Hi there shibolet and welcome to the forum. It's great to correspond with another brewer from another dry part of the world
.
I just wrote a reply to another efficiency question
here which may at least let you know not to get worried about it
.
A couple of other points are...
1. Don't be worried about high efficiency readings. These could be due to inaccuracies in your hydrometer or just a measurement error. It is pretty much impossible to extract tannins using BIAB. To do so, you would have to be pulling your bag at temperatures well above 78 C and have the pH of your water way out of range. See
here
Full-volume brewing such as BIAB is a high efficiency method of all-grain brewing. It should not be confused with "no-soarge" brewing which is something else entireley. So, you should expect average to higher efficiencies. (I have scored 105% efficiency once but this would have been a measurement error though I would have sworn by its accuracy!)
2. Because there are so many different ways of measuring efficiencies, it is important to define what efficeincy figure you are referring to. The Efficiency Calculator part of
The Calculator shows four different efficiency measurements. The "End of Boil Efficiency," is the best one to use.
3. Milling of the grain should not affect the efficiency as much as you have recorded. If you haven't done so already, start taking into kettle, end of boil and into fermenter readings. Doing three readings provides a check against the other two. (Also see 6 below).
4. As mentioned different recipes will give varying results especially if using
The Calculator as there is no adjustment for the different potentials of individual grains. I can't see
The Calculator ever being more than 3-4% out though. You can try entering the recipe into BeerSmith or another brewing program to get a more accurate idea of the variance between your recipes.
5. Regarding asking what figures other people are getting, a while ago I started collecting figures from a number of BIABrewers I knew (a lot who are now on this site) and put their figures into a spreadsheet. I'll attach the spreadsheet here but it might be a good idea if we worked out how to add more figures to this - maybe in the
BIABrewer.info Research section?
6. If you are not weighing your own grain, that is another major area for error. It is even a major area for error if you
are weighing your own! I once had someone write to me who scored about a 50% pre-boil efficiency. His method of brewing had been spot on. I finally concluded that he must have made a weighing error. He was postive that he hadn't and we even spoke on the phone in great detail about how he couldn't have made a weighing error. Two days later he called back as he had found a 2kg tub of base malt that he had forgotten to add to his brew!
Efficiency was a real issue for me when I first started all-graining and I think it is that way for most brewers. It shouldn't be an issue though especially with BIAB as there are very few ways you can bugger it up
. So, if possible, don't get too hung up on it. A good recipe will still taste great even if you do have a major efficiency stuff-up. It takes a while to develop the right disrespect for your own measurements whilst simultaneously developing some confidence in them - if that makes sense
.
Shalom
,
PP
P.S. Just saw dick's post above. We were typing at the same time though he is a bit more concise than I am
.
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Extract Efficiency
I've checked my numbers again and again because I thought there must be a mistake. My efficiency into kettle was the same which suggests to me that it wasn't due to misreading the volume or gravity. I mashed 2kg pilsener malt in 13L for 90 mins @65C then dunk sparged in 3L for 10 mins @ 70C. After a 90 min boil I had 11L @ 1.053. Have I made a mistake with my calcs? How can the efficiency be so high? 
.
. I have always really enjoyed reading and following your posts but often I am unsure on how to respond to them. For example, in your post above, my brain is asking for more detail and explanation 
.
)
