[Clint Yeastwood]

I tried BIAB, and now I see no reason whatsoever to ever use my Braumeister again. But I would like to improve the temperature control. I brew 5-gallon batches.

I put 8 layers of towels on the counter, and I moved my pot to the counter when it hit my strike temperature. I wrapped the pot with a cheap blanket. It wasn't too bad, but it wasn't as stable as I would have liked.

Will a big Inkbird sous vide machine solve my problems? Has anyone here used something similar? I would guess I could get rid of the blanket this way.

I don't mind moving the kettle back to the stove between steps. Not a big deal.

[BrewBama]

I’ve seen sous vide used to maintain temp on small batches. I am not sure how it would work for 5 gal.

[Clint Yeastwood]

Ebay says I can get a 72" x something sheet of 3/8" neoprene for $44. I could cut that to size and wrap the pot with it. Maybe the improved insulation, plus some practice, would eliminate the need for a sous vide.

[Richard]

Ebay says I can get a 72" x something sheet of 3/8" neoprene for $44. I could cut that to size and wrap the pot with it. Maybe the improved insulation, plus some practice, would eliminate the need for a sous vide.

You are better off using Reflectix (https://www.homedepot.com/s/reflectix?NCNI-5 ) for wrapping a kettle. It is good insulation, easy to cut and clean, and cheaper than the neoprene  you mentioned. I use two layers on my kettle and it works great.

[Semper Sitientem]

Ebay says I can get a 72" x something sheet of 3/8" neoprene for $44. I could cut that to size and wrap the pot with it. Maybe the improved insulation, plus some practice, would eliminate the need for a sous vide.

You are better off using Reflectix (https://www.homedepot.com/s/reflectix?NCNI-5 ) for wrapping a kettle. It is good insulation, easy to cut and clean, and cheaper than the neoprene  you mentioned. I use two layers on my kettle and it works great.

I made a Reflectix jacket following these instructions. Very easy other than cutting. That stuff is difficult if you don’t have a sharp blade. I used three layers. Worked great before I moved to an Anvil.
http://fermware.com/reflectix-insulation-jacket-for-your-mash-tun/

[chinaski]

I would guess that you'd need to stir the mash still with the sous vide because mash is a lot thicker than water.  Have you considered shorting the length of your mash?  Probably easier to maintain a temp over a shorter amount of time.

[Clint Yeastwood]

The more I read about this, the more I think it's a waste of money. Insulation looks a lot smarter.

[ynotbrusum]

A few years back there was a sous vide user for mash recirc - it was listed in the Zymurgy Gadgets issue.  I think it was submitted by a club member that I know - he used BIAB and held the sous vide heat stick outside the bag, between the bag and the kettle wall.  It worked for him on a 5 gallon batch (to maintain the heat, not to hit strike temperature).

[Skeeter686]

I've thought about using one of the wife's sous vide devices for maintaining mash temperatures, but always assumed the mash would be too thick and that it wouldn't work well.  If anyone has experience with this, I'm certainly interested.  I guess I could try for myself with a small test batch... and assuming that I don't end up damaging the darned thing.

[saaz amore]

I did this for a year or two, and I suppose it worked well enough. I had an Anova that I removed the sleeve from, and secured the sides of the bag so that they wouldn't get tangled in the impeller. I did full-volume mashes, and mash thickness was never an issue.

I think I tried putting the SV unit inside a hop spider once, but as I recall, the screen was too fine, and the heated water tended to stay inside the spider and not mix with the rest of the mash.

I used it both to heat the strike water (starting with hot tap water) and maintain mash temp. Eventually, the Anova started to make a groaning sound. Maybe a bit of grain got up in there. I wasn't able to disassemble it to the extent that I could find the cause. I still use the Anova for standard sous viding, but I don't use it for mashing anymore.

It was nice for step mashes, and it was a good way to hold temps. I was pretty limited to certain batch sizes, though, because of the min and max water levels on the SV unit.