# Filtering Beer Keg To Keg



## juzz1981 (30/5/10)

Hi,

I have been looking at getting a filter to obtain a bright clear beer, my question is:

How much gas does it use to push through the filter (19lt Corny Keg) and if its possible has anyone tried gravity filtering?

Cheers


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## jbumpstead (30/5/10)

juzz1981 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I have been looking at getting a filter to obtain a bright clear beer, my question is:
> 
> ...




Keg to Keg under CO2 pressure - It'll use the same amount of CO2 as you would use to dispense a 19L keg.

Gravity filtering - it can be done if the hose is large enough (normal 1/2 inch would do the trick). The only problem with gravity filtering is that if your filter blocks and the flow slows down you can't turn up the pressure to keep it flowing.

Cheers,

Bumma.


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## Cocko (30/5/10)

juzz1981 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I have been looking at getting a filter to obtain a bright clear beer, my question is:
> 
> ...



Go 'keg to keg' filter... from what I have read gravity takes too much time. Gravity filtering usually goes from fermenter to keg....

How much gas does it use: Simple answer, F%&K ALL! 

I never cared about clarity but had a mate who bought a filter... He sent me a photo of his beer and I was amazed at the clarity. *PLEASE NOTE: I am not saying you cannot achieve a crystal clear beer without one*... BTW: Mine weren't too cloudy anyway....

I am a 'lazy' brewer, as in, I don't crash chill or rack to a secondary, I also dont use any clearing agents, Gelatine etc...

After reading a post by 4* saying how filtering is similar to ageing your beer for a week I thought, fick it - 80 bux WTF!

The first beer I filtered, I was sold - looked SOO much better and tasted awesome - IMO! Maybe placebo but who cares... it did.

The big tip with filtering, keg to keg anyway, is make sure the keg you are filtering is as cold as you can get it. So, keg you beer, put keg in fridge for atleast 48 hours, then filter to a clean keg. Reason being is that if you are using a 1 micron absolute filter you should also catch any 'chill haze', if you filter it warm you won't because it is not active to filter.

Anyway, 2c.

Sorry, not good at photography but you get the idea!


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## Howlingdog (30/5/10)

Gravity is my Friend! One of the other components of Einstein's theory is also a big help - time. Speed of light I haven't got a handle on yet.

HD


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## clarkey7 (30/5/10)

Bumma said:


> Keg to Keg under CO2 pressure - It'll use the same amount of CO2 as you would use to dispense a 19L keg.
> 
> Gravity filtering - it can be done if the hose is large enough (normal 1/2 inch would do the trick). The only problem with gravity filtering is that if your filter blocks and the flow slows down you can't turn up the pressure to keep it flowing.
> 
> ...


Just to add to these sentiments....

With a perfectly clean filter (some guys filter more than one beer at a time) with gravity 45mins to 1hr unless you put said fermenter on your roof.....this is for 22L batch...will slow down for a double toward the end.

Clean filter with Keg to Keg with CO2, 10 - 15mins and less chance of O2 getting into you brew.

Saving time is my friend.......and you can't overflow the keg when filtering from another keg. :icon_cheers: 

PB


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## Zwickel (30/5/10)

Everything depends very much on the pore size of the filter.

Im using a 0.2 micron Pall filter, wont work by gravity only, I have to use a pump.
Benefit: crystal clear beer, as from a commercial brewery.

Cheers :icon_cheers:


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## juzz1981 (30/5/10)

Thanks for the help guys, 

My main concern was the gas usage because as im aware out of a 6.8KG cylinder you will carb and dispense approx 24 19lt kegs and was wondering how much of a change it would make if i had to use gas to push through the filter as well.

The reason for gas usage is not the cost of the gas but the distance i have to travel to have it refilled.


Thanks.


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## praxis178 (30/5/10)

juzz1981 said:


> Thanks for the help guys,
> 
> My main concern was the gas usage because as im aware out of a 6.8KG cylinder you will carb and dispense approx 24 19lt kegs and was wondering how much of a change it would make if i had to use gas to push through the filter as well.
> 
> ...



Being as I'm rather lazy (bought a kegging setup so I didn't have to go back to BOC to return my half used CO2 cylinder), I filter keg to keg under gas at serving pressure through a 1micron filter. So while not yeast free it is still very bright/clear into the glass, and only takes about 5-10mins depending on the style (weizens take longer than lagers)...... <_<


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## kelbygreen (30/5/10)

dont have kegs but helps tony before and he filters. Just fills on 50lt keg and uses co2 to push threw the filter and is clear as and seems to be fast and easy. Only problem I see is having spare keg and enough co2 to do it. but comes out clear as and cant see no reason to do it. 

Although on another note I done a true "lager" and fermented for 2 weeks, CC for 5 weeks and bottled for 3 weeks and its clearer then any commercial beer I pour next to it and more head. But that is alot of time to get a good true lager lol


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## argon (31/5/10)

juzz1981 said:


> Thanks for the help guys,
> 
> My main concern was the gas usage because as im aware out of a 6.8KG cylinder you will carb and dispense approx 24 19lt kegs and was wondering how much of a change it would make if i had to use gas to push through the filter as well.
> 
> ...



