Whirlpool - The big How-To

[WBC]

Thanks Kai. I guess servers drop the links to the pictures?

 

[Kaiser]

Some of the pictures are still in my gallery, but some are missing. Unsure what happened, but the wiki is more likely to be up to date.

Kai

 

[davidstark]

What is wrong with the pictures? deleted? :O

 

[Kaiser]

Check here: Whirlpooling - German Brewing Techniques

Kai

 

[isleofman]

nice! Thanks for the info. I have "whirlpooled" my last two AG batches, but I was unaware that you had to let it sit for 20 - 30 minutes. clearer beer, here I come.

 

[SamBrewer]

thanks Kai!! now I know what went wrong the first time i tried to whirpool !!

 

[BioBeing]

I had a big Eureka! moment on my last batch when I realised it was so much easier to take the IC out before trying to whirlpool! And time helps too - Stokes law ftw!

 

[greenbirds]

I have only gotten my whirlpool to work once. I have tried it with many beers and tend to to get a flat layer of trub on the pot bottom that comprises about 20% of the wort -- too much for me to sacrifice. I am wondering if I actually do get the cone of hot break, but the cold break settling on top of it obscures my view.

The only time it worked was with a hefeweizen where I did not add a whirlfloc tablet. My theory was that I did not get a get cold break due to this, so even after whirlpool + 30 minutes, the cold break was still suspended, allowing me to see the hot break cone once the wort/suspended cold break had been siphoned away.

Any thoughts?

 

[millstone]

I have never gotten my whirlpool to work. I have tried it with many beers and I also get a flat layer of trub on the pot bottom. After reading through all of this, I wonder if I'm letting it sit to long, I let it go for an hour + while I have lunch or cleanup. I'll have to try the 20-30 minutes routine and see how that works

thanks

tom

 

[Brew-boy]

I have tried this on my system and never seem to get it to work. All of the kettle pictures I have seen do not have anything sticking inside them like a probe or weldless fitting. When I try the whirlpool my probe seems to cut the vortex from forming. Any one else have this problem?

 

[annasdadhockey]

This is what my trub cone looks like when I use the whirlpool method.

 

[isleofman]

I just did this for the first time with my pumpkin ale and it worked like a charm! Thanks kai, the pictures helped tremendously.

 

[pompeiisneaks]

so I do have a question... I've got a keggle w/ a dip tube and a false bottom. This means my drain is out the bottom center... which to me means that the whirlpooling technique won't help because I'm draining out the bottom. Does that mean my only option is to then do some form of cold trub removal? (I usually leave my trub in primary fermentation anyway, but wouldn't mind finding a way to remove it for cleaner fermentation results)

 

[Maltose]

can anyone compare the advantages of Kai's whirlpooling technique to Jamil's whirlpool IC? I'm thinking of making the whirlpool IC. I have a keggle that I'm going to put a false bottom in and i'm wondering if the trub pile will settle into a nice cone or will the FB disturb it?

 

[Pilgarlic]

I never get good results from whirlpooling and I believe it's a result of what my Whirlfloc does to the trub. Anyone else using Whirlfloc getting good whirlpooling results?

 

[xxsn0blindxx]

Excellent thread. I will have to give this a try on my next brew. I've never had good luck with whirlpooling in the past most likely because I wasn't waiting 20-30 minutes after swirling. What I have done that has worked well is always put hops in a bag and then cover the inlet to my autosiphon with a clean hops bag which then pours into a screened funnel. The hops bag over the siphon prevents anything from getting in the funnel screen until the very bottom where it gets pretty murky and the funnel screen never gets plugged.

 

[Homercidal]

I use a CFC. I start my whirpool going fairly gently, then start setting up the CFC. By the time I get the connections made and the cold water started to prechill the chiller, I can start siphoning from the top of the kettle. I just run the siphon down the side and lower it a bit every couple of minutes until I start getting near the bottom. Then I work on slowly tipping the kettle to try and get as much of the wort to the siphon as possible.

 

[danweasel]

When whirlpooling should I use irish moss or no?

 

[scone]

I tried the whirlpool method and it didn't work for me either. I can think of two possible reasons (1) I used whirlfloc, and maybe it's better not to if whirlpooling? and (2) the temperature was around 75. Is this not cool enough to get the trub to settle?

Anyone have insight into the whirlfloc/irish moss question?
Should I have let the chiller run for longer? I recently bought 20 ft. of copper tubing just to make a prechiller since my tap water comes out ~80F, but it wasn't working as good as I expected it to so I gave up at 75F.

