So does everyone do this all the time or do you only do it for certain beers?
I do a vorlauf for every batch; no reason not to do one, in my opinion.
Vorlaufing is the initial recirculation at the start of lautering. It allows for the Brewer to catch any grain that was loose before the grain bed formed a filter. I do it every beer.
I guess with some constant recirc (herms or rims) it may not be needed, but with other systems it is for sure needed.
yup every brew…easy, effective.
Every batch, every time.
But have you done a blind triangle test? 
Every time on every run off.
When I batch sparge, I do.
Not when I BIAB 
Nope. Technically I could, since I do a pseudo-BIAB in a cooler, but I’ve never bothered to play around with that variable.
All the time, although I find with different systems more or less may be needed. Like today with my new round cooler mashtun and false bottom from Northern Brewer, I didn’t need to run much off before it was perfectly clear. Other times, it have have taken a couple qts.
Every single time here!
Virtually every time - but I wonder why, frankly. My initial runnings get pretty clear and I pour through a double mesh strainer to strain out grain, anyway…force of habit, I guess.
Every time. Except when I run run a little in the kettle and say, “Crap, the Vorlauf!”.
You do this to keep grain out of the boil.
I quit vorlaufing once I bought a pump for recirculation. I found that unhooking the pump lines, finding my two quart pitcher, vorlaufing a gallon or two of already crystal clear wort, then hooking back up my pump… just way too much work.
[emoji57]
As long as the wort is clear there’s no need to vorlauf. When batch sparging this is usually a couple quarts recirced back in. On my commercial fly sparge system I volauf for about 30 minutes, or until the wort in the grant is very clear and grain free.
It was a stupid attempt at humor. I dont vorlauf now that I recirculate… budum cha
Sorry
Same.
I used to do it religiously. But lately I’m not seeing the value in it. Grain never makes its way through the bazooka screen and my runnings are usually pretty clear. I tried a few batches without a vorlauf and didnt notice a difference (and no, i didnt perform a super secret blind triangle test).
It doesnt take much time or effort to do it but if theres no noticable difference then why do it?
I recirculate (vorlauf) two full growlers of wort carefully returning them back to the mash tun. Then I start collecting into my kettle. Every brew, every time.