I was curious how you all calculate strike temp. I normally wing it and get my initial mash to 150-155. Sometimes it's more causing me to add some cold water and vice versa. Right now I'm going to do a 5 gallon batch with 12# of grain. I know my absorption is about 3.75 gallons and I want to start with about 3 gallons so my initial mash will be 6.75 gallons. Just not certain what strike temp would bring me to my 155 degrees
A basic formula is available (I think) in the online How To Brew. But the basic formula doesn't cover the impact of your particular mash tun absorbing some of the heat from the water. You can wing it and even dial-it-in that way, but that only works as long as you are brewing similar recipes, and always using the same processes (like water to grist ratio, for example). Software helps.
It's kind of iterative. Use a formula, figure out how far off you are and make corrections in the future to account for mash tun. Software helps.
Ok. I did the 1.25q per pound. Used the calculator and got 15q at 170. It gave me an exact 155 mash temp. I think I was messing up by adding another 3 gallons during earlier batches for my initial mash. I think I need to batch sparse more volume than I have been.
I use Beersmith to calculate my strike temp, then add 5°F to what Beersmith tells me to use, because it's easier to add cold water to bring my temp back down if I am off a bit. I add the water to my mashtun, put the lid on and let it equalize for 5 minutes. I make sure I am at the strike temp that Beersmith projected, if not, add some cold water to bring it down, then I add my grains to the water. Hit my temp every time. The one caveat is that you need to adjust Beersmith to the temp of your grains, if I brew in the summer they're usually 75°F or above, but in the winter, since I keep them in my basement prior to brew day, they're often 65°F or below. I forgot to adjust that a couple times and was way off, lol.
<== BeerSmith Hand-jammers (per Palmer - How2Brew) ... Tstrike = [0.2 / QT per # * (Tmash - Tgrains)] + Tmash --- Eg. Mash thickness = 1.25 QT per # Mash temperature (Tmash) = 149°F Grain temperature (Tgrains)= 76°F Plug'n chug Tstrike = [0.2 / 1.25 * (149°F - 76°F) + 149°F Tstrike = (0.16 * 73°F) + 149°F) Tstrike = 161°F Works best with a pre-heated MLT. --- Warranties neither expressed nor implied. User assumes all risk. Not intended for use by children.
For my system it's desired strike temp + 12 + preheated cooler. I go a little high and let it cool to the right temp and then dough in. I usually use a ratio of 1.25qt water/lb grain.
