All grain brewing starting gallons of water? Clawhammer Supply BIAB system?

Brewing Processes
1

I am getting back into brewing and thinking about buying the Clawhammer Supply BIAB system.  Has anyone used it and how does it compare with other systems.  How would you rate it?

Also, I read a couple of John Palmers books.  I know that the various recipes give a 7 gallon starting gravity.  He also says that he uses ~ 2qt of water per pound of grain to sparge.  With the BIAB system it is no sparge where one adds all the water to the mash.  So how does one know how much water to use to come to 7 gallons of pre-boil water in the kettle.  If I use the 2qt/pound it is short.  In the book he only mentions that in BIAB for lower OG he goes as high as 4.3.  So, how do I convert recipes to know how much total water to start with for the mash in a BIAB such as the Clawhammer system?

2

To figure this out I would start from what I want to end up with, then add all losses to determine what I need to start with.

For example, to get 5 gal in the keg, I’d plan 5.5 gal in the FV for trüb loss,  6.5-7 gal post mash to allow for boil off and trüb loss, starting with 8.5 gal to allow for grain absorption.  Of course, this isn’t actual data. You’ll need to use your actual data to get your results.

I am sure there are BIAB calculators out there to be more precise.

3

Greetings,

I do more traditional BIAB with a kettle and bag. However, I would believe that the software I use should cover your issues with calculating losses at the various parts of the process using more sophisticated equipment. See if this works for you.

https://www.biabrewer.info/download/file.php?id=5346

4

Hello,

I use this calculator and it has always worked well for me.

5

Don’t most systems like Clawhammer, Anvil etc. come with suggested volumes and brewing practices designed for their systems?

6

Grainfather has an app that calculates water volumes based on grain amount and boiling power.  I’ve found it very accurate.

7

I have the 120v Clawhammer, moved there from propane keggle/cooler mt and absolutely love it.  I do full volume mash and use an equipment profile provided by Clawhammer that sets my efficiency and it’s proven to be pretty accurate.  I use Beersmith 3 for recipes.
Highly recommend!

8

I use the same clawhammer system and really like it. No proprietary equipment means that if anything breaks you arent at the mercy of the company. It is pretty underpowered, so heating up the liquid takes a while, I bought a outlet timer so my water starts heating before I wake up to cut down on brew day length. There customer service is great too.I altered the recirculating showerhead thing that attaches to the lid, I just didnt like how it sprayed out. Now I gently return the recirculating wort with a piece of silicone hose.