r/Homebrewing • u/blackarrow_1990 • 2d ago
How to use whirlfloc without leaving trub behind when pouring wort into the fermenter?
I bought Whirlfloc to try to clarify my beer without adding anything on the cold side once the keg is purged and put into fridge.
I transfer the wort while it’s still warm. My concern is that if I add Whirlfloc 10 minutes before the end of the boil, it will do its job and the trub will settle to the bottom. However, I use a standard kettle on the stove without a spigot, so I have no easy way to transfer only the clear wort while leaving the trub behind.
My current process is to transfer the wort to the fermenter immediately after the boil, while it’s still hot, so the heat also helps sanitize the fermenter. I then cool the wort directly in the fermenter and pitch the yeast.
Does anyone have any suggestions for how I could use Whirlfloc effectively with this setup without transferring too much trub into the fermenter?
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u/Jimmy_LoMein Advanced 2d ago
How do you rapidly cool a fermenter full of just-boiled wort? This sounds problematic.
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u/beefygravy Intermediate 2d ago
Uhh, what do you mean by warm? I hope you mean basically 100C, because if you mean 30C then it ain't sanitising that fermenter
A standard method is to chill in the kettle, then do some sort of whirlpool, leave it for 10mins to settle, then pour carefully. You could do the whirlpool hot and it will help, but the cold break is formed by chilling
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u/toolatealreadyfapped 2d ago
I've never bothered to try to leave the trub behind. My kettle has a spigot. I use that until it's light enough to pick up and dump it all.
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u/microbusbrewery BJCP 2d ago
Add a valve and a pickup tube to your boil kettle.
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u/blackarrow_1990 2d ago
I am not sure if the seals will withstand temperature while boiling.
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u/microbusbrewery BJCP 2d ago
Standard stainless ball valves use PTFE seats and are usually rated for 400F (204C) at a minimum. The silicone o-rings that are typically used to seal the bulkhead to the kettle are usually rated for a minimum of 400F/204C as well. Unless you're exposing those to direct flame, they'll be fine. These kinds of things have been used by homebrewers for decades.
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u/chino_brews 2d ago
There are tens of millions of boil kettles/brew kettles in the world with ball valves. You are not noticing some brand new problem that wasn't already solved by the time Charlie Papazian started teaching homebrewing classes in 1973, perhaps solved in the 1700s.
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u/bishskate 2d ago
It’s been repeatedly demonstrated that you’ll get clearer beer if there some trub in your wort. Bobby from NJ has a good video on his channel
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u/chino_brews 2d ago
I don't understand why this is even a question for two reasons:
- There is no such thing as too much trub in the fermentor at homebrew scale, as long as everything fits into it. The evidence is conclusive at this point for the vast majority of beers.
- How have millions of homebrewers transferred beer from a plain HDPE bucket, off of the yeast cake into a bottling bucket. Why is it that you think your problem is so unique no one has done this before? Just do it the same way you would transfer beer out of a fermentor that does not have a special spigot. With a siphon of any sort. With a ladle. By carefully lifting the kettle and pouring the supernatent off the sediment. With a self-priming pump. Should I go on?
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u/meijad 2d ago
There are several ways to transfer. When I strarted brewing, I used a siphon. This allowed me to pull the wort leaving behind whatever I didnt want. As these are often plastic, you will definitely want to make sure everything is cooled down to reasonable temps. Other options are a jiggler auto siphon or a transfer pump.
If you are real careful to not disturb the liquid a great deal, you can also carefully pour it into your fermenter. I generally cool my wort in the kettle.
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u/MacHeadSK 2d ago
Personally I wonder if it's really needed. I did two batches without Irish moss/whirfloc, once even without chiller and it came out crystal clear (lager). Yeah, had to lager on cold crash for a month but I do that anyway
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u/hmbrewer 2d ago
It's ok to transfer some. I think it's good for the yeast. It will settle to the bottom of the fermentet. I use whirlflock but not until the last minute of the boil. I think it works.
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u/Gaz11211 1d ago
You need to give sufficient time post chilling for stuff to fall out if suspension.
Sure this gives a great photo opportunity for a hydrometer pic. But thats about it.
Send it all to the fermenter. Feed the yeast and get that bit of extra volume.
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u/blackarrow_1990 1d ago
But you would still use whirlfloc and transfer everything to fermenter? The goal is to have as much trub at the bottom of fermentor before going to kegs.
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u/Gaz11211 1d ago
Youll want it all in the fermenter, then everything will settle there, whirlfloc is a hot side fining. If your wanting to leave as much behind as you can, use a cold crash & a fining prior to kegging or just simply time.
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u/BartholomewSchneider 1d ago
You can just transfer the wort along with the trub into the fermenter, it will all settle out there.
Also, with the proper hole punch drill bit it is very easy to install a through wall spigot.
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u/BrewingBeaver 2d ago
Question,
I always put every bit of trub into my fermenter of the theory there’s stuff in there that will increase my abv and flavor. Should I be leaving it in the kettle?
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u/attnSPAN 2d ago
There is no trub that will increase abv.
However, there can be a case made for the trub contributing to better flavor.1
u/BrewingBeaver 2d ago
Would there not be sugars in what comes out of the bottom of the kettle after boil? I don’t use a hop basket so maybe mine is mostly hop sludge
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u/attnSPAN 2d ago
I hope not.
That would mean used an extract or adjunct sugar and managed to not dissolve it in boiling water.
That would be difficult.1
u/julianz 2d ago
If you leave trub in a jug to settle in a fridge you can easily recover 2/3 the volume as clear wort, so yes there are more fermentables in there.
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u/attnSPAN 1d ago
The original assumption is that it would increase ABV, not volume.
You are talking about increasing volume and that is possible using the method you describe.2
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u/seoba_me 2d ago
Fwiw i have a spigot and while trub is left in the kettle i still get a good amount of trub in the fermenter too, so you might be fighting a losing battle.
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u/boarshead72 Yeast Whisperer 2d ago
I use whirlfloc, but don’t care if the trub transfers (I try to leave behind hop gunk though). The whirlfloc creates large flocs that settle out easily, it doesn’t matter to me whether they settle in the carboy or are left behind in my kettle.