 

[Budzu]

Scone: Whirlfloc is good for whirlpooling, but watch the dosage. Using too much can make the break material too fluffy and it will more easily separate from the trub pile. That said I whirlpool and use whirlfloc, and I still get some break material into my fermenters (but not hops), and I like it better that way.
A good dosage for 5 gallons is a half tab. There will still be some variation for each setup so try some different amounts, you should be able to get some good results with some experimentation.
I wouldn't worry too much about getting out ALL break though, and after side-by-side evidence, break material does indeed help yeast activity in my experience.

 

[scone]

Budzu, thanks for the advice, I'll definitely try a 1/2 tab next time and see if that helps.

 

[SwampassJ]

Budzu, thanks for the advice, I'll definitely try a 1/2 tab next time and see if that helps.

Any update on how 1/2 a tablet worked? Last two batches with a full tablet I couldn't get the trub to settle below 2 gallons, much less form a cone.

 

[NuclearRich]

I would love to whirlpool, but here's my problem: No spigot on my kettle, so I pick the thing up and dump it into the primary (once cooled) and use a paint strainer. Aerates the hell out of the cold wort (which is a nice side effect), and the strainer works really well too.

 

[headfullahops]

In order to make for a smooth wort rotation, w/o many turbulences, you have to make sure that there is nothing sticking into the wort. Either a spigot that is flush to the inside of the pot or a ring that goes around the pot should work. The ring has the advantage that the wort can enter it at many places around the trub cone, thus reducing the draft (and with this potential trub intake) that can build up at a single point.

I have a weldless ball valve kit on my kettle with a 3/8" copper 180˚ elbow I soldered together that screws into the coupling on the inside so it draws from the outside corner of the kettle about an 1/8" off the bottom. In all, I'd say it sticks about 2.5" into the kettle.

I've never had an issue with whirlpooling. I do, however, whirlpool hot, rest for 5 minutes, and run through my CFC into the fermenter at pitching temp. I get a real nice trub cone and transfer clear wort to the CFC, obviously there's some cold break in the fermenter but that's gone once fermentation begins.

 

[iasquith]

I whirpool once cooled with good results, I also have a spigot in the side of the kettle which doesn't seem to cause problems.
I used to whirlpool hot, but noticed a marked improvement in clearing of the wort post chilling. I usually give it twenty minutes or so and syphon from the side.On my tubing I've got a small adjustable faucet that allows me to syphon real slow, I find this helps not to 'drag' too many beasties into the fermentor, oh yes 1\2 tab whirlflock per 5 gallons.

 

[funkswing]

Any update on how 1/2 a tablet worked? Last two batches with a full tablet I couldn't get the trub to settle below 2 gallons, much less form a cone.

I know what you mean. 1/2 tablet is the right dosage for 5 gal batch, but the bags are usually labeled wrong (maybe the suppliers are just trying to push out twice as much???).

From what I have gathered, Whirlfloc needs to be added at ~5 min before flameout. Boiling it longer than 10 min denatures it rendering it useless.
Irish moss on the other hand is best put in 10-15 min from the end of the boil.

So, at what time do you add the Whirlfloc tablet? Try 5 min next time and see if you get a better cone.

Personally, I have always gotten a better cone from irish moss, than Whirlfloc. I use an IC, and whirlpool after chilling (and removing the IC).

 

[SwampassJ]

Did a 1/2 tablet last two batches at 10 minutes, no dice. Going to try the 5 minute addition on my next brew.

 

[elproducto]

Great thread.. thanks. I've been frustrated with losing .5 gallon or more to TRUB every batch. Will whirlpooling help with this?

 

[SwampassJ]

Forgot to update from the 18th. Tried another half of a tablet of whirfloc at 5minutes, same results. Still no cone, but much less fluffy looking break material that could be from switching to a pilsner malt instead of the normal 2row I use.

 

[scone]

Any update on how 1/2 a tablet worked? Last two batches with a full tablet I couldn't get the trub to settle below 2 gallons, much less form a cone.

Sorry for the ridiculously late feedback. Actually I never ended up trying 1/2 a tab. I've taken to lining a large pasta strainer (one that came with my 2 gal. cooking pot) with a nylon bag and just pouring the contents of the kettle through it into the fermenter. If you let the trub settle even a bit (like 10 minutes) then the first 4 gallons go right through the nylon bag and the last gallon or so fills it and clogs it pretty good. I then just squeeze with my hands gently until most of the liquid comes out and discard the rest. I imagine I lose less than 1/2 a gallon this way, and it's pretty damn easy. :cross: