Whirlfloc Usage

Do you use Whirlfloc as your kettle fining?

  • Yes

    Votes: 30 90.9%
  • No

    Votes: 2 6.1%
  • Something Else

    Votes: 1 3.0%

  • Total voters
    33

Nosybear

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Was doing a bit of idle surfing yesterday and since I'm doing smaller batches, I got to wondering about how much Whirlfloc I really should be using. So here's the data I collected: A Whirlfloc tab weighs in at about 2.5 grams and the recommended dosage is 2 tabs per US barrel (31 gallons, or, as near as matters, a hectoliter (Okay, I know it's really 117.348 hectoliters)). Doing the math, it works out to 0.2 g/gallon (I'll stick to conventional units for volume from here on). Meaning my typical six gallon batches need about 1 gram of Whirlfloc. (0.16 grams/gallon). I've been overdosing by a factor of 2.5! My half-batches, by 5x! The Whirlfloc won't really hurt anything if overused (It will neutralize a bit of acidity - it has sodium bicarbonate to help it dissolve) but hey, since it's very hard to measure half a tab, I may as well grind them up and use Whirlfloc by weight.

Dosage per BSG's data sheet is 0.16 grams per gallon, or 0.04 g/liter. Time - the stuff degrades with time in the kettle. I've seen 15 minutes, I think I'll try 10.

I don't want to go back to straight Irish Moss (smells like Biloxi Bay at low tide) so I'll grind the tabs up and add by weight, unless anyone can tell me if there's a source of Whirlfloc powder out there....
 
I've heard that a whirlfloc tab is good for 10 gallons. Or maybe that's how I chose to store the information in my head. Every time I toss one in, I always think about how I'm supposed to break it in half. Not gonna do it!
 
I think I'm a little of an odd ball. I use one whirlfloc tablet per 5 gallons and in an addition, I add 1 teaspoon of Irish Moss. I have never had an issue doing this, both with mouthfeel, head retention or flavor (finished beers are extremely clear).

The active ingredient in whirlfloc and Irish Moss is carrageenan and drops out with the cold break. So my beers are way overdosed with carrageenen with no ill effects.

I wouldn't worry about it. One tablet per 5-10 gallons will be fine.
 
I think I'm a little of an odd ball. I use one whirlfloc tablet per 5 gallons and in an addition, I add 1 teaspoon of Irish Moss. I have never had an issue doing this, both with mouthfeel, head retention or flavor (finished beers are extremely clear).

The active ingredient in whirlfloc and Irish Moss is carrageenan and drops out with the cold break. So my beers are way overdosed with carrageenen with no ill effects.

I wouldn't worry about it. One tablet per 5-10 gallons will be fine.
But I'm doing 2.5 gallons quite often these days.... That's what started the entire thought process and dig into the background. I know that overdosing the beer with whirlfloc isn't a big issue. So I'm thinking of grinding and weighing.
 
I use it every time...beer always clears beautifully, but I've haven't tried a side-by side to see if it would take much longer without.
 
I have been using half tablet for my 2 gallon batches. I knew it was overkill but read it didn't hurt anything. It was just easy to snap in half and be done. Grinding them up and measuring weight is a brilliant idea and will make them last longer.
 
all I can say is too much doesn't matter, Ive added 1 crushed to a 5 gallon batch and it does the same fine job, all my beers are better because of whirlfloc
 
I use Deltaflock same thing I'm pretty sure their tabs weigh 5g I toss one in at 15min.
Good luck I'd just snap one in half and be done with it.:)
 
even as a no chill brewer i love the little guys , i get a solid cone of crud after whirlpool and take nice clean wort into cube .
Dirt cheap and easy to use so why wouldn't i ?
 
Interesting. I've been throwing in a half tab into my 3 gal batches but I like the idea of grinding them up for a more precise measurement. How do you plan on grinding them up?
 
I used to, at a rate of 1/2 per 5 gallons.
I got away from it as I get incredible evaporation during the boil which aids in break.
I have been experimenting with Clarity-Ferm at 1/3 the recommended rate.
I haven't seen a significant difference with either and the more that I brew, the more i get away from adding anything to my beers.
I can serve a clear beer in ~ 3 weeks without any finings, so why add them?
 
Interesting. I've been throwing in a half tab into my 3 gal batches but I like the idea of grinding them up for a more precise measurement. How do you plan on grinding them up?

just crush between 2 fingers, their pretty soft actually
 
I use that and protofloc which i think is pretty much the same thing. Half a tab in my 5-10 litre brews:cool:
 
Interesting. I've been throwing in a half tab into my 3 gal batches but I like the idea of grinding them up for a more precise measurement. How do you plan on grinding them up?
Mortar and pestle. The good old fashioned way.
 
I break them in half for smaller batches. Grinding and weighing is overkill...just crack 'em in half and throw 'em in. You're not going to overdose or underdose enough to make any difference at all. Save your scientific accuracy for water additions. ;)
 
I gotta believe that the guys at the Whirlfloc factory are laughing at you!! "Hey! We make tablets for a reason! RDWHAHB!!" :D
They do: two tablets per barrel (31 gallons). And my water additions are to a tenth of a gram.
 
It just goes to show you that everyone does something in their brewing routine that someone else says isn't necessary. We're all on both sides of that statement.
 
As long as we don't get rabbid about it , start calling each other horrible names like they do on other forums I have used
Absolutely! And I bit my tongue on secondary factors like low oxygen, decoction.... We brew the way we brew. I started this as a search for a practical way to get a quarter of a whirlfloc tablet - the ones I get are like breaking granite. How much whirlfloc to put in is closer to a tertiary factor, too much won't hurt and aside from a bit of optics, omitting it completely won't, either. It's a great shame we can't actually share beers - well, I have with two other members - to see what works.
 

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