Cold crash vessel

[Rogue_Atom87]

Unfortunately my spike flex wont fit into keezer to cold crash so I have to transfer to 5gal corny. Id rather not cut off another diptube so was wondering if I could fill purged keg thru gas post so I can have filter screen in place on dip tube to filter trub when I transfer to serving keg

will running gas tube create an issue with splashing even if keg purged of O2?

 

[IslandLizard]

will running gas tube create an issue with splashing even if keg purged of O2?

You'll get tons of foaming!

Swap the gas post for a spare (somewhat shortened) liquid tube so you can fill it.
Once full swap it back out.
That way it's minimally intrusive and can be done rather quickly, thus exposing the inside of keg to air only for a short time. Then purge the headspace a few times for good measure.

I hope you're doing a 100% liquid pre-purge on that keg before filling.

 

[McKnuckle]

The only trub a filter screen is going to hold back is hop particles. Break material and yeast are too small and will pass right through. So perhaps it's not really a concern to just transfer your beer through the liquid post and dip tube. If you do have hop matter in the fermenter, it's going to clog in the poppet of either post.

 

[Rogue_Atom87]

It will be a liquid pre purge prior to filling. I imagine will be a lot of hop matter so I anticipate it getting clogged. Not sure how I can get around it. Next batches I could just use shortened dip tube and sacrifice a gallon after cold crashing

if I use ice packs and cooling coil I may be able to get it down to high 40s but that would be a stretch. Would this mini cold crash help in dropping some of the debris to the bottom?

 

[IslandLizard]

You can remove the poppets from both the post and QD to reduce clogging problems in that channel during transfers.

After cold crashing is completed, using one of those floating dip tubes should transfer clear beer from the top, pretty much down to the trub line, minimizing beer losses.

Forget that dip tube filter, as @McKnuckle said, it won't work.

 

[IslandLizard]

Another thought.
Instead of a floating dip tube when transferring the crashed beer, use a regular dip tube with some sort of rubber seal (stopper) on the threaded stub. Lowering it as the level drops and stop when you hit the trub line. Like a vertical racking arm.

 

[Rogue_Atom87]

I have floating dip tube already just never used it. Is it possible to fill a keg thru the diptube? This way dont need toremove fittings and let in O2. Only downside to this I wont be able to do liquidnpurge as I imagine enough water would remain to affect beer

I think I can remove legs on spike and put in RTIC cooler filled with Ice and let site for a few days. Not sure it will fit but worth shot. What temp is needed to get everything to drop out? All I have seen is “near freezing”

 

[Knightshade]

I've been filling (a whole 3, so I'm not an abundant pool of experience here) my past kegs through a floating dip tube straight from the fermenter without a cold crash. I have a floating dip tube in the fermenter as well, so 'most' of the gunk is already at the bottom so I'm not picking any of that up.

I've also been purging star san from the keg prior to filling with beer. In order to get rid of as much of the star san from the keg as possible I shortened the gas tube by little over an inch. I then hook up an ball lock w/o tubing, tilt and turn the keg upside down and a fair amount comes out. I can't hear? anything swishing/swirling around in there after doing that, so I figure there is a negligible amount of sanitizer left in there.

 

[IslandLizard]

I've never used floating dip tubes, haven't had a need for them (yet). It was just an idea to get around sucking up the trub, or prematurely plugging up your dip tube or screen/filter.

You've got a point there, how do you fill the keg without the long diptube being present? Have you looked for other threads on that topic?

Here's the way how to purge the remaining Starsan/water, once your floating dip tube bottoms out:
Leave some pressure in the keg, say 6-10 psi. Disconnect the gas QD, invert the keg, and stick an open gas QD on the gas post, over a bucket or bin to blow out the remainder of Starsan or water. Voila!

Re: cold crashing
The lower the temp the better/faster, but anywhere under 36F should do fine.
I put my ferm buckets in a temp controlled freezer at 32-30F. Depending on the yeast used, some beers are crashed almost completely within 24 hours, most take a few days. Lagers take a week, or 2, before they're acceptable.

If you use a cooler chest, you need to cover it with a thick sleeping bag, moving blankets or so, to keep the cold in, or you'll go through a ton of ice. Or put the whole system inside a rigid foam box?

