Boil Kettle Setup Help

[ontum]

Hello,

I am trying to figure out the best way to set up my keg as a boil kettle.

Currently I am using the keggle with a bazooka tube, a Chugger pump, a Duda Diesel 30 plate chiller, and I use mostly pellet hops.

My last batch left over a gallon of beer in keggle after the bazooka screen plugged up, even with the pellet hops in hop socks. I would like to put a different pickup and false bottom, or maybe even a whirlpool.

What is the best method with my setup.

With the whirlpool setup I am worried the the pellets would more easily clog up my plate chiller. I don't know if there is anything I could put inline between the keggle and plate chiller to filter out some hops. Maybe a Hop Back or something?

My goals are to get more beer out of the keggle when transferring to the fermenter, reduce pellets in the wort, and not clog the plate chiller.

Thank you for the help.

 

[Dog House Brew]

I used to have the same frustrations. I think stainlessbrewing on here makes the stainless screen filters. They are a stainless mesh tube that hangs from the top of your kettle. I made one myself from a thread called "hop pig" years ago. One of the best investments I've ever made. Get rid of the Bazooka tube. Make you a pick-up tube that goes to the side wall of your kettle. Then you can whirlpool and only collect from the side. Add all your hops into the filter while brewing and you will be golden. The filter is great. If I'm not doing any kind of hop stand, I just pull it out with all the collected hops, whirlpool, and run it to the chiller. I have not had any hop issues since moving to this filter/pick-up setup. Good luck with your build.

 

[augiedoggy]

I used to have the same frustrations. I think stainlessbrewing on here makes the stainless screen filters. They are a stainless mesh tube that hangs from the top of your kettle. I made one myself from a thread called "hop pig" years ago. One of the best investments I've ever made. Get rid of the Bazooka tube. Make you a pick-up tube that goes to the side wall of your kettle. Then you can whirlpool and only collect from the side. Add all your hops into the filter while brewing and you will be golden. The filter is great. If I'm not doing any kind of hop stand, I just pull it out with all the collected hops, whirlpool, and run it to the chiller. I have not had any hop issues since moving to this filter/pick-up setup. Good luck with your build.

This is what I use with my plate chiller and has works much better than anything else I have tried... they are made and sold by Arbor fabrication I believe and sold on amazon and ebay and come in at least 2 sizes..(I have both since I upgraded to the larger one which gives better utilization)

 

[Dog House Brew]

This is what I use with my plate chiller and has works much better than anything else I have tried... they are made and sold by Arbor fabrication I believe and sold on amazon and ebay and come in at least 2 sizes..(I have both since I upgraded to the larger one which gives better utilization)

I knew someone would know who was making these. Augie uses a plate too, so good advice.

 

[ontum]

This seems like a wonderful option. I am going to pick one of these up and two of the glass carboy filters. I think I should be able to use the glass carboy filters in the kegs as well.

Which size we be best? augiedoggy, you mentioned that you got a bigger one? I am looking at the 6"x14" and I mostly do 5 gallon batches in the keggles. Thank you.

 

[augiedoggy]

This seems like a wonderful option. I am going to pick one of these up and two of the glass carboy filters. I think I should be able to use the glass carboy filters in the kegs as well.

Which size we be best? augiedoggy, you mentioned that you got a bigger one? I am looking at the 6"x14" and I mostly do 5 gallon batches in the keggles. Thank you.

I typically do 5 gallon bathes as well but I use a 13 gallon stainless pot... they do make them for keggle use and they are designed a bit differently because of the way they are suspended... My advice is to purchase one that will hang as low as possible without interfering with anything. you want as much of it submerged in the wort as possible. also I found the larger one creates more screen surface area to the rest of the wort. the smaller one worked ok but the screen almost seemed to plug up easier and prevent wort from flowing through and interacting with the wort inside if that makes sense... I like the 6x14 one myself because of these 2 reasons.
Good luck!
PS they are good quality too... I have never seen any instance of rust on either and I used one for 8 months prior to my brother in law borrowing it and using it. BTW I went with the stock micron rating which I think was 300 for pellet hops as they offer both 300 and 400 micron rated screen (300 being finer mesh)