paint strainer for filtering?

[nchomebrew]

i read on a forum that you could use a paint strainer from lowes to filter when racking. the mesh looks like it's metal screen, but the funnel part is paper. would that hurt my beer if it touches the paper? can it be sanitized? seems like a nice inexpesive way to filter, but want to make sure before i try.

 

[Drunkensatyr]

Don't use that one, look a little harder. They have bags of 2 nylon strainers. They should look like over sized hairnets, paper will dissolve and he glues they use on the paper/metal ones can't be that good for your brew.

 

[nchomebrew]

kinda what i was thinking. i'll look for those other ones next time i am in there.

 

[Bobby_M]

There's no reason to filter beer at racking. All you'll do is aerate it. You just need to avoid the trub layer and use the racking tip on the cane.

 

[Beerrific]

There's no reason to filter beer at racking. All you'll do is aerate it. You just need to avoid the trub layer and use the racking tip on the cane.

Unless you are trying to get hop pellets out (from dry hopping). You can attach the strainer to the end of the racking cane that is going to be submerged to avoid aeration. Works great.

 

[Bobby_M]

That too. Never thought of it because I've only dryhopped in the keg with whole hops in a bag.

 

[brettg20]

These work great when dry hopping but I think these work even better http://morebeer.com/view_product/15685/102209/Bag_-_6_x_8_Fine_Mesh

I just tie one one the end of my auto siphon and it's that simple. Either way works well.

 

[ChshreCat]

These are the ones at lowes:
http://www.lowes.com/pd_126394-968-11583/12FF_0_?productId=1008387&Ntt=paint%20strainer&Ntk=i_products&pl=1&currentURL=/pl__0__s?newSearch=true$Ntt=paint%20strainer$y=0$x=0

 

[beesy]

These work great when dry hopping but I think these work even better http://morebeer.com/view_product/15685/102209/Bag_-_6_x_8_Fine_Mesh

I just tie one one the end of my auto siphon and it's that simple. Either way works well.

I have, and still do use these fine mesh bags and they work awesome!

 

[mmonacel]

+1 on the mesh bags. They work great to strain out the hop sludge when transferring to primary.

 

[NuclearRich]

+1 to the nylon mesh. Awesome for pouring into the primary, if you pour vigorously enough (by holding the kettle higher), the mesh really aerates the wort well.

I like the idea of using mesh tied to a racking cane to reduce sediment transfer. What about the same aeration principle? Siphoning is pretty low velocity, but the mesh is going to create turbulence... Food for thought I guess.

 

[jeffmeh]

If the mesh bag goes over the input of the siphon tube that is in a fermenter full of beer, trub, and CO2, then there is very little exposure to oxygen. Over the output end in a bottling bucket is a different matter.

 

[ghpeel]

Man I could not imagine life without paint strainers. I do my mash in the 5 gal one, and I've often wrapped the corner of one around the end of my auto siphon to rack, as mentioned in this thread. I also line my ale pale with one when I am transferring from kettle to fermentor. I fill the pale up, then lift out the bag. Hops and trub all come out in one big shot, leave pretty darn clear wort behind. I never got the hang of whirpooling so this works well for me.

I also have used the 1 gal size bags for holding hops in the boil, and I use them to strain the liquid out of my homemade cheese now too.

Buy them by the case!

 

[homebrewer_99]

Man I could not imagine life without paint strainers. I do my mash in the 5 gal one, and I've often wrapped the corner of one around the end of my auto siphon to rack, as mentioned in this thread. I also line my ale pale with one when I am transferring from kettle to fermentor. I fill the pale up, then lift out the bag. Hops and trub all come out in one big shot, leave pretty darn clear wort behind. I never got the hang of whirpooling so this works well for me.

I also have used the 1 gal size bags for holding hops in the boil, and I use them to strain the liquid out of my homemade cheese now too.

Buy them by the case!

That's basically what I've been doing since 1994. Not even hops go into the primary.

Makes it easy when washing yeast too since very little in the bottom of the primary is trub...it's mostly yeast.


