Filtering Beer - Good, Bad, (Ugly)?

[J2W2]

Hi,

I'm thinking about buying a filter system, like the type Midwest Supplies sells that uses CO2 to push beer from keg to keg through a filter. I'm mainly considering this to achieve a brighter beer.

I've read a number of posts in this forum, and while most of them seem positive (possibly because the members that reply already filter), I've also seen some negative comments. So, I'm wondering what the general consensus is. Is filtering a good thing or a bad thing?

I'd probably use nominal filters, since they are cheap enough for one time use, and Midwest Supplies sells them 5.0, 1.0 and 0.5 micron sizes. I know the 5.0 micron is for the initial filtration; would you recommend the 1.0 or 0.5 micron for the final filtration?

For those of you that already use this type of filter, is it always necessary to start with the 5.0 micron filter, or can you just filter once with a 1.0 or 0.5 micron filter?

If you filter twice, do you need to clean and sanitize the filter system between filtrations, or can you just switch the filter and go right to the second filtration? I know I'd have to clean and sanitize the first keg between filtrations, or else have three sanitized kegs available.

Thanks for your help on this decision!

 

[The_Bishop]

Be careful with how fine you filter; too fine will strip out flavor, as far as I know. Did that to a mead I made and was in a hurry to bottle. It was nice and bright but lost something along the way.

Cold crash and gelatin is the way to go to avoid filtering.

 

[Gameface]

I used to filter. I've since switched to using gelatin and would never go back to the pain and suffering of messing with a filter. That said, I got great results with filtering as far as the beer was concerned. I make 10 gallon batches and more than once while attempting to filter the entire 10 gallons I gave up after the first keg because of clogs and extreme filtering slowness (think 2hrs of watching beer crawl from the unfiltered keg to the filtered keg...no joke, 2hrs+...it's painful). My filtered beer looked and TASTED better, usually. You do have to be careful not to oxidize your beer when using the filter, something I did once.

You MUST use the coarse filter first. You will often clog that one if your beer is not already relatively clear from cold crashing. You will be in a world of hurt if you try to go with the fine filter first.

You MUST cold crash before using the filter. You need somewhat clear beer before using the filter. After I had filtered a couple batches I decided I could let the filter do the work and let a lot of the solids from my boil kettle get into my fermenter. I didn't properly cold crash and I went to filter. I think I gave up after about 2 gallons and ended up not filtering that batch.

There are a lot of people who USED to filter. I am one of them. I get great results using gelatin. It's so much easier and the clarity with a proper cold crash, which using a filter requires anyway, is easily comparable to filtering.

 

[RCCOLA]

I'm able to achieve very clear beer by cold crashing post-ferm and gelling. Filtering seemed like too much work with higher risk of infection and oxidation to me for no more gain.

A few gelled lagers of mine:

ETA: One added with 2 beers fermented with the same yeast, same age, both bottle conditioned, 1 with and 1 w/o gel.

 

[dadshomebrew]

I made the "mistake" of trying gelatin finings on one of my batches in addition to a cold crash and kegging. Now I cant stop, the results are simply amazing, and so fast.

There is some special enjoyment gained from oogling at a crystal clear pint that increases the enjoyment of the beer substantially.

 

[Zamial]

I filter with a standard house water filter housing and pleated filters. I like it just fine and my beers come out nice and clean. I perfer to use a 5 micron as it does not strip all the yeast out.

http://www.uswatersystems.com/water...hite-residential-filter-housing-2-5-x-10.html

and

http://www.uswatersystems.com/water...-x-9-75-polyester-filter-cartridge-wb-5w.html

Make sure that is the right filter for the housing you want I did NOT check that.

The filters work just fine for single batches and can be back flushed and cleaned to reuse. I personally try to filter all the beer I can on "filter day" to get the most use from the filter and then just toss it out.

 

[Sideways]

I used to filter as well. I didnt mind the extra work but I had problems with oxidation. The beer tasted great immediately after filtration but started to go downhill within days. I purged with co2 and everything but you really need to be able to flush deaerated water through the filter, and a lot of it, to have the best results. I just gave up and started using gelatine. Its cheap and easy and works great. FYI- I used cartridge filters, not plate filters. I dont plan on going back to filtering.