I gravity filter... takes about 1/2 hour to fill a keg. Did 2 batches last weekend. I purge everything with co2 first attach the filter to the beer out post attached to the fermenter. Open the poppet valve to release gas then open the fermenter tap starts the flow

I just put the fermenter as high as possible. Put it on top of a pot on top of a bench then filter on the bench, corny on the ground. Not as fast as pushing it through with gas, but i don't really care, i just sit back and a have beer or clean up while it's doing it's thing.


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## unrealeous (31/5/10)

I finally bought myself a filter - 1 micron absolute - and did a gravity filter from the fermenter into the keg over the weekend. About half an hour a keg...

I was a little disappointed with the result though - the final beer was still a little hazy even after filtering.

I'm now wondering if its something to do with the yeast I used - Brew celler European Lager yeast (which I think is similar to 34/70) - pretty dusty yeast and takes many many weeks of lagering to settle out...

Is this normal?


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## Batz (31/5/10)

unrealeous said:


> I finally bought myself a filter - 1 micron absolute - and did a gravity filter from the fermenter into the keg over the weekend. About half an hour a keg...
> 
> I was a little disappointed with the result though - the final beer was still a little hazy even after filtering.
> 
> ...




It should be clear as after filtering, perhaps your filter was not sealed in the housing allowing beer to bypass the filter.

Batz


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## praxis178 (31/5/10)

unrealeous said:


> I finally bought myself a filter - 1 micron absolute - and did a gravity filter from the fermenter into the keg over the weekend. About half an hour a keg...
> 
> I was a little disappointed with the result though - the final beer was still a little hazy even after filtering.
> 
> ...



Yes, 1micron isn't fine enough to strip out all the yeast, for that you need to go to ~0.2microns (and then a pump is required), so some would have gotten through the filter. The beer will still benefit from lagering so the beasties should drop out by the time you get to serve it, first glass will be a messy one, but high in vitamin B. LOL


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## Ross (31/5/10)

unrealeous said:


> I finally bought myself a filter - 1 micron absolute - and did a gravity filter from the fermenter into the keg over the weekend. About half an hour a keg...
> 
> I was a little disappointed with the result though - the final beer was still a little hazy even after filtering.
> 
> ...




Beer should be visually bright after passing through a 1 micron absolute cartridge, unless some yeast has bypassed the filter (unlikely, as housing will normally leak if not sealed properly). I would suspect that your remaining haze issues are not yeast - Try warming the beer & see if the beer turns clear, if it does, then you have chill haze, that can be removed by products like Polyclar.

cheers Ross

Edit: Diction


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## unrealeous (31/5/10)

Ross said:


> Beer should be visually bright after passing through a 1 micron absolute cartridge, unless some yeast has bypassed the filter (unlikely, as housing will normally leak if not sealed properly). I would suspect that your remaining haze issues are not yeast - Try warming the beer & see if the beer turns clear, if it does, then you have chill haze, that can be removed by products like Polyclar.


Well its not chill haze - just warmed a sample - so I'm thinking maybe I didn't get a proper seal - there was a bit of a leak when I was doing it - and also after some examination of the of the filter - it looks like I might not have had the thing in straight as there is a off-center ring marking in the plastic

Rookie error I'd say... oh well, live and learn


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## Banshee (30/7/10)

Thomas J. said:


> Yes, 1micron isn't fine enough to strip out all the yeast, for that you need to go to ~0.2microns (and then a pump is required), so some would have gotten through the filter. The beer will still benefit from lagering so the beasties should drop out by the time you get to serve it, first glass will be a messy one, but high in vitamin B. LOL



Yeast is usually 3-4 microns in size.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeast

So your beer will be yeast free.


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## Brewme (2/8/10)

I have used a filter for 4 batches and must admit the brew does come out really clear. I only use it if the brew looks too cloudy in the carboy. My filter came with a 1 micron cartridge not 'absolute' though.

I use the gravity system as I loathe washing an extra keg.

I usually fill 6 long necks first using one of those 'little bottlers'. This way there's 4.5 litres less in the carboy reducing it's weight by about 4.5 kilos. I then lift the lighter carboy off the bench onto the fridge and connect the hoses, carboy to filter and filter to keg. About 18 litres in about 15 minutes.

How do you guys wash the filter?

I have those John Guest fittings on my filter which makes it easier to remove the hoses for cleaning. After filtering, I take the filter with hoses to the laundry and use it in reverse....push water in through the OUT hose. After a few minutes it's almost like new. A soak in a sterilizer then left to dry ready for the next batch.


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## Navigator (6/6/19)

I'm a little late to the party but I have Just Brought a keg to keg filter with a 1 micron absolute filter in it, that was the easy part now the rest of it is messing with my head can someone please explain in simple man's terms how they do it,
I have read all over the net that some use out post to out post with 10 psi co2 open gas relief valve filing keg.
others say pre gas filling keg and up the gas in the first (emptying ) keg .
any help would be great.


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## theredone (7/6/19)

oops sorry...


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## Reg Holt (7/6/19)

Navigator said:


> I'm a little late to the party but I have Just Brought a keg to keg filter with a 1 micron absolute filter in it, that was the easy part now the rest of it is messing with my head can someone please explain in simple man's terms how they do it,
> I have read all over the net that some use out post to out post with 10 psi co2 open gas relief valve filing keg.
> others say pre gas filling keg and up the gas in the first (emptying ) keg .
> any help would be great.


Does this help.


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