Grainfather brewers, share your tips, techniques and any mods in the comments to help us get more efficient with the system!

@czakivanovic

4 жыл бұрын

Did you sterilize the chiller by circulating hot wort for a couple of minutes there at the end? Couldn't tell if you had cold water going through the counterflow chiller while you were doing the sterilization step?

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

@@czakivanovic Yes, I circulated hot wort through the system to sterilize. If there is a large gap between brews I may likely also do a quick CIP loop and hot water flush of pump and chiller just to be safe before brewing.

The crap and ingenuity that we as homebrewers put ourselves in for beer never amazes the women in our life.

@aaron5222

4 жыл бұрын

Haha too true

@michaelgomez9370

4 жыл бұрын

Ha ha ha!!! Hell yeah!!!

You typically don't leave the grain stopper in during the mash. You should also have an over flow adapter for the top plate. Checkout some of David Heath's videos and you'll see what I'm talking about.

@tube4waldek

4 жыл бұрын

Seems it worked totally fine.

I responsibly bought a Grain Father with my Coronavirus stimulus money. Can’t wait to try it next month.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

Even in a time of crisis, it's good to have priorities.

@crowtservo

4 жыл бұрын

ChopAndBrew My wife and I planned to go get carry out dinner tonight and I asked her if she could cook something last minute so I could finally brew with my new Grainfather. We had to get the Electrician, who is my dad’s cousin, to get an outlet in my garage. It took him three weeks to find time to do it because his company is swamped right now. Just exciting to be up all night brewing a beer, drinking more than a few beers and ready to be up at 5 AM for work.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

@@crowtservo Good luck (and have fun)! Did you set the timer to prepare mash water? One of my favorite features. Coffee and then mash in!

@crowtservo

4 жыл бұрын

ChopAndBrew Yes, I usually get home around 7:00 at night so I set the timer for 7:00. Didn’t realize that it was when the water would start heating up. The app is great too, it heated up the wort to 206 F while it was sparging. When it finally finished sparging it was ready to boil. This is making me glad I had to throw away my old cooler mash tun.

Yes y'all, Chip's GF maiden voyage :) - recirc trough central pipe (take stopper out after mashing in) *DURING* whole mash time 😄; - on recirc inlet & top sieve, put a tea/sink strainer (D. Heath's best tip ever), - after mash done, stop the pump & let wort drain itself from that arm, no need for rags/paper during detaching, - recirc boiling wort in last few mins trough chiller to sanitize. Anyway, great setup & video as per usual 👍😄

Robobrew user here, but similar system. When mashing take out the top of the center malt pipe and put overflow funnel on. (if you have that part) Put a kitchen strainer over the overflow to keep grain out. Feel free to open the pump a little more so that you have some wort sitting over the grain bed. When you pull the basket and start to sparge, set the temp to boil. That way you will be near a boil when you are done sparging. I usually turn my pump on with a minute or two left in the boil to sanitize it, then use it for whirlpool. Consider purchasing a Robobrew false bottom to help keep hop debris out of your pump. Cheers!!

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching and sharing your tips!

Your coffee pot hot water tank was sitting right on top of an apparatus that would have been perfect for controlling the flow of the sparge water. Cheers!

@ChopAndBrew

3 жыл бұрын

Good point! I was trying to use all the components from GF but that is a better idea for an upcoming brew.

I sometimes like to do a hop stand at 80°c and it comes in handy to put the chiller on a separate stand rather than the lid. Then you can throw the hops in easily when you hit target temp.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

The tubing is fairly short on mine, making is somewhat difficult to place it nearby. Did you replace with longer tubing by chance?

@stevejones4007

4 жыл бұрын

@@ChopAndBrew no actually, mines very short too. I just found a chair/bar stool that's roughly the same height as the top of the gf and I place it very close. It also helps to get the last few precious drops of wort because you can tip the whole unit towards the hop filter.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

@@stevejones4007 I also did the same, putting it on the top of the mash tun that you see next to it. But it was really straining to reach, and kept trying to pinch the line. Gotta find something else just a bit more perfect for it.

