Zip Tie Death? In progress....

Okay dokay....I'm in the process of doing my first solo AG...

I have a hop bag and I had some zip ties on it to hold the bag on - I cut the ends off and one end flew directly into my wort...I still have 50 minutes of boil left. Do you think this is going to totally F up my beer? I mean I'm boiling plastic here...

DAMN

EDIT: I've tried fishing it out with a spoon and a strainer...no dice...

OK... Stop.... Take a deep breath....

Since you're using a zip tie on teh hop bag, you'e boiling the plastic anyway.

It's not what I would do, but I don't think it's a disaster, carry on...

Yes but, the intended zip tie was meant to stay attached to the bag and not, potentially, melting on the bottom of the kettle.

I'd keep fishing but, wouldn't stop regardless.

Hagen said:

OK... Stop.... Take a deep breath....

Since you're using a zip tie on teh hop bag, you'e boiling the plastic anyway.

It's not what I would do, but I don't think it's a disaster, carry on...

Click to expand...

Thanks.

Don't worry, I'm not freaking out. I get my grain for free so I'm not particularly concerned about wasting money...just time.

My hop bag zip ties are well above the liquid level so I'm not really boiling them.

I really hope I find an intact zip tie after draining off my wort...otherwise it's melted and I'd be drinking melted plastic nastiness later on...

get your grain for free eh! wanna be friends???

PUD said:

get your grain for free eh! wanna be friends???

Click to expand...

SURE~! Drive the 7+ hours from Cortez to Boulder and I'll treat you some free grain...after you spend $130 in gas

okay...just to document the situation...my hop bag just completely fell off of the HVAC reducer. Time to rethink that little device (think: large worm clamp...plastic=stupid idea.)

Luckily I was able to fish out the hop bag and the huge piece of plastic zip tie...still no signs of the 4" long strip that I cut off...

Bummer! And welcome to AG. When your every move is a complete disaster and your first batch attempt factors out to about $25 per ounce of beer, you know you are really brewing.

It really does get easier. I learned, even with the worm clamp, that inverting the reducer (big side toward the hot stuff), um, reduces the chances that the bag (and clamp) will come off. Had a couple close calls to figure that one out.

GilaMinumBeer said:

inverting the reducer (big side toward the hot stuff), um, reduces the chances that the bag (and clamp) will come off. Had a couple close calls to figure that one out.

Click to expand...

My lord...now that you mention it, it's completely simple. Put the large end on the bottom so the hop bag doesn't slip off...just need to tie it loosely...no need for a wormclamp or a zip tie at all.

GilaMinumBeer said:

It really does get easier. I learned, even with the worm clamp, that inverting the reducer (big side toward the hot stuff), um, reduces the chances that the bag (and clamp) will come off. Had a couple close calls to figure that one out.

Click to expand...

I started out with the big end down. After seeing all the pictures on here that people posted with the big end up and warning about the clamp slipping, it just seemed laughably obvious. Put the big end down, problem solved.

I still use a worm clamp. It is extremely secure that way.

How do you get free grain?

just throw em in loose... you'll get better utilization. alternately, why not just tie a knot in the bag like you would a garbage bag?

what kind of zip tie? most are nylon and have a melting temp of around 185 F. You might try a strainer.

B

Parker36 said:

How do you get free grain?

Click to expand...

It's easy if you can run fast while holding a 50lbs bag of grain

Parker36 said:

How do you get free grain?

Click to expand...

My brewing buddy is friends with the master brewer at a local brewpub...

I was in a hurry last night so I didn't completely drain & clean my kettle but hopefully I find the zip tie in there later today when I do.

uglygoat said:

just throw em in loose... you'll get better utilization. alternately, why not just tie a knot in the bag like you would a garbage bag?

Click to expand...

+1...I don't understand or can't fathom what use hop bags are for.

good news: the zip tie didn't melt...and I'm done using the hop bag...for now.

We'll see how today's batch goes.

culaslucas said:

My brewing buddy is friends with the master brewer at a local brewpub...

Click to expand...

Which pub are you talking about? I wonder if I've been there...I basically live in Broomfield so when I go out I head to Boulder instead of downtown Denver.

culaslucas said:

SURE~! Drive the 7+ hours from Cortez to Boulder and I'll treat you some free grain...after you spend $130 in gas

Click to expand...

Well want to be friends with me? I only live in Fort Collins.

Yeah, you could have several buddies from Fort Collins

TeleTwanger said:

+1...I don't understand or can't fathom what use hop bags are for.

Click to expand...

+2 ...hop bag? I don't get it. They never make it to my glass!

I use a hop bag. I don't like dealing with the hop mess. Forget the zip ties. Build this hop strainer. Easy-peasy.


Note: the pictures on the first page of the link are for some reason deleted, but there a plenty on the ensuing pages.

Don't worry! It might turn out to best batch you have made! Thats the great part about home brewing, its all about experimenting!

I use hop bags as well, and just tie them. Easiest way to deal with the sludge, especially with pellets.

I used a hop bag with my first batch, but just tossed them in the boil after that. I do PM and partial boil, so I have to top up with water in the fermenter. So, I pour from my kettle through a big strainer, then pour my top up water through the strainer full of hops. Rinses all the wort from them and aerates in the process. I call it "hop sparging"

Wow.

Is there some new policy I'm not aware of that permits us to only respond to 6 month old (or older) threads?