Fining agent

[Coddy]

Hi
I'm new to all this.
I'm just in the process of making some IPA & was going to put some fining agent in it, to clear it.
At what point do I put them in & how much to put in? I was going to siphon it out of the fermenting bin into Demijohns & add it then, but still unsure

 

[brewdude88]

What type of fining agent are we talking here? There are many different types.

On a side note, are you using kettle finings (Irish miss or whirfloc) during the boil? If not, I would suggest starting there, then moving to cold side fining if you still find you are unhappy with clarity.

 

[Coddy]

What type of fining agent are we talking here? There are many different types.

On a side note, are you using kettle finings (Irish miss or whirfloc) during the boil? If not, I would suggest starting there, then moving to cold side fining if you still find you are unhappy with clarity.

What type of fining agent are we talking here? There are many different types.

On a side note, are you using kettle finings (Irish miss or whirfloc) during the boil? If not, I would suggest starting there, then moving to cold side fining if you still find you are unhappy with clarity.

Thanks for your reply, the fining agent is just some I brought in Wilkos with my homebrew kit.
I didn't know there are different types.

 

[brewdude88]

Is it the Willkos beer fining (small packet)? If so, I think it might just be an expensive packet of gelatin. Not sure though, as there is no ingredient listing on the site.

I wish when I was new to brewing that I had skipped cold side fining. Most of the home brewers I know use only kettle finings mixed with cold conditioning and time, the ones that do cold side fining typically use a gelatin solution in cold-crashed beer which works quickly and costs almost nothing.

If you are new to brewing, I would suggest you focus more on sanitation, temp control and reducing oxidation between fermentation and packaging before worrying too much about clarity.

Just my .02 cents

 

[Stormcrow]

I'm still pretty new myself, and haven't used either kettle finings or gelatin on the cold side yet. Wanted to get flavor right first. That said, I've been pretty pleased with the clarity of my finished beers. Time and cold will work wonders. (IPAs may be a different beast though.) I do plan on fining eventually, just to up my game, but since it doesn't really affect flavor, I don't worry much about it.

 

[Jocky]

The short answer is that you should add it in the fermenter when fermentation is done and give it at least 24 hours before doing anything else with the beer.

You mentioned siphoning to demijohns - personally I'd just go straight into bottles a few days after fermentation is done. Less chance of infection or oxidation.

 

[Bramling Cross]

How are you planning to package your beer? Are you able to chill your beer prior to fining?

As mentioned above, there are many fining agents and they're all a bit different. Most, however, are only useful when the beer is cold and most will also knock your yeast out of suspension. If you're planning to use natural carbonation in a keg or bottles, fining might ruin your carbonation method. If you're unable to chill your beer prior to fining, it may be a pointless endeavor.

It all depends upon the agent you have available. I'm unfamiliar with Wilkos, but I think you need to talk to them and find out what type of agent you have, and how they suggest using it.

I certainly don't want to discourage you from utilizing finings. Fining is easy, effective, and a very much traditional part of brewing, but before you give it a shot, you really need to know what your agent is and how to best utilize it.

 

[Jocky]

I think that Wilkos beer finings is chitosan, so it just needs to be mixed in to the beer once fermentation is done, and before packaging.

 

[Jag75]

Bentonite works better at room temp then cold. It works amazingly on mead. Not sure about beer though.

 

[Brewbuzzard]

When I fine a beer that needs to be brilliantly clear I get the beer cold in the fermenter once fermentation is complete and I swirl the finning in and let it set for a few days. Then I transfer to a purged keg leaving the trub and yeast behind and force carbonate.

The finning I use is unflavored gelatin from the grocery. I boil a half cup of water let it cool down a bit to just very warm stir in half a packet of the gelatin until dissolved then add to the fermenter per above instructions.

Note: The first pint or two may be a bit cloudy but once that's done it's crystal clear beer.

 

[Jag75]

Heres my Mexican lager . No fining agents just time in the keg

 

[SEndorf]

No fining agents just time in the keg

+1
I've messed with isinglass and gelatin in the past. In my experience, nothing works better than a couple of weeks undisturbed in the keg.

 

[IslandLizard]

I was going to siphon it out of the fermenting bin into Demijohns & add it then

Racking into another vessel opens your beer up to oxidation, and infection and won't make it any clearer. Please leave it in the same fermenter it is in now. Your beer will thank you for it later.

Everything should settle out on the bottom, all by itself, give it a week or 2.
As others have said, cold crashing in a fridge for a few days assisted with some (unflavored Knox) gelatin will speed that up.

Then when transferring the beer to a bottling bucket or keg, be careful not to disturb the trub layer. Don't stick your siphon/cane all the way on the bottom in the trub, but suspend it somewhere in the middle, between the trub and the beer surface. Use a carboy cap or a siphon clip to hold your siphon/cane at the right height. Lower the cane as the beer level drops but keep it above the trub. Tilt fermenter toward the end to keep the well you're siphoning from deeper.

Attaching one of those plastic inverter tippies to the bottom of the cane helps too, as it directs the flow to come from above, not from below. As soon as you start sucking trub, stop the transfer.

 

[Mutant]

Bentonite works better at room temp then cold. It works amazingly on mead. Not sure about beer though.

Two considerations about bentonite - don't inhale the powder and it can have lead in it. Make sure it is food-grade bentonite.