Wort Lost to Hop Debris

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jwsquared

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Has anyone figured the quantity of wort that gets lost if the you remove the hop debris created during the boil. Specifically, if you are using pellet hops and a mesh bag to contain the hops during the boil, how much gets lost when you pull the bag out of the wort?
 
Has anyone figured the quantity of wort that gets lost if the you remove the hop debris created during the boil. Specifically, if you are using pellet hops and a mesh bag to contain the hops during the boil, how much gets lost when you pull the bag out of the wort?

While laughing at the previous post, it all depends on how many additions there are and the quantity of hops used. Obviously if brewing an IPA with toms of hops you are going to lose more than say a simple beer with a total of 1oz of hops used.

Personally I consider the amount of actual wort lost directly to the hops to be negligible. The true loss comes from the actual dead space in the kettle that does not drain unless you are one to just dump all the contents into the primary as some do.

If you use whole leaf hops the amount can become considerable as they tend to absorb quite a bit of liquid.
 
Weigh the bag full of hops after you take it out, subtract the weight of dry hops you added and the weight of the dry bag. That will give you the weight of the absorbed wort. Figure out the volume of that weight. Divide that number into the number of ounces of dry hops you added to figure out how much wort is absorbed per ounce of hops. I'm betting the number is not significant.
 
I use 0.15 quarts per ounce of hops, for whole cones.

Data indicates anywhere from .15 to .25 to .50…all over the map, but I've been pleased with 0.15.
 
Weigh the bag full of hops after you take it out, subtract the weight of dry hops you added and the weight of the dry bag. That will give you the weight of the absorbed wort. Figure out the volume of that weight. Divide that number into the number of ounces of dry hops you added to figure out how much wort is absorbed per ounce of hops. I'm betting the number is not significant.

You kind Sir are a Freakin' Mathematical Genius, That is AWESOME!

Thanks from us, the mathematically impaired!
 
I bag my pellet hops. When I take them out I squeeze the wort out so I don't lose a significant amount. (except when dryhopping. I wouldn't then because of oxidation risk)
 
Thank's to all who responded. Just a little additional background:

I am fairly new to this and have noticed that when I lift the bag out of the brew kettle, there is a noticable drop in the liquid level. Much more than would be expected from the volume of the pellet hops originally added during the boil. I do not squeeze the bag, since I don't want to risk contaminating the wort with anything that might be on my hands. I suppose I could use sterilized brewers gloves. I'm going to try and quantify this going forward, but I was curious if someone else had all ready gone thorugh the math.
 
I put my fine mesh strainer over the BK & use the back of my paddle to squeeze the excess juice out. Gots ta have them hop squeezins!:drunk:
 
I do not squeeze the bag, since I don't want to risk contaminating the wort with anything that might be on my hands.

I squeeze the bag all the time, never had a problem. Remember, they're hops - nearly infection-proof. Usually get an extra quart.

Just dip your hands in sanitizer. Or gloves.
 
I squeeze the bag all the time, never had a problem. Remember, they're hops - nearly infection-proof. Usually get an extra quart.

Just dip your hands in sanitizer. Or gloves.

I usually just roll hop bag (after giving hands a spray of starsan) from hop spider almost like a tube of toothpaste. It's usually way too hot to squeeze with hands. If I don't squeeze I just let hop bag in until final kettle run out, most of the liquid has drained out by then.
 

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