I'm building my system for 5 gallon AG batches and I need some sort of chiller. I know that counterflow chillers let all the cold-break material flow right into the fermenter, and I know that cold-break is good for yeast. What I don't know is if that cold-break material will cause chill haze if left in the ferementer. If so, I might just go for the immersion chiller. Thanks!
Counterflow chillers and chill haze
- Thread starter mew
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Chill haze can easily be avoided witht the addition of some Irish moss/carageenan at 15 min left in the boil. This causes the "break" material to glob together and fall out of suspension fairly quickly.
Sea said:Chill haze can easily be avoided witht the addition of some Irish moss/carageenan at 15 min left in the boil. This causes the "break" material to glob together and fall out of suspension fairly quickly.
I was afraid that maybe the globbed up stuff would re-dissolve if it sat in primary for a long time. I guess it's not really a big deal. Just trying to figure my wort chiller out.
Lil' Sparky
Cowboys EAC
Since I switched to a CFC, I get more cold break, all of which goes into the fermenter, and I have noticed less chill haze. I think it's only when you chill the wort slowly and don't get a hard cold break when you get chill haze.
Also, I thought irish moss caused the hot break to stick together. Not true?
Also, I thought irish moss caused the hot break to stick together. Not true?
I use a an immersion chiller and when the ground water is cold enough...this is the cold break I get.
The yeasties chewed this stuff up and I ended up with about 1/2 inch of compact trub after a could weeks.
The beer was crystal clear.
The yeasties chewed this stuff up and I ended up with about 1/2 inch of compact trub after a could weeks.
The beer was crystal clear.
Same here, after I switched from my immersion chiller to a CFC I noticed FAR less chill haze in my beers. I also always use irish moss at 15 minutes left in the boil. I don't think it is the combination of the two however because I always used irish moss with my immersion chiller.Lil' Sparky said:
Hey BierMuncher, I just swapped back to my IC from a Therminator. I get much better cold break left in the kettle now. I had to spend that kinda cash I guess to be taught. My last two beers are crystal clear because of it. I suppose I could always hook the Therminator back up as a prechiller for my IC water, lol. I will never go back to it for running wort through. I still haven't gotten it 100% free of hop pellets from it's first use and I used a fairly fine sieve post kettle to try and clear it up before going to the fermenter. I'm not going to knock someone for using one, but I think this is an advantage home brewers have over breweries. We had a ton of cold break and trub in the bottom of our conicals at the brewpub after transfer from the kettle. We used two CF plate chillers (one city water pre chiller and one glycol chilled). I mean what else are you going to chill a 465 gallon kettle full of wort with, lol. At home now, I have a ton of CB/trub in the kettle and clearer pre-ferment wort in the fermenter. Thanks for the pump and ice water idea for the IC whoever it was on this forum, it has really made me a happier camper for sure.
This is one of those personal opinion types of things though I think.
This is one of those personal opinion types of things though I think.
Lil' Sparky
Cowboys EAC
Wortmonger, interested in giving a fellow homebrewer a good deal on a used Therminator? Pick me, pick me! 
LOL, I will probably be holding onto it. I just can't believe the thing is that hard to clean out. I really did strain/filter the crap out of the hot wort before it ran through but to no avail. Everytime I let it sit after cleaning it and come back the next day or whatever it has more little hop residue.
A good cold break helps to reduce chill haze, but does not completely eliminate it.
Being English, I've never had a problem with chill haze because I never chill the beer enough to cause haze. However, I have American friends who insist on chilling my English ales to sneer freezing temperatures, presumably to ensure that they don't develop a taste for flavorsome beer.
When I switched to a CFC, the supercooled beer had much less haze then previously, but was still not completely clear.
-a.
Being English, I've never had a problem with chill haze because I never chill the beer enough to cause haze.
However, I have American friends who insist on chilling my English ales to sneer freezing temperatures, presumably to ensure that they don't develop a taste for flavorsome beer. When I switched to a CFC, the supercooled beer had much less haze then previously, but was still not completely clear.
-a.
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