WreckinBrewCo

Recipes 

I've recently changed a lot of things with my brewing process and now I have a few questions.

I just had 2 holes drilled in my brew pot, one for a valve the other for a thermometer. I also got an immersion chiller and a pre-chiller. My whole thought process in doing all of this is to not move the beer at all after boiling. Just set it up on a stand let it cool off then transfer to a carboy via the valve. Hoping to leave a lot of the trub in the bottom of the pot and not in the carboy.

After 2 batches this has not worked so well. I just brewed an IPA last night, when I was transfering to the carboy i passed the wort through a screened funnel. It started clogging immediately. I eventually just removed the screen and dumped the chunky mess right into the carboy.
Side bar: this IPA had 8 oz of hops so there was a lot of hop debris and it was the first time I used Whirlfloc.
My questions are, is this hop debris bad to have in the carboy? Will it give me off tastes? Did I waste my money on the valve in the brew pot? Should i just Siphon to the carboy?

Thanks in advance,

tedclev

Recipes 

I actually have a pretty identical set up. Short answer- No, you did not waste time or money. I personally use Irish Moss in the last 15 minutes of the boil and I get a great break. At flame out, before putting my chiller in, I whirlpool by stirring for about 1.5 to 2 minutes. By the time it's finished cooling, the break material and hops are in the bottom right beneath the valve. When I open the valve, it runs through a short piece of hose and into a strainer. Forget about the screened funnel, for obvious reasons. Instead, use a nylon mesh bag from your LHBS or a paint strainer bag; they are reusable and work wonderfully without clogging. Happy brewing. I hope this helps.

WreckinBrewCo

Recipes 

I appreciate the reply. I just ordered some nylon bags.
What about the hop debris that's sitting in the bottom of my carboy? Is this going to cause off or vegetable tastes?

TromboneGuy

Recipes 

I don't have a valve on my current kettle, and I ferment mostly in buckets (one glass carboy that's earmarked for mead now...) I just pick up the kettle and dump everything into the fermenter. Hops, trub, everything. No worries.

Brew-boy

Recipes 

I whirlpool and that has help me keep the hops in the kettle even when using 5oz of hops.
After whirl pooling I let it sit for 45 minutes with lid on then open the valve a small amount and drain into carboy.
Takes me 30 min to transfer but I do not want to disturb the hop cone.

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ThreeSheetsBrewing

Recipes 

You're just fine with all the trub in the carboy. It just makes for more cleanup when you rack out of the carboy.