Kettle Drain Confusion

[Jakechan]

Can someone explain to me why all the kettle drains I am seeing exit the kettle so high up the sides?

Like this:

http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...st&p=278332


This is what I think I understand so far:

1. The pipe goes through the hop screen and stops an inch or two above the kettle bottom.

2. The wort is supposed to be syphoned out. How is this achieved safely? Can you really syphon out all the wort - how much is usually left in the kettle with this setup?

Surely the pipe would be best as low as possible, leaving maybe a small gap to the hop screen for circulation?

I am about to put a tap into my 50 litre kettle today and was just going to do without a hop screen, and rely on simply gravity feeding the wort out. Would I be best putting it 'x'mm above the bottom with a pipe anyway? Maybe with a view to adding a homemade hop screen at a later date?

Thanks in advance for the help!

Cheers,
Jake

 

[BOG]

As per the pictures you see in posts is varies.

Pump suction or a good syphon effect from a gravity feed drop will pull the remaining liquid up and over the height for the outlet tube.

BOG

 

[Screwtop]

Really doesn't have to be all that low, best to be up away from the curve on the bottom and away from the heat source for mounting a weldless fitting. Syphon effect will pull the wort out and drain right down to where your pickup is mounted. Best at the side of the kettle bottom, and whirlpooling the wort to position the trub and break material in the centre of the kettle to leave it all behind in your kettle loss volume.


Screwy

 

[drsmurto]

I use a 50L keg for a kettle (legally acquired )

Beerbelly hopscreen.

Dodgy phone pic of the kettle after draining (tipped on a angle for the last 5 or so litres towards the hopscreen).

I gravity feed it thru a chiller into a fermenter. The kettle is raised off the ground with bricks so that i dont need a pump top transfer to the fermenter (see 2nd pick - note the prop up brick bottom right hand corner!)

 

[Jakechan]

Thanks guys, off to a short work meeting, will check in later. Already I can see some sense now though.

Cheers,
Jake

 

[seemax]

I use a copper pipe attached to my outlet tap. It's curved towards the edge of the kettle so the inlet is facing away from the centre of the kettle (ie where the hops pile up after whirlpool). The pipe sits about 10mm off the base.

I no-chill, so after flame out I gently whirlpool for about 30secs and let it sit for a while until it stops rotating. Assuming you have no air pockets or restrictions in your drain tube, there will be enough suction pressure to keep the wort draining, even when the wort is below the tap height. Without a screen you will get some hops, but they usually settle along with the hot break in my no chill cube.

You can do well with no pickup tube, and in fact whirlpooling works better without obstructions in the kettle. Drain normally, then tilt the kettle towards tap until the hops start entering the stream. I usually waste about 2L with this method, still quite acceptable.