 

[Rogue_Atom87]

Plan as of now

put fermenter in icebath for 12 hours to get as much as possible to drop. Closed transfer thru filter screen (20mesh) into liquid purged keg. Will be filled thru floating dip tube. Will then put keg in keezer to continue the cold crash for remainder of time before transferring to serving keg.

for next batch is there anyone makes a racking arm filter screen? I have seen tri clamp sleeve screen but cant be bent into shape of racking arm. Or just get another floating dip tube and attach to racking arm somehow

 

[IslandLizard]

for next batch is there anyone makes a racking arm filter screen?

I have made something like that, a 150-200 micron nylon mesh screen around a coarse mesh tube on the bottom of the racking cane for transferring cold crashed NEIPAs. Sometimes it works, but just as often it starts clogging up, stopping the siphon. And that's already happening way above the trub line.

 

[MrFancyPlants]

I know this isn’t directly applicable as everyone is doing pressure transfers, but when I use auto siphon I found hop bag around the input to the autosiphon clogged with trub and or hop particles. However, when I bag the output from the siphon, it is able to catch a fair amount before it fills up. (Replace every 5G of NEIPA hop amounts).

I just purchased a torpedo floating dip and screen which I haven’t tried out yet. I am curious if it can handle NEIPA amounts of pellet hops for a 5G batch.

What about an in-line filter? Initially I was worried about filters introducing oxygen, but as long as it is purged or hooked up during blow-off, that shouldn’t be an issue. Similar to my bag on the output rather than input, a larger vessel in-line, would allow greater surface area of filter and eddies and reduced flow should help too.

Newby here, but looking forward to hearing what you figure out.

 

[Bobby_M]

Beers will clear pretty well at normal fermentation temperatures as well, just not a quickly. You could always just give it some extra time.

 

[Rogue_Atom87]

I actually found a 1/2hp Transfer pump for pond on offer up for $20. Will fill my 65L Artic cooler with 40lb ice and water and let it run non stop when its time to cold crash. When I used submersible pump to cool down wort starting at 175F there was still ice remaining when it reached pitching temp. Hopefully this will get it down to atleast 40F and will then transfer to keg to chiller further in keezer

 

[Rogue_Atom87]

Well transfer pump blew a seal so now this is my ultra complex cold crash method for now.

 

[IslandLizard]

Well transfer pump blew a seal so now this is my ultra complex cold crash method for now.
View attachment 707590

I hope you keep that cold crash cooler contraption (cccc), above ^, wrapped up in a thick sleeping bag or such.

 

[Rogue_Atom87]

I added 40lb ice and water and will drain to add another 40 lbs later today. I will start budgeting $15 ice for brewing I guess until I find another solution.

Since I brew and keep everything outdoors Is there a glycol chiller in $500 range that can operate at 80-90F ambient temps?

 

[IslandLizard]

I added 40lb ice and water and will drain to add another 40 lbs later today. I will start budgeting $15 ice for brewing I guess until I find another solution.

Since I brew and keep everything outdoors Is there a glycol chiller in $500 range that can operate at 80-90F ambient temps?

Keeping it in an air conditioned home/space will make that much easier. I use a temp controlled, upright freezer for fermentation and cold crashing. Your conical may fit in one of those and still keep it accessible.

When chilling wort from the boil, regular tap water, even at 80F can bring the 200F temps down to 120-140F. Save your ice for the last 40-70 degrees, where it counts. Reclaim chilling water for cleanup, watering plants, etc.

 

[Rogue_Atom87]

I tried to put in my keezer but wouldnt fit. It is now almost 24 hours after putting in initial ice bath in cooler and there are still clumps of ice inside without having to refill. Plan to close transfer to corny keg today. Due to limited space ill probably just keep simple ice bath for everything. Once we get new hours ill have a dedicated area in garage and will get more equipment

For chilling wort I now fill same cooler with water from hose and throw in my 4 shock packs for the first half of chilling then throw in bag of ice and it gets it down the remaining temp pretty easily.

 

[IslandLizard]

For chilling wort I now fill same cooler with water from hose and throw in my 4 shock packs for the first half of chilling then throw in bag of ice and it gets it down the remaining temp pretty easily.

How big are the "shock packs?"
I would save them and the ice until the temp difference between the tap water and wort has come down to around 60-80F. It counts way more there than when the wort is in the 200-140F range.

 

[Rogue_Atom87]

I dont use shock packs when cooling wort. Only when cold crashing after fermentation

cooling wort I will use regular water dor dirst bit then add all ice until down to temp. Will then toss in can beers or soda for few days to save space in fridge. Dump water then refill when time to cold crash after fermentation