I think you shouldn't use the same bag for hops and cheese though...

 

[user 34267]

Purpose specific bags are great but if you find yourself in a pinch, panty hose are cheap and readily accessible at virtually any Wal-Mart/drug store/supermarket. Snip the foot off and you've got a fantastic straining bag.

Has anyone found a bag that they could leave in during the duration of the boil? I love the idea above about lining the fermenting bucket with one but I ferment in a carboy so it'd be pretty great to be able to line the boil pot with the bag and lift it out before transferring.

 

[ghpeel]

I think you shouldn't use the same bag for hops and cheese though...

Mmmmm lactobasilis beer! Yum! https://cdn.homebrewtalk.com/images/smilies/drunk.gif. Yeah, I keep them separate

 

[ghpeel]

Has anyone found a bag that they could leave in during the duration of the boil? I love the idea above about lining the fermenting bucket with one but I ferment in a carboy so it'd be pretty great to be able to line the boil pot with the bag and lift it out before transferring.

If you've got a bottling bucket, use that, then pour the filtered wort into your carboy. Any clean 5-gal bucket will do if you don't have a dedicated buckling bucket.

 

[user 34267]

If you've got a bottling bucket, use that, then pour the filtered wort into your carboy. Any clean 5-gal bucket will do if you don't have a dedicated buckling bucket.

I thought about that but I was really hoping to avoid sanitizing and then cleaning an extra bucket.

Perhaps I will go the route of boiling hops in a bag. Doesn't help the break material but I'm not super compulsive, I just like hoppy beers and would like to keep the majority of the hop material out of primary.

I know I can siphon and filter on the end of the siphon; I'm just a little bit engineering-minded and am always looking for a superior solution to a problem.

Frankly, I have half a mind to build a round screen and use it like a French-press. Kind of like a false bottom in reverse.

 

[mattldm]

Would it be a problem to use a fine mesh bag to filter beer going from the secondary (dry hopping with loose pellets) to the keg? would this cause too much aeration? Or would it not matter since I will be pumping the beer full of CO2 immediately?

 

[mattldm]

Would it be a problem to use a fine mesh bag to filter beer going from the secondary (dry hopping with loose pellets) to the keg? would this cause too much aeration? Or would it not matter since I will be pumping the beer full of CO2 immediately?

Anyone?

 

[Walker]

I had to post here. I just picked up some strainers at Lowe's this weekend (and saw the link to Lowe's strainers in this thread) made by the company Trimaco.

Well.... i just snapped this pic through my office window, looking at the building across the parking lot:

I should walk over there and see if they'll give ma a bunch of the strainers.

 

[Walker]

Anyone?

This was answered earlier in the thread. You can do it. If you put the bag on the source side of the siphon, no aeration.

 

[Jrm1443]

This was answered earlier in the thread. You can do it. If you put the bag on the source side of the siphon, no aeration.

So, I am dry hopping a light ale and was planning on using a paint strainer. The the last time I bottled this recipie after dry hopping I got a lot of of sediment in my beer. I just toss the hops into the primary fermenter after 10 days. I was planning on putting the paint strainer on the end of my siphon that goes into my bottling bucket. It sounds like it's a better idea to put it on the end that goes into the primary? Thanks for the tip.

 

[SevenOaks]

With my last brew, I started putting each of the hop additions in their own 1-gallon paint strainer bag, tying the end of the bag in a knot, and tossing them in the boil at the appropriate time. That sure kept a lot of the hop gunk out of the primary. Can anyone think of any potential downside to doing that?

 

[augiedoggy]

With my last brew, I started putting each of the hop additions in their own 1-gallon paint strainer bag, tying the end of the bag in a knot, and tossing them in the boil at the appropriate time. That sure kept a lot of the hop gunk out of the primary. Can anyone think of any potential downside to doing that?

some say it effects hop utilization like using a hop spider... unfortunately there really isn't any real data to show whether this is try and to what extent that I could find....
I use a stainless mesh hop spider and I feel the hops make it into the final product just fine... That's all that really matters right?