IBU's affected by using Muslin bag?

[jpsulli]

I am brewing some IIPA's with large amounts of hops pellets and the last couple of times I completely clogged my bazooka screen. Planning on using muslin bags for the additions next batch but I was wondering if this is going to affect the IBU's? I see a lot of talk of people doing it but no mention of any adjustments that need to be made because of it.
Thanks
Jason

 

[giant]

Gonna be honest...I've never had a good dry hop experience with a bag. The result is either insufficient aroma, infection, or both. I've had fantastic results just dropping the hops straight in. I just make sure to cold crash prior to kegging, and end up with very little residue in the final product.

Edit:

Sorry, I realized you're talking about the boil...I never use them in the boil. Was more hassle than it was worth. I just filter on the way into the bucket via mesh strainer.

 

[Yooper]

You can use them successfully. A couple of important things to remember- make sure the hops are loose in the bag- so they are not constricted by the bag and the hops are bouncing around, and wort flows freely through the bag. Use as many bags as that takes. I often will use a hops spider for my bittering hops, and bags for my flame out hops (since they clog my pumps).
Oh, and I pull my bazooka screen when I use pellet hops, and just use a diptube because the definitely clog up a bazooka screen, even in bags sometimes!

 

[Cyclman]

I really like the large, nylon bags I got from Wilserbrewer. They are plenty big, so good circulation, and since they are reusable I don't feel like I'm creating unnecessary landfill.

 

[tjpfeister]

Just bear in mind, when using a hop containing device, that when using Irish moss or whirlfloc the snot produced tends to gum up fine meshes an reduce flow between the two volumes created. So, muslin bag? Plenty large, so much so that most the hop pellets will probably manage to escape. I have everything from tea infusers, to hop spiders, to one of those fancy stainless mesh cylindrical "cages", none of them yield the same repeatedly good results as loosely tossing pellets into the boil (cones are another matter). My $.02

 

[jpsulli]

Thanks for all the feedback, in the end I think I'm just going to pull the bazooka and use a strainer on the brew bucket. I dry hop loose and cold crash for a good day or 2 before kegging and have had pretty good success there.

 

[guitarguy6]

I use a big BIAB style bag for all my boil hops. Works great and doesn't constrict the hops at all.

 

[KeninMN]

I've never had a problem using muslin hop bags during the boil or dry hopping. Never underestimate the power of diffusion, especially in hot liquids in constant motion!