[pl8wrench]

hi everyone, i am wondering should you strain your wort? some people i see do it. other say not to. i am new to the home brewing and have created my first home brew a simple red ale. any feed back would be good and helpful.

thank you guys in advance

[Joe Sr.]

Welcome.

I think that the answer is "it depends."  Some people strain, some people don't.  I used to, but rarely do these days primarily as a time saver (it's not that much time, but every bit helps).

Straining will keep a lot of hop matter and other stuff out of your fermenter, but pretty much all of that will settle out anyway.

Straining the wort won't cause any problems so if you're inclined to do it, go right ahead.

[gymrat]

I kept getting clogged bottling wands and finding hop matter in my beers until I got one of these.





As an added bonus it helps oxygenate my wort.

[majorvices]

The only potential problem is you will raise the potential of contamination depending on your method.

[Joe Sr.]

I use bags for my grains and for my hop additions so I don't get near the amount of gunk that Gymrat is collecting.

[pl8wrench]

thank you for the insight. i am not worried about the time it could save in the long run. just want to make and bottle the best beer i can. i think i will stick with the non straining and maybe try it once or twice.

my first batch is in the bottles for 9 days now. i tried it at 7 days. just couldnt wait any longer. it was good. looking forward to when it is all finished up in carbonation stage.

thank again guys.

Chris
Beginner HomeBrewer

[reverseapachemaster]

I strain. I think it makes sense. Less trub in the fermentor makes rinsing yeast easier. The strainer helps aerate the beer and once a layer of hop material has formed in the strainer it creates a natural filter to help strain out break material and other garbage I dont want going into the fermentor. I don't think it necessarily aids the flavor of the beer but I do think it aids my brewing process and clarity, especially since I normally do not fine and only sometimes cold crash.

I do think you can make fine beer without straining.

[HoosierBrew]

I strain. I think it makes sense. Less trub in the fermentor makes rinsing yeast easier. The strainer helps aerate the beer and once a layer of hop material has formed in the strainer it creates a natural filter to help strain out break material and other garbage I dont want going into the fermentor. I don't think it necessarily aids the flavor of the beer but I do think it aids my brewing process and clarity, especially since I normally do not fine and only sometimes cold crash.

I do think you can make fine beer without straining.

+1

[metron-brewer]

I kept getting clogged bottling wands and finding hop matter in my beers until I got one of these.


As an added bonus it helps oxygenate my wort.

I strain using 5 gallon paint strainers. That's a great strainer, anything special about it and where did you find it?

[fmader]

I drain my wort through a spigot and hose. I attach a sanitized lady's leg stocking to the hose with a zip tie. I drain into a bucket and then pour the bucket through a funnel into a carboy. It is very effective and cheap. I just bought 20 pair at WalMart for 18 cents a pair.

[morticaixavier]

I drain my wort through a spigot and hose. I attach a sanitized lady's leg stocking to the hose with a zip tie. I drain into a bucket and then pour the bucket through a funnel into a carboy. It is very effective and cheap. I just bought 20 pair at WalMart for 18 cents a pair.

doesn't the ladies leg get sticky? She doesn't mind?

Another nice thing you can do is put some whole cone hops in the strainer or funnel and drain through them. they will act as a filter bed and give you some great hoppy aroma

[leejoreilly]

I kept getting clogged bottling wands and finding hop matter in my beers until I got one of these.


As an added bonus it helps oxygenate my wort.

I strain using 5 gallon paint strainers. That's a great strainer, anything special about it and where did you find it?

+1 to strainer bags

[HoosierBrew]

I kept getting clogged bottling wands and finding hop matter in my beers until I got one of these.


As an added bonus it helps oxygenate my wort.

I strain using 5 gallon paint strainers. That's a great strainer, anything special about it and where did you find it?

+1 to strainer bags

Love the 5 gallon paint strainer bags.  I use them to strain wort and they also make an awesome dry hop bag.  I buy them every time I go to Lowe's.

[joe_feist]

I drain my wort through a spigot and hose. I attach a sanitized lady's leg stocking to the hose with a zip tie. I drain into a bucket and then pour the bucket through a funnel into a carboy. It is very effective and cheap. I just bought 20 pair at WalMart for 18 cents a pair.

doesn't the ladies leg get sticky? She doesn't mind?

Another nice thing you can do is put some whole cone hops in the strainer or funnel and drain through them. they will act as a filter bed and give you some great hoppy aroma

I gotta figure that one out. When I've tried that in the past the hops float and swirl around. I don't get a filter bed. What am I missing? Thanks,

[morticaixavier]

I drain my wort through a spigot and hose. I attach a sanitized lady's leg stocking to the hose with a zip tie. I drain into a bucket and then pour the bucket through a funnel into a carboy. It is very effective and cheap. I just bought 20 pair at WalMart for 18 cents a pair.

doesn't the ladies leg get sticky? She doesn't mind?

Another nice thing you can do is put some whole cone hops in the strainer or funnel and drain through them. they will act as a filter bed and give you some great hoppy aroma

I gotta figure that one out. When I've tried that in the past the hops float and swirl around. I don't get a filter bed. What am I missing? Thanks,

perhaps let it drain through more slowly so it doesn't float the hops? or press them gently between the funnel and a strainer. When I do it the strainer doesn't fill up with liquid so the hops don't float.