Biodiesel filters to Increase Brewhouse Efficiency

[Haussenbrau]

First I am going to describe my equipment.

Mash Tun: 5-gallon Igloo drink cooler
HLT: 5-gallon Igloo drink cooler
Boil Kettle: 10-gallon Polarware with ball valve (0.6 gallon dead space)
Boil kettle also used to heat strike water and sparge water.

I used the fly sparge method when I first started all grain. I now use double batch sparge. Now onto the subject at hand.

The issue that I had: I brew 5-gallon batches which means I start with 5.5 gallons in the primary. That means I would have a 10% hit in my Brewhouse efficiency with a 0.6 gallon dead-space in the boil kettle. If I tilted the kettle and tried to whirlpool then the hops, hot break and cold break would end up in the fermentor.

I did some research on the internet and found biodiesel filters that fit on top of buckets. I do a single pass through a 200 micron filter for Porters and Stouts. I do a double pass for lighter beers. The double pass procedure is 200 micron followed by 75 micron. The 200 micron filter mainly catches the hops and the 75 micron filter catches fine hop particles, hot break, and cold break.

I end up with very clear beer without sacrificing Brewhouse Efficiency. You will need a vat of Star San to sanitize the filters. You will need to back flush the filters every 1 to 2 gallons. This does vary depending on what you are brewing.

This only works with immersion chillers. I would not risk using this procedure before the wort is chilled as that could cause hot side oxidation.

I posted this just to give others an idea.

 

[JohnSand]

Thanks for the review. I am thinking of using those filters too. Currently I strain the wort through a five gallon fabric paint strainer. It takes plenty of squeezing to get the wort out.

 

[C-Rider]

I use paint bucket filters that look almost like yours. They too fit in the plastic bucket, 5 or 6.5 gal. Not sure about the micron size.


[URL="

 

[PeteNMA]

Do you have a link to your source? Looks like they could be useful...

 

[JohnSand]

I found them on both ebay and Amazon.

 

[Haussenbrau]

I found them on both ebay and Amazon.

Amazon is the best source.
They are cheap. I would recommend getting one 200 micron and one 75 micron filter.

 

[haberdasher]

I actually just found these on Amazon as well and was thinking about trying them out. Thanks for your review and micron recommendations.

 

[ross_daly]

I like this idea!
it looks like this is the 200 micron filter. They also sell tube-like bags like this that look like they may work without backflushing too much. If we really want to get crazy then previously I posted this bubble bag setup that has 3 bag filtration.

Do both of the filters clog up? Maybe you could get by with adding a pre filter of a bigger mesh.

I think that this could be useful for all types of brewers. This could be used to get the last bit of wort out of the cold break, and also be used to get the last few pints out of the trub when racking into secondary.

 

[Haussenbrau]

I like this idea!
it looks like this is the 200 micron filter. They also sell tube-like bags like this that look like they may work without backflushing too much. If we really want to get crazy then previously I posted this bubble bag setup that has 3 bag filtration.

Do both of the filters clog up? Maybe you could get by with adding a pre filter of a bigger mesh.

I think that this could be useful for all types of brewers. This could be used to get the last bit of wort out of the cold break, and also be used to get the last few pints out of the trub when racking into secondary.

The 200 micron clogs up proportionally to the amount of hops that are in the boil. Generally you can get by with only one or two back flushes.

The 75 micron takes out more of the hot and cold break and is useful to reduce chill haze.

That is why I do not use the 75 micron filter for Porters, Stouts, or other dark beers. I will use the 75 micron filter if I plan on submitting a lower SRM beer in a competition.

 

[negativereaction]

So what is the workflow on this? Are you basically pouring from your kettle into the 200m filter into a bucket, then pouring from that bucket through a 75m filter into another bucket?

 

[Evan_L]

how do you back flush it? I have seen these recently and really want to try it as I get great mash efficiency but poor brewhouse efficiency, generally 55% with 2.25G of crap left in the kettle. I have been hesitant as I've heard it does require a back flush but it seems like that would be a PITA. Do you pour through it or siphon into it?

 

[Haussenbrau]

My boil kettle has a valve at the bottom.

Yes you need two sanitized buckets. You filter through the 200 micron into the first bucket. It helps if this bucket has a valve at the bottom also. Then you filter from the first bucket into the second bucket through the 75 micron filter. That is why I skip the 75 micron filter for dark beers. It is not work the work when there is no clarity to see.

 

[Haussenbrau]

My boil kettle has a valve at the bottom. You will need two sanitized buckets. You filter through the 200 micron filter into the first bucket. Then you filter from the first bucket through the 75 micron filter into the second bucket. It help if the first bucket also has a valve. That is why I do not use the 75 micron filter for dark beers. It is not worth the PITA when you can not see the clarity.

Sorry about the duplicate reply. The first reply did not show up at first.

 

[Haussenbrau]

how do you back flush it? I have seen these recently and really want to try it as I get great mash efficiency but poor brewhouse efficiency, generally 55% with 2.25G of crap left in the kettle. I have been hesitant as I've heard it does require a back flush but it seems like that would be a PITA. Do you pour through it or siphon into it?

I dump the residue and back flush with a sink sprayer that I have in my brew kitchen. I the give it a quick soak in Starsan and continue filtering.

 

[Evan_L]

Cool, do you think they would work well stacked, 75 below the 200, and filter in one shot or do they fit together too closely?

 

[Haussenbrau]

Cool, do you think they would work well stacked, 75 below the 200, and filter in one shot or do they fit together too closely?

They do fit together very closely. I have never tried to stack them. I have been afraid of a disaster. I have taught of trying it but have never done it. I am not sure which filter would plug first. It would depend on two factors. First how much hops were added to the boil and second how much hot and cold break that you get. I add Whirlfloc to every batch and get a good hot and cold break.

Please post your results if you decide to stack them.

 

[Evan_L]

Will do