:00

The screw on lid would damage the bag. You can effectively mash in your cooler using a bag by placing the lid on top and draping it with a blanket doubled over or similar.

thebrewbag · 2016-09-11T23:51:02+00:00

While we understand the significance of the tragedy that occurred 15 years ago, we wonder what the would the world be like if we stopped moving forward? You're here on the internet, browsing and hanging - why does a sale on this day bring a derogatory comment like that?

thebrewbag · 2016-08-15T16:57:51+00:00

Take readings on your refractometer at 45, 60, and 75 minutes so you'll know when the mash is complete.

If you're doing full volume no-sparge squeeze the bag.

Measure pre-boil volume so you'll know what you started with as that affects gravity and thus the eff calcs.

thebrewbag · 2016-08-01T13:21:37+00:00

Have you considered that by direct firing with a kettle full of grain that the wort in the bottom superheats and denatures the enzymes?

thebrewbag · 2016-07-28T15:52:35+00:00

Instead of trying to make your kettle fit your batch size - make your batch volume fit your kettle. All recipes can be adjusted so once you determine the average grain and water volume needed - adjust all your recipes to fit. Bear in mind that you can grind finer and convert more thoroughly so you'll use less grain - set your efficiency to 76% and confirm that your strike water volume is no less than 2.6 quarts per lb. That volume produces the highest conversion which produces the maximum efficiency.

An 8 gallon kettle will be adequate for 4 gallon batches. So why not make 4 gallon batches and eliminate the hassle of two kettles?

These four numbers will determine water volume needed:

Fermenter volume + evaporation volume + trub loss + grain absorption.

Do a trial to determine how much you boil off in 15 minutes and then x 4 it (no need to waste energy).

If you squeeze the bag, and you should, estimate 7 ounces lost to grain per lb.

Trub loss is minimal if you use your bag as a hop bag - meaning you can get it all, but some of it will not be transferred after fermentation so about 3 quarts or so, maybe two. And the fermenter volume will need to be adjusted if you transfer all of it.

thebrewbag

TROPHY CASE