What is a good mash efficiency?

Most homebrewers achieve 65-80%. BIAB typically gets 70-80%, batch sparging 68-76%, and fly sparging 75-85%. Track yours over multiple brews to establish a reliable baseline.

How can I improve efficiency?

Finer grain crush, longer mash time (60-90 min), proper sparge technique, correct mash pH (5.2-5.4), and maintaining mash temperature all help. However, very high efficiency can extract tannins, so 72-78% is a good target.

Should I measure pre-boil or post-boil?

Pre-boil gravity and volume give you mash/lauter efficiency specifically. Post-boil values give total brewhouse efficiency including boil-off concentration. This calculator uses pre-boil values for mash efficiency.

How can I improve my mash efficiency?

Finer grain crush, longer mash time (60-90 min), proper mash pH (5.2-5.4), correct mash temperature, thorough sparging, and consistent water volumes all help. However, chasing very high efficiency (>85%) can extract tannins, so 72-78% is an ideal target.

What is the difference between mash and brewhouse efficiency?

Mash efficiency measures extract collected in the kettle vs potential. Brewhouse efficiency includes all losses through the process — boil-off, trub loss, transfer losses. Brewhouse efficiency is always lower than mash efficiency, typically by 5-10 percentage points.

BrewCalcs

Mash Efficiency Calculator

Calculate your actual brewhouse efficiency from pre-boil gravity and volume.

Pre-Boil Gravity

Pre-Boil Volume

Grain Weight

Average PPG

How We Calculate This

Efficiency Formula

Efficiency = (Actual Points / Maximum Points) x 100

Actual Points = (Pre-boil SG - 1) x 1000 x Pre-boil Volume (gal). Maximum Points = Grain Weight (lbs) x PPG. The ratio tells you what percentage of the theoretical maximum extract you actually achieved.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Last updated: 2025-02-20

All calculations are estimates. Always verify values and adjust based on your equipment and ingredients.