You got yourself a Grainfather? Welcome to the club, Chip! It seems you're not using the recipe builder site. While it's not the best it does help you program the different mashing steps, sparging and boiling timer and calculate water needed for both mashing and sparging which makes the brew day that much easier. When it comes to mashing in, you don't have to over-heat the water like you do with a water cooler mash tun. The Grainfather will keep the water at the right temperature (or quite close at least) while you are mashing in.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

That is something I hadn't thought about... the mash water... although it did seem to work well on the first two brews. I'll check out the recipe program as well.

. ...I've seen a lot about these grainfathers, nice to see one in action.

holy shit. hot scotchie... game changer on brew day

Been using the grainfather for two years. Have also left the filter out on more than one occasion. The game changer for me has been Kveik yeast which means that I only have to chill to 35 Celsius in order to pitch. Here in South Africa the groundwater temps are around 22 Celsius so chilling any further requires running the water through a copper coil resting in ice. If you were doing a lager I would recommend doing this and slowing the out flow to get the wort to pitching temp. You can also do a whirlpool by stirring vigorously before cooling but be careful if you stir too fast the filter can come off

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the wonderful advice. Cheers to South Africa from Minnesota!

Been using the grainfather for about 3 years now. Another big vote for David Heath's grainfather videos. Two big things from him are reiterated mash and the brewzilla false bottom. I like to make big beers and the reiterated mash boosts efficiency and helps me hit my targets. The included filter clogs if you don't use a hop spider when there are a lot of hops. If you use beersmith software I find that changes in the program and profile settings suggested on the forums help make things more accurate. For me the grainfather takes a little perseverance to get it right.

I've been brewing with the GF for about 3 years? I love being able to brew in the basement. Firstly, it makes the house smell awesome. Your wife might not agree though :-) I don't worry about the steam because the house can use more humidity in the winter anyway. The GF will have less trouble getting up to temp in the basement since it's considerably warmer than the garage. Check what you boiling temp is at your altitude and and set the boil temp on the GF controller accordingly. I remove the spring/ball check thingy from the tube that connects to the chiller/mash arm. I find it gets clogged with hops on hoppy brews. Whirlpooling is must to avoid slow chill/transfer; however, if you use a LOT of late edition hops you'll probably want to invest in a 400-500 micron hop spider... Those are my tips in a nut shell.. Enjoy the GF...

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

Huge thanks for the basement motivation, P!

Don't go turning the valve off and leaving the pump on. It can blow the seals on the pipe work and you end up with wort on the floor. Also if you leave the valve open when taking the sparge arm off it drains clear and no mess. There is a sprung ball inside the valve which seals it when unscrewed.

Right on! Always love a C&B brew day. I forgot a pickup tube one time and had to do the same bucket transfer thing. It happens!

Good for you for documenting this process. To me it looks like way more equipment and futzing around than I'm interested in. Shocking, I know. It will be interesting to see once you get comfortable with it and the process dialed in how the total time compares to your other ways of brewing. What is the real value of using a system like this? And the important factor will be, does the beer taste any different one way or another? I'll have to try these beers soon so don't drink 'em all up!

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

I agree, as I was looking back at that ending show of all the buckets and stuff during the chilling process I realized it really doesn't cut down on actual piece of equipment. One benefit is definitely the ability to use the delay timer to heat mash water. If I can get this rig set up in the basement it would be a bit easier because I'll have a water source much closer and will have sinks and drains accessible versus having all of those buckets and stuff pulled out.

@donosborn

4 жыл бұрын

@@ChopAndBrew That is a good point. Being able to brew inside is a plus. Well, if the beer is good. :)

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

@@donosborn The beers are good, although somewhat similar - which is to be expected from identical malt bills. I'm eager to do some step mashed lagers this winter and darker beers. Maybe even small batches of high gravity beer (due to malt capacity... or play with syrups for added SG point).

