Those that stopped vorlaufing and use a fine mesh bag....

[Rev2010]

...how have your results been? I've been thinking lately of just saving time by running my tubing from the mash tun into a fine mesh LD Carlson bag to catch small particulates instead of vorlaufing. Since I double batch sparge that's three vorlaufs and I got to thinking the bag would not only save time but work better. I've seen posts from a number of you that do this, but I'm curious to how well it works.


Rev.

 

[isomerization]

I BIAB and don’t vorlauf. Beers clear the same as the did before (or don’t).

 

[deadwolfbones]

I BIAB and don’t vorlauf. Beers clear the same as the did before (or don’t).

This.

 

[mashpaddled]

That would work fine for catching most of the grain bits but it misses out on the second purpose of vorlaufing which is to set the grain bed and avoid those small bits from getting into your valves and tubing and clogging it. That might not be a problem if you have other filters in your system (like a false bottom) but if you start having stuck mashes or stuck sparges you'll regret not vorlaufing.

Give it a try and see what happens with your system.

 

[GnenieGone]

Pet peeve thing, but drawing out and clarifying from the mash tun untile liquor is crystal clear makes me happy. As far as biab, I got in the habit of spraying the grains for about 15sec to "rinse" the dust out prior to mash. With that said, I was never happy with my biab beers so reverted back to my original AG method.

 

[Rev2010]

That would work fine for catching most of the grain bits but it misses out on the second purpose of vorlaufing which is to set the grain bed and avoid those small bits from getting into your valves and tubing and clogging it.

I would think the grainbed will set regardless. You're still running off wort, just not placing it back on top of the grainbed. As for clogging, yes definitely a false bottom, in this case it will be the Ss Brewtch mash tun. My first use with it will be next weekend and I have read people that own it say it takes a lot of vorlaufing for the wort to clear. I had already been planning to start trying using a mesh bag to strain anyhow and was just curious. I've only ever had tiny bits come out with my Rubbermaid, nothing that could in any way cause a valve to clog.


Rev.

 

[isomerization]

That would work fine for catching most of the grain bits but it misses out on the second purpose of vorlaufing which is to set the grain bed and avoid those small bits from getting into your valves and tubing and clogging it. That might not be a problem if you have other filters in your system (like a false bottom) but if you start having stuck mashes or stuck sparges you'll regret not vorlaufing.

Give it a try and see what happens with your system.

I have experienced stuck sparges with BIAB when mashing large grain bills, with high amounts of flaked grains and trying to run off too quickly. Incorporating a vorlauf might have helped, but I suspect it would have been from lower flow rates.

What has helped greatly is to add flaked grains, pour in strike water and then stir in milled grains. Maybe I was getting a gum ball at the bottom of the bag before?

 

[RM-MN]

The original intent of the vorlauf was to keep too many grain particle from getting into the boil kettle where it was thought that those grain and husk particles would cause astringency, not to get completely clear wort. Experiments have been done that show that even quite a bit of grain/husk material in the kettle don't affect the beer. If you feel the need to vorlauf until you get clear wort, please continue/

 

[mongoose33]

...how have your results been? I've been thinking lately of just saving time by running my tubing from the mash tun into a fine mesh LD Carlson bag to catch small particulates instead of vorlaufing. Since I double batch sparge that's three vorlaufs and I got to thinking the bag would not only save time but work better. I've seen posts from a number of you that do this, but I'm curious to how well it works.
Rev.

I have a coleman cooler mash tun with a torpedo screen in it. One day, while vorlaufing, it occurred to me to tie a hop sock around it, and voila! Much faster vorlauf!

I've since also lined that cooler with a BIAB bag, and done it that way. It certainly reduces the flow of particulate matter into the BK. However, I don't think it's perfect at screening out the finer particles, as when I use this I'm not setting the grain bed and recirculating.

 

[Rev2010]

The original intent of the vorlauf was to keep too many grain particle from getting into the boil kettle where it was thought that those grain and husk particles would cause astringency, not to get completely clear wort.

I'm not at all trying to clear the wort, just remove the particulates, I just tend to use the word "clear" to reference the practice of removing small particles of grain. I'm not trying to produce crystal clear wort at all. I typically would only vorlauf around a quart with my Rubbermaid tun.


Rev.