FreddyMar3
Well-Known Member
I dont know about you all, but I am one of those people that HATES when any amount of hops or grain sediment get into my fermenter from the BK. I have tried a number of solutions (SS scrub pad, strainer in funnel, etc.) but nothing seemed to provide the level of straining I was looking for without getting clogged or sacrificing an unacceptable amount of wort. Even whirlpooling is limited in its efficacy when using large quantities of hops (at least it never works well for me).
My most recent endeavor was a plan to use an extra bazooka screen I had laying around and fitting that into the kettle. I did a bit of research and it sounds like most people have the same problem with bazooka screens and false bottoms that I had with my other methods; the cold break and hops combine to form a thick impenetrable sludge.
Despite the obvious outcome, I was determined to give it a try and chose to employ some of the techniques that are supposed to help with the straining:
1. Use a portion of leaf hops since pellets clog more readily
2. Put any pellet additions in a hop bag.
With these strategies in tow, I set off installing the bazooka screen. My BK has a welded ball valve and there is no threading on the inside so as a solution I simply took a 3 inch section of 5/8 OD high temp silicone tubing which fit snuggle inside the screen and ball valve. Easiest installation ever. Moreover, if I got a clog, I could use my spoon to finagle the screen off and let the wort flow uninhibited.
The night before brewing, I was mulling over the whole process and still worried about it getting stuck when a simple solution occurred to me. The cold break is what really is causing the issues here as it is the cement that holds all the hop particles together. Why not just run off the wort while hot into another kettle or bucket? I was doing a 165F hop stand anyway so this would be a good way to quickly get the wort off of the hops and prevent further isomerization during chilling.
Couldn't have been happier with the results. Yes it is one more piece of equipment to clean but worth the results IMHO. I should have taken more pictures but this one probably sums it up best:
My most recent endeavor was a plan to use an extra bazooka screen I had laying around and fitting that into the kettle. I did a bit of research and it sounds like most people have the same problem with bazooka screens and false bottoms that I had with my other methods; the cold break and hops combine to form a thick impenetrable sludge.
Despite the obvious outcome, I was determined to give it a try and chose to employ some of the techniques that are supposed to help with the straining:
1. Use a portion of leaf hops since pellets clog more readily
2. Put any pellet additions in a hop bag.
With these strategies in tow, I set off installing the bazooka screen. My BK has a welded ball valve and there is no threading on the inside so as a solution I simply took a 3 inch section of 5/8 OD high temp silicone tubing which fit snuggle inside the screen and ball valve. Easiest installation ever. Moreover, if I got a clog, I could use my spoon to finagle the screen off and let the wort flow uninhibited.
The night before brewing, I was mulling over the whole process and still worried about it getting stuck when a simple solution occurred to me. The cold break is what really is causing the issues here as it is the cement that holds all the hop particles together. Why not just run off the wort while hot into another kettle or bucket? I was doing a 165F hop stand anyway so this would be a good way to quickly get the wort off of the hops and prevent further isomerization during chilling.
Couldn't have been happier with the results. Yes it is one more piece of equipment to clean but worth the results IMHO. I should have taken more pictures but this one probably sums it up best:
