New Hop Bong

[kohalajohn]

Received a new hop bong from BrewHardware. Very interesting.

I already had a corny keg lid that accepts the bong, so this should be good to go.

Couple questions.

Should there not be a prv on the top? Instead there is a brass nut.

Also the lever handle does not close all the way. It can get to one less than the last notch and that's it. Is it supposed to soften over time?

 

[Dgallo]

I don’t know this for sure, but is the brass nut the PRV? I have a few pieces of equipment where you loosen a nut/screw of sorts and it allows the air to escape.

The person who will be able to tell you how it works exactly is @Bobby_M as he owns BrewHardware

 

[kohalajohn]

Yeah, the more I use this, I see it's all good. The brass nut is the prv. And I think the butterfly valve is supposed to be this firm.

And I get why it's a wide bong with a reducer to fit onto the smaller opening for a five gallon corny. The wide valve allows a more free flow of the hops when you dump them. and the wide bong will handle any amount of pellets.

It's a pretty cool machine. Can't wait to try it out.

 

[Bobby_M]

Morebeer does put a PRV on the top but there's no reason for it in the assembly. You just loosen the brass cap on the top so that when you attach a low pressure CO2 source on the side so that the CO2 leaks at the top. Then after about 60 seconds of purging, snug up the cap and then turn the pressure on the regulator up to whatever the keg is at. Then open the butterfly.

The 2" butterfly valves are a little snug to operate when brand new.

 

[wepeeler]

The real question should be, "Can you smoke your beer"?

 

[kohalajohn]

Morebeer does put a PRV on the top but there's no reason for it in the assembly. You just loosen the brass cap on the top so that when you attach a low pressure CO2 source on the side so that the CO2 leaks at the top. Then after about 60 seconds of purging, snug up the cap and then turn the pressure on the regulator up to whatever the keg is at. Then open the butterfly.

The 2" butterfly valves are a little snug to operate when brand new.

Bobby,

Yeah I just figured this out an hour ago. Your brass cap method is better than a standard PRV. You can just leave the brass cap slightly open and your hands are free for a minute while you do other things.

And yeah, once I had the valve installed and pressed down on the handle it went all he way, satisfyingly, into the last socket. It's good that it's tight.

The whole system is so much stronger and shinier than the plastic Kegland systems.

 

[kohalajohn]

The real question should be, "Can you smoke your beer"?

Well, hops (Humulus lupulus) and cannabis (Cannabis sativa) are direct botanical relatives, both belonging to the same plant family, Cannabaceae.

 

[kohalajohn]

Bobby, I have another question. It's about using your hop bong with a Kegland All Rounder.

Right now I'll be using the bong on a corny five gallon. I bought the corny lid that rises up to a TC.

When I dump the pellets, I keep the bong, or the bottom half, on the lid, so the vessel remains sealed. And at closed transfer time I also keep the bong on, as I have gas and liquid posts available for the transfer.

But I have been thinking about buying the Kegland All Rounder and something seems very weird. Unlike the corny, which has posts outside of the lid, the All Rounder's default lid has the posts within the lid.

So ok whatever. But to use a bong, you have to buy a lid that sweeps up to form a TC. Ok. But wait a minute, what looks like posts sticking out at angles from this new lid, are evidently no longer gas and liquid posts. The web site says they are for immersion coils. And a thermowell.

And the you tubers showing a hop bong on an All Rounder, describe the posts as both gas posts. Certainly I never see a dip tube hanging down.

Does this mean that a few days after dry hopping, when it's time to do a closed transfer, you have to remove the TC lid, expose the bare wort to the outside air, and then attach the default lid?

That defeats the whole point of the hop bong. I must be missing something.

 

[wepeeler]

Can you attach something like this to the TC? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792Z9T29 That's what I have to open the fermenter on the bottom of the hop bong. Then I can remove the bong and attach whatever TC fitting I want. Either a PRV or this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089XY5SK7

 

[kohalajohn]

Good morning @wepeeler

I don't think that would work for me. Even if you replace the pellet holder part of the bong and put on that plate with the two posts, you still have to open the vessel to get a dip tube down into the vessel. That means opening up the vessel and exposing the wort.

But I think I'm getting closer. I read more closely and this time I see that when Kegland says the ports are for immersion chillers and thermowells, they are talking about the ability to drill additional holes in the lid. They're not talking abut those posts that stick out at 45 degrees from the lid.

So maybe you can start off with a dip tube inside the vessel after all. Perhaps one of those posts on that tri clover lid can connect to a dip tube.

It's strange that I don't ever see anybody doing that. All the folk doing closed transfers with a All Rounder are using the flat lid that came with the machine. It's as if they put on the tri clover lid to hop bong it, then a few days later swap for the flat lid to close transfer it. Weird.

Anyway. I'm obsessing now. My leg is healed and it's time to get off the couch and do something else.



`

 

[BongoYodeler]

I have the same hop bong setup attached to a corny keg, and it works like a charm. I bought all the parts from Bobby. I do use a prv at the top of the bong since I have a couple of them that came with the two oxibar kegs I bought. This is not a cheap setup by any means, but it’s the only one that makes sense in my setup from an oxygen-free perspective.

 

[kohalajohn]

All done.

Inkbird temperature sensor on the left, spunding valve on the right, and on top, a spaceship syle airlock.

"Open the pod bay door, Hal"

 

[day_trippr]

That's an impressive chunk o' stainless steel!

 

[kohalajohn]

That's an impressive chunk o' stainless steel!

Yup.

I'll hop when it's at full krausen. Will have to take the keg out of the fridge to attach the bong.

I now see that with this system, I can't start any german lagers or NEIPAs until I finish a closed transfer on this batch. From pitch to closed transfer, the airlock has to stay on. And I am only going to buy one of these.