Final filtration. useful tool or hype?

I ran across a link to a carbon filter tool to remove yeast and lees. Is this a useful tool or are there better alternatives for final filtering prior to bottling?

CarbonSnake Filter System :: Midwest Supplies Homebrewing and Winemaking Supplies

I found cold crashing and careful racking was all that was needed. I would shy away from using carbon in any finished product, carbon is normally used for removing odor and taste, seems it would do the same to aroma and flavor.

beerthirty said:

I found cold crashing and careful racking was all that was needed. I would shy away from using carbon in any finished product, carbon is normally used for removing odor and taste, seems it would do the same to aroma and flavor.

Click to expand...

Im not familiar with "cold crashing" How is that done?

Thanks!

Search around for more info, but the basics are put your carboy into a cold environment. This could be an open fridge or if it is cold outdoors, then just put it in the garage or outdoors depending on how cold it is. The cold helps to collect all the sediment and they drop to the bottom, helping to remove yeasties and crud.

You do not want to use a carbon filter on mead, it will strip out the flavor. Filtering small batches is a bit of a problem, since most systems are designed for beer or wine and the filter can result in losing a quart or more.

I cold crash by refrigerator at 34* for 3-5 days. As stated by Tusch the heavies drop out then just rack with the tip of the racking cane off the bottom of you secondary(whatever) so you don't pick up what dropped out. This works well with all my meads and beers. With this method I have served beer and meads as clear as the big boys and without flavor loss.

time and gravity are the best filters for mead. after you have racked the mead into the first carboy and topped it off with CO2 just let it sit. the cloudy stuff will settle to the bottom on its own. if this is taking to long and you want your mead now add some fining agents. they come in 2 types positively charged and negatively charged. they will bond to the cloudy stuff and make it settle to the bottom much faster.

positive agents:
Gelatin, egg whites, isinglass, sparkolloid

negative agents:
bentonite, keiselsol

just use one from each group and you should be good to go. they can be found online or at your local homebrew store be sure to read the instructions on the package. if you used any fruit in your mead you needed to add pectic enzyme a long time ago to break down the haze. it may still be OK to use it now.