cold crash questions

i messed up the other thread, so i'm doing it again. how long and at what temps do you normally cold crash? my brew has been in the freezer for a week at 36F and it still seems really cloudy and still has what looks like some hops on top that won't settle out. could i add some gelatin to it while it's cold crashing or does that have to be done while it's warmed up? or should i just give it a bit longer/different temp? thanks.

How cloudy are you talking? If this is in a carboy, you're in better shape to see it- shine a light from the top down onto the top of the beer. Look at the beer through the sides , and try to look up at the surface of the beer. How far into it can you see?

Did you use a whirlfloc tablet or Irish Moss in your recipe 15-10 min before end of boil?

You can add gelatin now if you want. It works great and it is easy.

I have the most success with clear bear when I use whirlfloc, cold crash for a week, and use gelatin.

i don't use whirlfloc or irish moss mainly because i'm a newb (only second batch) and i'm not sure about how it works or whether i need it. it is clearer than it was, but there still seems to be what looks like a few small deposits of hop residue in top and just below the top.

to use gelatin, do i need to let it warm up or can i add it while the beer is still cold? thanks for the help.

If dissolved, liquefied gelatin is added to a 37 degree solution it will just gelatinize and sink. It needs to be added to a room temperature beer. Gelatin however is not the solution for hops residue.

If you want to go to the extreme to clear up your beer:

1) Rack the beer (cold or room temp) to another vessel with a cheese cloth or paint strainer around the input end of the racking cane. This will catch the hops particulates.

2) Once the beer has returned to room temp (24 hours), dissolve one tablespoon of gelatin in 1 cup of cool water in a sauce pan, stir and heat until the gelatin completely dissolves. (Do not allow gelatin to boil.)

3) Let the gelatin solution cool for about 10 minutes and add to your beer.
Let the beer sit for 3 days and then rerack to your cold crash vessel and chill again.

are you going to keg it? it will continue to clear in the keg. if you've been cold crashing for a week at 36 deg, i would keg it and roll with it. you might be getting chill haze also.

no, i'm not kegging yet, still bottling. i'm just rying to figure all this stuff out as i go. i added the gelatin to it yesterday. it doesn't seem to have gelatinized. i'm probably just going to go ahead and bottle it this weekend and see how it turns out.