More on efficiency....

[Clint]

I see your point. I use pellets in hop spider.

 

[MickDundee]

I’ve embraced my poor-ish efficiency. I know I get 65% and it makes it easier for me to plan my brews

 

[GerritT]

I’ve embraced my poor-ish efficiency. I know I get 65% and it makes it easier for me to plan my brews

I get that. I'd rather have a guaranteed 64% on point than my current swinging between 74 and 80%.

 

[BeerCat]

I get 4 extra points from doing a mashout. I drain the first runnings and sparge slowly to collect the second bucket. I leave it to drain and never bother to squeeze. I have hung up the bag before to drain but by then was only getting 1010 so I don't bother anymore. A refractometer has really helped me dial in.
70% is in no way bad. I was getting much less in the past.

 

[Martybhoy]

Can I ask what data you use to calculate this? I'm assuming you're talking about brewhouse efficiency?

I normally calculate mash effiency, using the grain bill, pre-boil volume and gravity.

For brewhouse efficiency, do I just use grain bill, volume in the fermenter and original gravity?

 

[Clint]

Your last bit...

 

[Simonh82]

It sounds like your mash efficiency is fine but if you are leaving a lot of wort behind in the kettle then you will always take a hit in terms of brewhouse efficiency. I transfer everything that I can and this gives me BH efficiency in the 80-83% range.

The trub at the bottom of the kettle is always light and fluffy. If some of that goes into the fermentor and is present during fermentation it always compacts down better by the time I keg it. In theory that means I've got more liquid out of it because it is better compacted than what was left behind in the kettle.