Whirlfloc = All The Trub!

[mrgrimm101]

So I was curious about something regarding whirlfloc tablets.

I have only used them for a couple batches now, and it seems to me that whenever I use whirlfloc tablets, it basically coagulates everything and it makes it so that I'm not left with a layer of break material and sediment in the bottom of my kettle.

The first time I used it I noticed that I ended up siphoning ALL of the contents of my kettle to primary. The whirlfloc coagulates the break material and makes it so that it doesn't settle as I'm chilling the wort. It all just gets sucked up into the siphon and the hop sludge gets strained out with a mesh strainer. Before using whirlfloc, I would leave behind the settled break material, as well as hop sludge, in the bottom of my kettle. This limits the amount of trub that settles in primary.

Does everyone experience this when using whirlfloc?

 

[soccerdad]

IMO Whirlfloc and/or Irish Moss is strictly optional. If you think you get clearer beer (I assume that is what you are shooting for) by not using it, then don't. If there is one thing I routinely forget on brew day it is Whirlfloc .. not so much because I don't want to use it, but simply because I forget.

The old adage will always apply and that is if you don't separate it out in the kettle, it will separate out in the primary .. and I have heard that Whirfloc/IM continues to work in the primary .. so presumably if it has not settled out a compact cake in your kettle. it will in the fermenter. YMMV

I have limited success with creating a trub cone using a whirlpool .. it certainly does help me leave 'some' trub behind, but I rarely have a neat compact cone in the middle with clear wort on the edges .. I'm curious - do you whirlpool in the kettle? It might help leave more in the kettle, giving you less in the fermenter.

 

[mrgrimm101]

The first batch I used it on was a pumpkin porter and that came out very clear. The 2nd was an American strong ale that was not so clear (I didn't strain from kettle to primary, which I think is why it's so cloudy). The 3rd batch I used whirlfloc with I brewed over the weekend, it was a milk stout.

It always separates out into the kettle and creates a nice, compact layer at the bottom..it just takes up volume that I don't always account for.

I've only tried creating a whirlpool once, with the strong ale. It didn't work too well. Go figure I learn about a whirlpool after having already brewed several IPAs.

I also kind of messed up on the milk stout because I started transferring from kettle to primary and then realized I wasn't straining with my stainless mesh strainer...so I dumped the wort back into the kettle, which kicked up anything that would have settled on chilling. I realize that this probably attributes a lot to why there wasn't material left behind in the kettle...but with all 3 batches using whirlfloc so far I've had nothing left in the kettle.

Also, I've heard that most people don't use Irish Moss correctly. The guy at my LHBS told me that it needs to be refrigerated when not used, and it also needs to be rehydrated before use. Could be why I never got much out of irish moss.

 

[ericbw]

I use it when i remember it. I get a similar result as the OP. It helps when racking to the bottling bucket or keg. I get less sediment in the siphon.

 

[Jeffinn]

It works just as well in the fermenter as it does in the kettle. I use it when I remember which is about 1/2 the time. I've never had much luck whirlpooling.

 

[erick0619]

You should check out brulosophers blog he has a article that talks about how trub actually gives you clearer beer.

 

[william_shakes_beer]

I have never used whirlflock. I wouldn't even know where in the drug store to go to buy it . I always strain my wort from the brew kettle to the fermenter through a stainless steel seive. When the valve stops flowing I close it, upend the kettle and pour the balance into the seive, then swirl it around to get the trub to settle to the center. Always heve a tight little cake at the bottom of the fermenter that is whitish gray (yeast) Always have a tight little cake at the bottom orf each bottle that does not move even when I ignore the shoulder pour and upend the bottle. I love me them tight little cakes. Especially on a big blond.... never mind, that's a whole different story.

 

[Roadie]

Glad to see I'm not the only one who forgets to add whirlfloc, even when I have it sitting on the table next to the kettle! We get clear wort either way but I figure why not use it for an added benefit. We have a filter in-line right before the plate chiller as well which catches things that could possibly get stuck in the chiller. Even then we end up with a decent amount of trub at the bottom of primary.

Some people don't care if their beer is a little cloudy as it shouldn't affect taste, but we usually try and get it clear if we can. I took a growler of our heady topper clone to a brew club meeting last week as one of the beers where the brewer talks about his recipe/process. Everyone thought it tasted awesome, but there had to be that one guy, the lawyer, in the corner of the room who said "did you ever think of using gelatin"! Uh... Heady Topper clone... Conan... it's supposed to look like orange juice dammit!

 

[Sippin37]

I use a hop spider to keep all of the hop crap out of my wort, but other than that everything goes into my primary. A 2-3 day cold crash at 38-40F and it is nice and clear above all the trub. Siphon from above the trub and it's all good. I don't notice too much of a difference when using Whirlfloc vs. not using it.

 

[dkevinb]

I use Whirlfloc and I do think it helps settle stuff. I've both dumped the whole kettle into the fermenter and whirlpooled and siphoned the clear stuff. I find the beer turns out pretty clear either way. The only reason I bother with the whirlpool/siphon is to decrease the amount of trub in the fermenter in order to increase the amount of beer I package.

My theory is that if I make more wort than I need, then whirlpool and wait half an hour before siponing I will have less trub loss in the fermenter and thereby maximize the amount of beer I package. I rarely get the nice, compact cone of trub many people seem to get. I think just waiting does virtually all the work