siphon problem when using non-pellet hops

[mmr]

Hi all,

I've been having a been having a pretty annoying issue with the final transfer into my 6-gallon carboy after all's said and done when brewing. The recipe that I'm using calls for two types of hops, and for whatever reason, my local homebrew store usually has one or both in leaf, rather than pellet, form.

What happens is that the last gallon gets stuck in the brewing pot, because the hop leaves clog the siphon during the transfer. How can I deal with this problem? I could just make more so that losing a gallon isn't a big deal, and I tried that in the last batch, but then came dangerously close to boiling over until I scooped some off the top with a ladle, and then adding it back once more liquid had boiled off.

Even so, about a gallon got left behind, and the carboy has maybe 4 gallons in it now, and that small number saddens me.

So, how do I deal with a clogged siphon during the transfer to the carboy at the end of making wort?

 

[Yooper]

Pick up the pot and pour the wort in? You might need a big funnel, but I don't see why that wouldn't work. It'll help aerate the wort, as well.

 

[mmr]

There's a large cooling coil still in the pot at this point-- and no one around to hold the funnel. Taking out the coil could definitely be done, but I'll need a helper to hold the siphon (and a bigger siphon, and some kind of mesh over it to keep the hops out)

 

[Gman2]

I usually put my mesh bag around the bottom of my racking cane and that takes care of it.

 

[Yooper]

Siphoning to the fermenter can be a pain. I think I did it twice.

I'm a pick up and pour person, but the funnel I have doesn't require anybody to hold it. The long spout fits inside the carboy just fine. I also use buckets much of the time, so there isn't a funnel to hold.


A ballvalve sounds like the only reasonable option, if you don't want to use a funnel.

 

[mmr]

@Gman2-- Wouldn't I have to boil the mesh in order to use it at this point (and for that matter, sterilize any funnel)? I thought that pre-boil, sanitation isn't as crucial, but post-boil, everything has to be clean as a whistle.

@Yooper_Brew: A ballvalve, you say? I've never heard of this. Quick, to the internets!

 

[Skaggz]

Funny, I dislike pellet hops for a similar reason. I always use a muslin bag between ball valve and funnel. Even though the bazooka tube in the kettle gets most of it out, those sneaky bastard pellet hops make it through the bazooka tube and clog my bag. Some of them even seem to make it through the bag. I know it's not a big deal, but it irks me.

 

[mmr]

@Skaggs-- since I'm often mixing the two hops types, does that mean I should be looking at @Yooper's suggestion and going for a funnel pour (and get some friends to come over and help)?

 

[Skaggz]

@Yooper_Brew: A ballvalve, you say? I've never heard of this. Quick, to the internets!

Stainless steel kettle valve kit

Bazooka Tube-Goes inside the brew pot.

 

[mmr]

@Yooper-- I'm limited to a normal kettle at the moment, no valves on it. Had I the budget, and brewed a bit more than once every two months or so, I'd go for a new kettle with fanciness attached.

 

[Skaggz]

@mmr-- The pictures and links I posted above are addons for the kettle you already have. Just need to drill a hole in the kettle to accommodate them. No welding required. I installed mine, as well as one for a dial thermometer, over three years ago and they still haven't leaked.

The funnel I use looks like this one:

The spout fits right down into the carboy. See the little tab on the left? Thats to hang it on the side of the bucket if you're using buckets. Either way, no extra person is required to hold anything for you.

 

[msumike2001]

Trying using a hop ball/ tea holder http://www.midwestsupplies.com/hop-ball.html
or http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_SPM1333610101P?prdNo=8&blockNo=8&blockType=G8

 

[mmr]

@Skaggz, Thanks, but I can't see your photos for some reason. EDIT: and, there they are, must've been a reloading glitch. I like this idea. Do you put a filter in there for the hops, or let them go into the primary, and take care of them when you rack to secondary?

@msumike2001, thanks for the link-- if you go over 1 oz (for aa reasons, for instance), do you try to cram them all in there, or go with double (or triple) the number of hop balls? I thin with this recipe, I could conceivably end up with 4 in there, if I had to use non-pellet hops for each of them.

 

[Skaggz]

The bazooka tube is threaded into the coupler on the ball valve setup and sits inside the brew kettle. This filters out most everything, especially leaf hops. I then secure a sanitized muslin bag over the output of the ball valve for the wort to pass through as it leaves the kettle and goes into the carboy. This catches any rogue break material and pellet hops. The flow is pretty good as long as I scrape the bazooka tube with my spoon from time to time to get the hops stuck to it off.

If you try and just let it all flow out the ball valve without an interior filter, there is a chance that the leaf hops will clog the valve.

 

[Gman2]

@Gman2-- Wouldn't I have to boil the mesh in order to use it at this point (and for that matter, sterilize any funnel)? I thought that pre-boil, sanitation isn't as crucial, but post-boil, everything has to be clean as a whistle.

I usually just soak the grain (mesh) bag in the star san I am using for that day and then stick it around the bottom of my racking cane and throw on a rubber band (also soaked in star san).

 

[slomo]

If I am using whole hops in the boil I usually put the hops in a hop bag,and take the bag out before syphoning.

 

[Skaggz]

If I am using whole hops in the boil I usually put the hops in a hop bag,and take the bag out before syphoning.

I don't think it would matter either way.