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

@@snackstick Next Friday my man!

Maybe at some point you can include the sanitation process. Love the brew videos! Keep 'em coming. Peace.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

I'll work on a follow-up video to include that. For now, you might check out David Heath's KZread channel. I believe he discusses the process more in-depth.

I may get one of those fancy electronic gizmos some day.....lovin' the "hot scotchy" too...I recently discovered the joys of whiskey and hot wort myself....I can vouch that Pendleton 1910 Rye works great in hot stout wort as well....CHEERS.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

That sounds like a great combo!

This year I bought a robobrew/brewzilla which is a very similar system. After 7 years of gas powered BIAB, one of these all in one electric systems is a massive improvement. A few more brews and u will dial it in. Thanks for the video Chip.

I run my mash and sparge during the evening usually starting at 6 pm when I’m back from work, and when the mash and sparge are done, i dump the grain, over ride the temp and set it to 80 C and let it sit the night. Come back in the morning and run the boil. As the mash in is completely automatic, I can eat, do the dishes, and get things done. Brew day is finished around 11 am. A couple of times I’ve had the heater cut out. If you look under the grainfather there is a rest switch.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

I have become familiar with the reset switch already. Hahaha. I love your brew timeline; thanks for sharing!

Fantastic episode. Appreciate the effort put into this.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Snail Doggy Dogg! These self-shot eps are always an well-earned effort. Appreciate the appreciation.

I love my grainfather! I've had a few things go wrong over the years but I'm still a fan. It's an original model from 5 years ago, I did upgrade the controller to the connect one , and the pump recently crapped out (wasn't hard to swap it out for the replacment one), but I have also done well over 100 brews with it..

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

100... good to hear! What pump did you sun in?

@Bp323

4 жыл бұрын

@@ChopAndBrew the same one, from Grainfather(also learned you can find the exact same model for half price on eBay and aliexpress if you don't mind waiting two months for it to arrive from China :p

Oooh, the Balvenie! Man, that is some good stuff!

Good to see you keeping with the hot scotchy tradition!

If you get the connect controller, you can set stuff via a phone or tablet. Although the app was updated and has some issues atm. It used to make things simple and could load recipes up easy.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

10-4!

To cool down the wort, I run the cooling water and re-circulate on itself until the wort gets down to 45 - 55 C and then I go to the fermenter. Depending on the temperature of my water, I can pretty easily get the temp under 20 C

I think you're supposed to run enough sparge water across the top plate to keep about a 1\2 inch water depth. I believe that's so you don't get channeling of the grain bed. In the video it looked like you were keeping the flow pretty low so I wonder if channeling could have been an issue. Sounds like you got a good efficiency though so maybe not a problem. Also I bought the graincoat and it helps a lot to get to temps faster and get a little better rolling boil (although still not as good as with propane).

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the advice. I def am going to need to get a graincoat or rig together some kind of wrap. Losing heat will certainly be more of an issue in the coming winter.

Did you buy the Grainfather used or did you borrow it? From the factory there is a ball and a spring in the connector to the circulation arm that stops the flow from the pump when the connector is open so it shouldn't leak. Or maybe it's the liquid in the circulation arm that's leaking. That's an easy fix: just lift the end of the tube out of the wort before disconnecting it to create a backdraft that will empty the arm. Then you can disconnect it without leaking.

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

It is new. I will look into what you're suggesting. Thanks!

love it!

cheers nice to see you logging brew days, I started watching you back on NB. I've been taking a brewing hiatus, but trying to get motivated again. I noticed everyone is using these grainfather type all in on kettles. I'll have to do my research. thanks for the vid!

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

I like it a lot but will still be doing all-grain in cooler and other methods when applicable. Cheers!

