Try that, and add your experience to the pool (FWIW I’m with zorch and Denny.) Only sure-fire way to know what effect it will have for you.
I agree. I close the valve when I start to pick up the trub/break and leave it behind. My brewhouse efficiency suffers but… I’ve done it both ways and found I like crystal clear bitter wort in my fermenter so I whirlpool, let it settle, and use a pickup tube on the edge of the kettle. Inevitably, I get some trub/break …but really very little.
Notched lid goes on a few minutes into the boil. I was concerned about DMS but either I can’t taste it or it isn’t there.
The lid allows me to boil at low power levels. I’m typically only boiling off a half gallon now as opposed to over a gallon before.
Edit: During chilling or when kettle souring, I just use aluminum foil to form fit over that gap. Works just fine.
Thanks guys for all the replies !!!
I am going to whirlpool.
My process is going to be add the chiller, put on the lid, with the inlet, exit hoses handing out and start the pump.
Cool to temps and take out the chiller, put on the lid, whirlpool again for couple minutes then let the kettle set a while then drain to the fermenter.
Please let me know if that is a problem.
thanks haeffnkr
I have a large roll of foil. I brew in my shop, the foil serves as an instant clean work spot, and heat shield for hoses, temporary lids for vessels, etc.
I put my chiller in the kettle pretty much at the beginning of brew day, where it stays till cleanup. I have a recirculating arm on mine. So at end of boil, I cover with foil, hit the recirculation pump (whirlpool) and I chill to 170f, cut the cooling water and add whirlpool hops. After however long I choose to whirlpool the hops at 170f i turn the cooling water back on and chill to pitching temp. Then I pump to my fermenter. Done
As far as boil trub getting through to the fermenter, some swear that transfering only clear wort to the fermenter makes great beer. I agree! And others say you can literally dump the whole kettle contents into the fermenter and make great beer. I agree! I’ve done both with different types of beer, dark, pale, those with lots of hops, and those with just a little. My experience is that one method doesn’t stand above another. My opinion is that clear wort might benefit light hopped pale lagers more than other styles, but so would getting that chilled wort oxygenated and pitched as quickly as possible. So I don’t worry about boil trub getting into my fermenter
^^^^
Tangential to topic, but I also keep foil handy as an instant clean work surface (and of course other uses;) great tip.
I agree on both points. I had a discussion with Dave Houseman a couple years back about how much hot break should make it into the kettle. He said that a little is OK but not to overdo it. Then I also read (and agree with Denny) that hot break is good for yeast nutrition. That said, I really never worry about how much trub gets into the fermenter and I totally empty my boil kettle. I then push the wort with tap water until I see cloudiness start to appear in the transfer hose and stop. I could probably omit this step but I have a lot of wort (probably close to a half gallon) in my stainless screen and chiller that I like to get into the fermenter (the old “waste not - want not” adage). In addition, the hops, be it pellet or cones, form a nice filter bed on my false bottom that helps capture a lot of the trub. What trub makes it through the system is going to settle out in the cone of my conical pretty quickly
The only reason I really care how much trub goes into the fermenter is that I repitch, and it’s nice to know, when estimating volume of slurry to pitch, that it’s mostly yeast. That said, that estimation is an empirical process, so I could develop a SOP that accounts for huge amounts of trub. And if I used a conical, of course it wouldn’t matter at all.
Keep in mind, there can be a some downsides to allowing excess levels of trub carry over into the fermenter…
Much of the trub contains fatty acids/lipids that will break down and lead to premature staling of the beer once packaged.
As Brewbama stated above too, those of us that prefer to harvest yeast from our primary fermenters will also benefit with crystal clear wort going into the fermenter resulting in a much cleaner yeast slurry for storage/reuse.
I really like the design of their counterflow, if I upgrade to using a pump I might implement that. Looks very easy to clean.
I use a lid if I do a hop stand, although I’m not convinced they make sense as a home brewer. Lid off while chilling, back on while I let trub settle out. I don’t mind a bit, but 15-20 minutes cuts a lot of it out of the fermenter for very little risk (in my mind at least).
I’ve always wondered if aluminum foil is a “bug free” surface when used straight from the roll. It seems that it is.
I would think it’s not sterile but probably sanitary enough. I spray with starsan to quell any worries. I’ve not had an infection that could ever be traced back to using foil
I don’t spray foil that is used as a lid, it doesn’t come in contact with the wort. I spray foil that I use on starters or that I use to lay things on that might touch beer
I use unsanitized foil straight rrrom the roll all the time, including covering starters. Not a problem so far in hundreds of uses.
They make it by extruding it between rollers. I figure no bugs could survive the heat generated. And beer spoiling organisms are not likely to hang out in foil factories anyway. I too use it right off the roll with no worries.
Mr. Google says AL foil is sterile off of the roll.
Think of all the food that is wrapped with AL foil with no issues.
Sterile on the roll in the box. How long does it stay sterile once I pull off a sheet and lay it on a bench in my shop?
If it’s sterile, I’d think it’s as already as sterile as it will be after you sanitize it. You’re just up against the dust falling out of the air, which will always be there. If I’m going to leave something a while, I’ll just cover with another piece of foil.
I don’t autoclave anything in my brewery so its really just something fun to volley back and forth lol
I take that back… my starter wort is autoclaved