I have to say I saw 40+ minutes.. I was all like damn Chip that's a loooong video yo! But I have to say it was an enjoyable watch man! Watched it all! Juno hooked me up too so I will have a video coming soon on the GF myself! Cheers!! Chop for chop!! 👍🍻

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

Figured 40 min after a long time since a full-on brew ep wasn't too bad. But I feel ya. Just wanted to leave the goofy parts in as well as the informative parts. I'm sure you have yours more dialed in. I'm just not the tech motivated overall. I'm on a quest to go old-school more than anything. Eager to see your take on it.

I have left out the hop filter on a brewday before. I put all my hops into a hop spider. So I just brewed without it in. No issues. I was worried about it for most of the brew day though.

Fair play Chip, that looked like a tough brew day and fair play to you for sharing the "moments" haha. I also brew with the Grainfather and have shared a few tried and tested methods! Hit me up if you need any info! Iechyd Da!

Chap Wilton is president

Beautiful. Hot Scotchies. Love it. As far as lowering the temp after mashing in. Every. Friggin. Time. I forget too. I use the Mash and Boil. Also for the pump arm. Just open the valve completely after turning the pump off. Then wait a minute. It will empty and wont make a mess when you remove it. Cheers, Chip!

just use a tube clamp to change the water flow for sparging?

I set my strike temp what I want my mash temp at from the start. Usually my temp drops down to about 145 and will even out in less than 10 minutes.

....DIY 4 LIFE!!! @16:20

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

Lo-fi, no buy!

First time view, loving hot scotchy, this will be a deffo every brew day from now on

Check out David Heath for Great grainfather tips. One tip from me is to use a hot rod heat stick to get a great rolling boil. My only problem with the gf was the boil. I enjoy how you can evolve your process with the gf.

Pretty cool - I hope you didn't introduce a lot of HSA with the transfer to the bucket

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

I knew it was only a matter of time before someone brought it up. I'm shocked it took three days, honestly. Ha! I don't think it was an issue from the resulting taste. I've been led to believe that on a 5-gallon scale it's pretty much a myth, but I've never done a true side-by-side to put it to the taste test. Definitely not something I want to build into each brew day.

If you're going to sparge like that why not put a valve after that nozzle? that way you can have the nozzle full open and use the valve to slow the flow down?

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

Smart. I'll look into it.

@tube4waldek

4 жыл бұрын

Some replace the tap with some metal tap with a valve.

This looks like such a pain in the ass, excluding your brew day goof ups.

Since you have this now can we expect more brew days? Also HLT on cooler looks dangerous. Homebrew approved

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

More brew days in general coming up... with different equipment setups. But I do like the GF!

hahaha, that sparge water tank is just a coffee machine.

@pr0nstarz

4 жыл бұрын

yeah wtf? Probably find one cheaper

@tube4waldek

4 жыл бұрын

And the Boil Kettle of many home brewers is simply a 30L soup pot. So what?

@Bp323

4 жыл бұрын

@@pr0nstarz Like those big ones they use in soup kitchens, cafeterias, churches and stuff, the trick is just finding a big enough one, at that size it might not be that much cheaper.

@Bp323

4 жыл бұрын

also you'd need to either watch the temp and turn it off manually or find some kind of external temp. controller cause those things usually just have one setting that is probably gonna get too hot

Check out David Heath, lot’s of tips and recipes

wort does not boil at 212. set it a bit higher. Cheers

@ChopAndBrew

4 жыл бұрын

That is the highest it goes on GF panel.

@OldNorsebrewery

4 жыл бұрын

I didn`t know that. I hope your pale ale will be tasty. Cheers

@fdk7014

4 жыл бұрын

In the settings menu you can change the temperature where water is boiling.

Nintendo copyright claiim incoming!

I love your attitude but man do you need a checklist or something....things got pear shaped to hell!

@ChopAndBrew

7 ай бұрын

Pear-shaped. That is more or less my SOP. Ha!